Hike Location: Lake Lowndes State Park
Geographic Location: east of Columbus, MS (33.43479, -88.30136)
Length: 4.8 miles
Difficulty: 4/10 (Moderate)
Date Hiked: March 2019
Overview: A loose circumnavigation of Lake Lowndes.
Park Information: https://www.mdwfp.com/parks-destinations/state-parks/lake-lowndes
Directions to the trailhead: East of Columbus, take
US 82 to Lee Stokes Road, which is the easternmost exit on US 82 in Mississippi. Exit and drive Lee Stokes Rd. south 0.2 miles
to SR 182. Turn right on SR 182. Drive SR 182 west 2 miles to New Hope Road;
there is a 4-way stop at this intersection.
Turn left on New Hope Rd. Drive
New Hope Rd. south 3.9 miles to Lake Lowndes Road and turn left on Lake Lowndes
Rd. Lake Lowndes Rd. dead-ends at its
namesake park. Pay the park entrance fee
and drive the main park road to the large parking lot for the lodge/office on
the left.
The hike: Located
in extreme eastern Mississippi flush against the Alabama state line, Lake
Lowndes State Park is one of the best-amenitied state parks in this part of
Mississippi. The park’s namesake
150-acre lake offers fishing, boating, and water skiing. In terms of lodging, the park offers a
50-site developed campground, a tent camping area, 6 cabins, and 2
cottages. Other amenities include a disc
golf course, an indoor basketball court, a playground, athletic fields, tennis
courts, and picnic areas.
All of the aforementioned amenities
are located on Lake Lowndes’ west side.
For active outdoor enthusiasts, the undeveloped east side of Lake
Lowndes State Park features an extensive trail system. The park offers several horse and mountain
bike trails, but the main hiker-only trail is the 3.5 mile one-way Opossum
Nature Trail. While the Opossum Nature
Trail could be done as a 7 mile out-and-back if you wanted to stay on dirt
trails for the entire distance, hiking 1.3 miles of park roads that connect its
two ends allows you to form a 4.8 mile loop, which is the hike described here.
You could start this hike anywhere
along the main park road, but I chose to start at the parking lot for the
lodge/office because 1) it is large and easy to find, and 2) it splits the long
road walk into two smaller pieces. From
this parking lot, head south on the main park road with the lake on your
left. You will pass the tennis courts,
tent camping area, playground, disc golf course, picnic pavilion, and developed
campground en route to the dam that creates Lake Lowndes. Upon reaching the dam area, walk through the
spillway and past the ranger residence on the right, then look to the left for
the signed start of the Opossum Nature Trail.
 |
| Start of Opossum Nature Trail at dam |
With the asphalt behind you (for
now), the Opossum Nature Trail heads across the warm sunny earthen dam. Nice views extend down the length of the lake
to the left. At 1.1 miles, you reach the
east side of the dam. Next comes a
slight climb on a two-track dirt road to reach an open grassy area that looks
like an old construction, logging, or primitive camping area. As directed by a sign, turn left and soon
begin following a single-track dirt trail marked with occasional green tags
nailed to trees.
 |
| One of the better bridges |
For most of the next 2.5 miles the
trail stays close to the lake while making some short but moderately steep ups
and downs. I recommend waterproof boots
for this hike because several of the low areas remain quite muddy most of the
year. The mature forest on this side of
the lake is a nice mixture of pines and broadleaf trees highlighted by some
large beech trees. Plenty of sweet gum
also live here, and some redbuds in bloom brightened my path on my mid-March
hike.
 |
| Lake view from bench |
At 2.3 miles, you pass a bench located right beside the lake. The Opossum Nature Trail features several wooden
constructions such as benches, steps, and bridges, but many of these
constructions were in poor shape on my visit. One of the bridges I tried to cross shifted
under my weight and sent me tumbling into a creek. I was underwater for a few seconds, and the
impact left a large bruise just below my left knee. I managed to get back on my feet and limp my
way around the rest of the loop, but some of these bridges are unsafe and
desperately need to be rebuilt.
 |
| Collapsed bridge |
Soon after leaving the lake behind, you reach an unmarked trail
intersection and another bench at 3.8 miles.
This intersection marks the north end of the hiker-only Opossum Nature
Trail. To continue the loop, turn left
here to begin following an old road that is also open to horse and mountain
bike travel.
The wide trail crosses the main creek that feeds Lake Lowndes on a
culvert before climbing moderately on an eroded muddy track to reenter the
park’s developed area. Follow the side
road out to the main park road near the gate house, then turn left and walk the
main park road back to the lodge/office parking lot to complete the hike.
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