Tuxachanie

Hike Name: Tuxachanie Location: southeast MS Length: 27 Submitted by: Brian Thompson Date Submitted: 0/0/00 Rating:	more Mississippi trail reviews Mississippi national parks Mississippi state parks
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Description
Hiked Dec 2004--Starting at the Hwy 49 Trailhead, you hike for a well kept 1 mile before you come to a footbridge that has been washed out. A rope has been strung across the stream to the right of the trail and it was very easy to cross while holding onto the rope and walking on a tree directly underneath it. Follow the trail for about 4 more miles until you reach Airey Lake. Airey Lake has running water and a bathroom. Take the opportunity to fill up your water here as there is no more reliable drinking water on the trail. The water at the P.O.W. camp will have to be boiled. If you don't turn around here, you follow the trail about 6 miles to a fork in the trail marked by a sign post. This is the start of the loop of the trail. Keep right, as it is very hard to follow the trail if you go left. After about 5 more miles you come to another fork (signpost) in the trail. If you go straight you will arrive at the P.O.W camp in about 1 more mile. If you go left, you will continue to the backside of the loop. The backside trail is fairly well marked for the next 2 miles or so until you emerge at a road. Turn right and follow the road across a bridge and the trail re-enters the woods on your left. After about 0.5 mile, you will come to yet another fork. A sign says for hikers to go left, however, at the time of my hike the trail was impossible to follow due to some tornado damage. Instead we followed the horse trail to the right. The horse trail is more difficult to follow in some parts and was under a good foot or more of water in certain locations. After about 6 miles or more, the trail T's on an old ATV road. Turn LEFT here. If you turn right, you will come to a fallen tree stand on your right after about 0.5 a mile. Turn around. Follow the trail through several bogs, pine clearings, and thick brush. There are several small fallen trees that cross the trail making it hard to follow along the way. Eventually after about 10-12 miles from the road, you will come full circle to the same fork in the road that is about 6 miles from Airey Lake. Follow the trail back to Airey Lake and then to the Hwy 49 Trailhead. If hiking the back part of the loop, I suggest getting a map. While it's not impossible to follow the trail without one, I did it, I'm sure it would be easier with a map. All things considered, the trail is very nice, with a lot of good scenery. Watch out for hunters on the back half of the loop during hunting season.

Directions to Hike
Go north from Gulfport Mississippi on Highway 49 and when you enter Saucier keep going and you will see it on your right (or comming south from Hattiesburg you will see it on your left).

Contact Information
DeSoto National Forest
PO Box 248
Wiggins, MS 39577
phone: (601) 928-5291

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