If you love he outdoors, solitude and dirt roads, the Clear Springs Recreation area is the place…read morefor you. Most people who visit this part of the Homochitto National Forest do so for either camping or lakefront activities. The lake here is typical of Mississippi lakes which is to say that it is beautiful, filled with fish and if you really want, you can swim in it. Surrounding the lake there are several picnic tables, shelters and permanently mounted charcoal grills. The lake has an area sectioned off for swimming, but let me warn you, this is no swimming pool. While I haven't personally swam in this lake, I have swam in many like it. Feel a little nibble while you're swimming? That's not your girlfriend, that's a perch. If you think that will freak you out, don't swim here. All of the stuff I just wrote about is great, but it is not why I visited here. My visit was a result of a guy at work telling me all about the dirt roads that run throughout the forest. Since it was a holiday weekend I couldn't get a map to find the roads so I just set out exploring. If dirt roads are what you are interested in, this is the section of the park to find them. Right before you come to the area to pay your fee there will be a gravel road toward your left. Do yourself a favor and follow it. The roads that traverse this park offer an amazing journey. There are actually several different roads, many of which my GPS picked up. The roads were labeled with numbers, but the main one was listed as Wagon Wheel Road on my GPS. Since the roads are gravel even a car can pass easily, but a truck or 4x4 would allow you to do what I did. Along the gravel roads there are many smaller dirt roads. I believe they are all part of the national forest road system, but they are not labeled. They are also more difficult to traverse and some even required high ground clearance and four wheel drive. I spent hours exploring this forest. During that time I never saw any other people. It was very peaceful. So why would anyone want to drive through a great expanse of forest on a dirt road? If you have to ask, this is probably not the place for you. If you enjoy this sort of thing, this is a great place to get away from it all.

A group of us took a trip here this past weekend. It was picturesque. We did hiking, mtn biking and…read moreswam in the lake. I strongly recommend it. We tent camped by the lake, but there are primitive sites way off the beaten track. It is a large forest with 20+ miles of trails. They were well marked along the trail itself but hard to find when you are crossing over the fire roads and connectors. We spent half the day on the trails and would have kept going if we would have brought more supplies. We only found the Richardson Trail worth biking and the pine smell and rolling hills were well worth all the energy we exerted. The Mill Road is a nice hike, just very rooty. Tally's is closed at the camping entrance, but we had to take it to connect to the Richardson for biking- it is also rooty. Highly recommend this spot! Note You can't make camping reservations early and RVs are not allowed.

Hard to get to as it's down a curvy hill between two casinos but was worth it. Full of space for…read moreparties (two were taking place at the time), free playground for kids. Benches for tired adults. Can see the river and the beautiful big bridge.

&tldr; For campground, pick sites 22-49; AVOID sites 1-22…read more We recently booked 2 nights in Site 8, not knowing any better. Unlike most parks, signs here direct you to go straight to your site if you already have a reservation. There's no gate, nor place to check-in; the "office" is at the far end of the road past both campgrounds. Speaking of which: the road in has signs directing you to Campground A or Campground B; but those names aren't used in the reservation system. It turns out that Campground A is Sites 1-22, and Campground B is sites 22-49; we found out later that A is the "old" campground and B is the "new". Campground A is a nightmare. Our first problem was with the dump station, which is on the side of a narrow one-way road; problem being that it's just a tube sticking out of the ground ON THE PASSENGER'S SIDE of the road. Our rig, like most out there, has the dump port on the DRIVER'S side; not sure WHAT the designers were thinking here. And the dump "station" has no water to available for rinsing/flushing either. After pulling into Site 8, we made the mistake of hooking up our filter+ hose to the spigot there and filling our fresh water tank, without CHECKING the water quality first. It wasn't until we went to fill our water bottles from the spigot afterwards that we realized the water coming out of it rotated through shades of white, tan, and brown - no matter how long you let the water run to try to "flush" the line first. Thinking it might just be our faucet, we tried the one in Site 7 too - with the same result. Attached photo is of the "cleanest" water we could get from the spigot after running it through our Camcorder water filter. The water coming out of the bathroom faucets seemed cleaner, but the stains on the porcelain implied that there were still contaminants in the water that were just hard to see. The showers were small stalls with shower curtains; no private changing area. Water was hot, with good water pressure though. The 30 Amp outlet at the site was also well abused - and looked to be of questionable safety. The next morning, we went to Campground B to see if things were better there. Much. We found an unoccupied site, and tested the water spigot: nice clean water. 30 Amp outlet was intact. Two shower stalls in the bathhouse: one with a private changing area, and one large enough to change in. The dump station on the way out of Campground B is standard / nice: dump hole on driver's side, with a threaded spigot (and cutoff hose available) for rinsing/flushing. We went to the office and switched to Site 30, no questions asked (the lady in the office was really nice). Campground B is near the water, and really quite pleasant. The only "ding" is that the washer and dryer in the bathhouse were both tagged"out of order". (Unfortunately, our Camco water filter was so badly fouled by the water in Campground A - continued to intermittently belch brown colored water, despite repeated flushing - that we had to replace it.)

