Mississippi’s Grand Canyon The Red Bluffs
Mississippi has a unique roadside attraction called the Red Bluffs. It is also called Mississippi’s Grand Canyon. The views are amazing but there is one thing to be wary of.
A view I did not expect to see in Mississippi, this is the Red Bluff.
Where is it?
Just off of Hwy 587 in Foxworth Mississippi, a closed off service road turns into a dirt parking lot. Beyond this parking lot is Mississippi’s own red “grand canyon" known as the Red Bluff that has formed from many years of natural erosion. The sudden elevation difference between the nearby road and the Pearl River has allowed deep ravine-like runoffs to carve their way through the scenery.
I hope the shear depth of the canyon can be felt thought the photo!
Things to know
Full Disclosure: the Red Bluffs this is not a state park nor is it a protected or even a maintained area. It is a roadside spectacle. This means that the Red Bluffs have no hours of operation, no gates, and no designated trails. I both liked and disliked this. On one side it means you can explore wherever you want, if you want to climb that hill you can! Just make sure to keep in mind if you climb into the canyon, you will have to figure out how to get yourself out, there are no park rangers, even grounds keepers, or even cameras to monitor who goes in and who comes out. On the topic of no grounds keepers this means you never know what you might find while exploring. Remember the canyon has been carved by run off water, and quite a few things come down with it ie, broken glass, chunks of asphalt, car seats, lawn mowers, and much more.
Lastly this location would be great to watch a sunrise or sunset but again beware, as an unmanageable area, you don't know who you might disturb at night. We discovered a number of undesignated campfires, and several were still smoldering by the afternoon.
THe Views
Putting the lack of regulations aside, this site still offers a jaw dropping view. Just past the tree line, right off the main highway, we did not expect to see the amazing vista that the Red Bluffs canyon supplies. Year from year this site will look different. Even the original service road has started to erode into the canyon itself which gives the park an otherworldly, post apocalypse feel.
two parking areas
You can reach the Bluff from two different sides of the caved-in service road. One side has a dirt parking lot, the other side has a pull off with a large metal blockade. My wife and I completely missed both areas the first time we passed, after making a U-turn we parked on the side with the metal blockade.
Metal Blockade signaling the start of the walking trail leading to the Red Bluff Canyon!
On either side of the blockade is a small trail to walk around. It felt eerie to walk along the abandoned road as everything opened up in front of us. As we followed the road more of it became eroded away as the ravine that is the Red Bluffs opened up to us. At one point we were forced off the road and had to walk among the trees until we emerged at the other parking area.
This area (pictured below) was the main parking lot, mostly because it offered the best viewing area. As you walk past the cars there's a large flat cliff where you can look down (if you dare) at the straight drop off.
The second parking lot on the opposite side of the where the metal blockade is set.
Heading down
A trail is off to the left heading down the ridge. Overall the trail is pretty nice, you do have to watch your step as roots are everywhere. Since there are no markers you just keep going down until you get to the bottom. Once on the bottom you can follow the train tracks, cross over the train tracks to the river, or follow the little stream coming from the side of the ridge. We walked to train tracks for a bit then turned around at the old train graveyard where large graffiti metal twisted near the riverbank. After we returned to the ridge we took the stream trail and headed into the ridge. Here you can really see some interesting things as this is where a lot of runoff debris ends up after heavy rains. We saw chairs, seat cushions, and even small lawn equipment. After not being able to figure out where to go we decided to return to the top of the canyon.
Overall I am left with this feeling of disappointment. Everything about the Red Bluffs could be so much better. I'd really love to see this spot with a developed trail system. At the moment, it just feels like a roadside attraction.
TRAIL REVIEW
DIFFICULTY: 7 OF 10
Most of the trail is really easy, it is when you start to explore more is when it can be difficult. Since you can literally go into the canyon you can make the trail back easy or hard depending on the route you choose!
ABILITY TO FIND: 4 OF 10
If you are expecting to see signage to help you find this area you will be disappointed. I strongly recommend to look up the area on google maps street view to get an idea of what to look for once you get in the approximate area. Google will definitely get you there even if you don’t know where to park.
ENJOYMENT: 7 OF 10
Overall I loved visiting and seeing this amazing work of erosion but I was left with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. The amount of trash and random fires keeps the site from being truly amazing.
