Black Creek Wilderness
Sonny Boy Cochran Rd, Brooklyn, MS
Brooklyn, MS
A tannin-dark creek winding between white sandbars and longleaf pines, the only federally designated wilderness in all of Mississippi.
Black Creek Wilderness is the only federally designated wilderness area in Mississippi, a stretch of the De Soto National Forest set aside to be left wild, without roads or development. At its heart flows Black Creek, the state's only National Wild and Scenic River, a slow, tea-dark stream stained by tannins from the leaves and roots of the swamp forest it drains.
The creek's signature feature is its sandbars, wide beaches of clean white sand that appear on the inside of every bend, perfect for a swim, a picnic, or a night of camping under the pines. Paddlers float the creek and hikers follow the long Black Creek Trail through the surrounding forest, finding in this corner of the Pine Belt a rare and welcome silence.
What Guests Love
- Paddling a tea-colored creek between broad white sandbars
- The longest hiking trail in Mississippi threading through the pines
- Camping and swimming on the clean sand beaches along the water
- A genuine wilderness quiet found almost nowhere else in the state
Worth Knowing
- This is a designated wilderness with no facilities; carry water, a map, and take out all trash
- The creek rises quickly after heavy rain, so check conditions before you paddle
- Spring and fall are the most comfortable seasons; summer is hot and buggy
- Cell service is spotty in the forest, so tell someone your plans before you go
Details
Brooklyn, MS
Learn about Black Creek Wilderness
Mississippi's only wilderness
In 1984 Congress designated Black Creek Wilderness under the federal Wilderness Act, the law that protects the wildest federal lands from roads, motors, and development so they can remain, in the law's words, untrammeled by man. It is the only such area in Mississippi, a distinction that gives this quiet corner of piney woods an outsized importance to people who love wild country.
The same era brought Black Creek its second honor, designation as a National Wild and Scenic River, a status reserved for free-flowing rivers with outstanding natural or cultural value. Between the two protections, this stretch of creek and forest is about as close to untouched as land gets in the Deep South, a place managed to stay wild rather than to be improved.
The dark water and white sand
Black Creek is a classic blackwater stream. Its water is stained the color of strong tea by tannins leached from decaying leaves and roots in the swampy bottoms it drains, clear but dark, so that a paddle disappears a few inches below the surface. Blackwater creeks like this are typical of the coastal plain of the Deep South and support a rich, specialized web of life.
The great charm of the creek is its sandbars. On the inside of nearly every bend the current drops its load of clean, pale sand, building broad beaches that shine against the dark water and the green forest. Paddlers pull out to swim, picnic, and camp on them, and in warm weather they become the creek's living rooms. The sand shifts and moves with every high water, so the beaches are never quite the same twice.
Paddling and the Black Creek Trail
Canoeing and kayaking are the classic way to experience Black Creek, a gentle float suited to families and beginners in normal water, with easy current and countless sandbars to stop on. Local outfitters near Brooklyn rent boats and run shuttles, and a leisurely day on the water is one of the great outings in south Mississippi. After heavy rain the creek rises and speeds up, so it pays to check conditions first.
On foot, the Black Creek Trail runs many miles through the De Soto National Forest, the longest hiking trail in the state, following the creek and its uplands through longleaf pine, hardwood bottoms, and cypress swamp. Backpackers camp along the way, and shorter day hikes reach fine overlooks and sandbars. Between the water and the trail, the wilderness rewards both the paddler and the walker.
The longleaf forest, wildlife, and seasons
The forest here is part of the great longleaf pine belt that once covered much of the Southern coastal plain, an open, park-like woodland of tall pines over a floor of wiregrass and wildflowers, kept healthy by periodic fire. Along the creek the trees shift to hardwood bottoms and cypress swamp. It is home to deer, turkey, otters, alligators in the sloughs, and a rich chorus of birds, including woodpeckers that favor the old pines.
Spring and fall are the best times to visit, mild and green, with spring bringing wildflowers and fall a run of color in the hardwood bottoms. Summer is hot, humid, and buggy but prime for cooling off on the sandbars, while winter is cool and quiet, a fine season for a hike when the insects are gone and the forest is at its most open.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near Brooklyn
Brooklyn
A few miles
A tiny piney-woods community and the main jumping-off point for paddling Black Creek, with local canoe outfitters.
Hattiesburg
About 25 miles, a 35 minute drive
The Pine Belt's hub city, home to universities, museums, a historic downtown, and the Longleaf Trace rail-trail.
De Soto National Forest
Surrounding
A large national forest of longleaf pine and swamp with trails, camping, and off-highway trails across south Mississippi.