We camped here for a week while touring Natchez and the surrounding area. Nice quiet park during…read morethe week outside the normal tourist flow during the Spring Pilgrimage. Bathrooms were clean but washer and dryer were out of commission. Friendly park staff. Electric and water hookups worked as designed. The dump was separate but clean and functional.

Cool place. But not worth the drive as it is in the middle of nowhere. We were there long enough…read moreto take a couple pictures. Ruins were gated off when we visited.

This man owned 21,000 acres before the Civil War kicked off. Let that soak in. 21,000 acres. As I…read morestood there looking at the remnants of this short-lived plantation home, all I could think of was all the people (specifically slaves) that went into making this mansion and expansive plantation possible during a time in which combines, tractors, and modern day resources were years down the pipeline. I really wish the site offered more insight on the human side of the Windsor Ruins story. You'll find yourself winding down the Natchez Parkway and off the beaten trail to find the columns and crumbling framework of Windsor Ruins. Note that there is now a large fence surrounding the entire home for safety and preservation purposes. Unfortunately, each year the columns are crumbling at an astounding rate and with this site being out in the middle of nowhere, it seems that it could be easily forgotten if not preserved soon. Fun perspective: from the top pergola of the home they were able to see the Mississippi River. The railing you see hanging at the top is from the second story balconies. I can only imagine how tall the ceilings were in this home based on the height and grandiose vibes of the remaining columns. Upon arriving, you'll see a small sign and a few spots to park. If you choose to walk around in the brush- be warned of ticks. (Speaking from firsthand experience here)

Very pretty park. Pay for the deluxe back in on the lake spots - worth it! Beautiful. Very safe,…read moreall just families camping. We stayed in the RV spots but the tent spots look nice too - but there are lots of trees so I bet mosquitos could get bad in the tent spots.

Great level sights, beautiful scenery, trails,bike paths,clean public bathrooms. Dog friendly,…read morestaff are wondeeful,happy,helpful. Park is well played out,the flow,walk around lake, is user friendly,wheel chair friendly. Lots of even ground on trails both walking hiking. Just a really nice must see,stay park. Has tent sites too that are level well maintained.

Tucked away a few hours away from New Orleans was a hidden gem. I so needed the fresh air that this…read morenatural area provided. My biggest question was where has all the water gone ‍ while the trees were beautiful to see along with the colorful birds I saw along the way. The streams and creeks seemed a bit low. If you love hiking the trails are great and well outlined.

Great place to go Hiking!!! Just be prepared with water and a back pack!!!' Food and fun! ! Highly…read morerecommend but just be prepared when you go!!! Hiking shoes water and be ready to go!!! Beautiful place!!! You need to check it out!!!

Park has lots of potential but fall short. Natual beauty with rolling hills and trees. Peaceful but…read moreneeds routine maintenance to help make it shine as a tourist spot.

Very beautiful park with plenty of camping spots (they do fill up quick during fair weather) and…read moregreat hikes. For kids, there's the Arboretum and a splash pad near the South campground. We went during Halloween and the trick or treating event was a hit! Definitely will return next year.

Large tracts of unadulterated wilderness. Sasquatch would love it here. The sandy/gravelly river…read moreit's named for is loaded with secluded sand bars, but beware the quicksand!

Very nice place and well worth going see. It is only 5 dollars a car to enter and they have so many…read morethings to do you can launch your boat, go swimming, fish, BBQ, or just enjoy the view. They have a playground for children and located near it is the swimming area. Which includes a changing facility, BBQ pits and tables to sit on. Not to mention the great views they have the entire place. Definitely my go to place for a get away and relax location.