Hey guys! I recently got back from a 43 mile, overnight kayaking trip. With my buddy Corban, I paddled down the Chunky River and Chickasawhay River in Mississippi!
If you’re not from Mississippi, you’ve probably never heard of these two rivers. You might even be laughing at the name “Chunky River.” As funny as it sounds, I’d vote for the Chunky River to be one of Mississippi’s best paddles!
Let me give you a little information on the river system before I share about our trip. The Chunky River and Chickasawhay River are both parts of the Pascagoula River Watershed. In other words, you can start from Chunky, Mississippi, and float down into the Gulf of Mexico. The Chunky River merges with Okatibbee Creek to form the Chickasawhay River. Then the Chickasawhay River merges with the Leaf River to create what’s known as the Pascagoula River. Many interesting facts and stories make the Pascagoula River System world renown, some of them quite strange. I think what’s most interesting about this river system, is that it’s the last unaltered major river system in North America! “Unaltered” meaning no dams controlling the water flow. That’s a HUGE deal, and not many are aware of this fact. Yet, this natural resource is hiding right inside of Mississippi!
So let’s dive into the trip!
The Launch
The original plan was to kayak around 30 miles. The trip was supposed to start at Stuckey’s Bridge, which has its own stories and legends worth writing about it. Also, as a side note, if you need a historic old bridge for a photoshoot, I’d recommend checking this place out! What ended up being hilarious was that we did NOT get dropped off at Stuckey’s Bridge. Our driver, my father, swore he knew where Stuckey’s bridge was located. Instead, he took us to another closed historic bridge on Griffis Fountain Rd. Close but not quite right.
Not wanting to shy away from the challenge of extra mileage, we decided to put in at Griffis Fountain Rd Bridge for the full 43-mile experience. For those wishing to kayak or paddle this river, this access point is probably as far up the river as you would want to start. It’s about a mile before the beginning of what’s known by locals as the 7-mile bend. No, it’s not 7 miles. But being the upper part of the river, the water levels between here and Stuckey’s bridge can get pretty low, so keep that in mind should you paddle it.
Once we set out onto the river that morning, we immediately fell in love with this float. The fall foliage was on full display! Despite paddling down this river numerous times, I don’t think I’ve actually paddled this portion of the river during the autumn season, or at least while the leaves were still changing colors. Corban and I weren’t the only ones enjoying it either. Plenty of wildlife was venturing out on the chilly crisp morning. Seeing whitetail deer is common, but this was the first time that I saw two deer standing in the middle of the river. They let us get surprisingly close before darting off.
Moving further along, Stuckey’s Bridge kept eluding us. Not only did we start further up the river, but we also started paddling a bit later than we had planned. Corban and I were going to have to make up that time somehow to paddle 43 miles in 36 hours or less.
On one side of the coin, you have to keep up that pace to make the time. On the other side of that coin, it’s an absolute must to stop and take in the beauty of nature. I couldn’t pinpoint where we were on the map, but at one point, there were no sounds except for the environment surrounding us—no sounds of trucks on the interstate or highway, no trains in the distance, no planes overhead, only nature. This silence is a rarer experience than you might realize. It’s uncommon that the eerie silence is somewhat startling. The strangeness of it all compelled us to sit, listen, and float for a bit. It’s truly a refreshing pace in life.
Stuckey's Bridge
We pressed on until we finally managed to reach Stuckey’s Bridge! There’s a neat rock formation on the left-hand side of the river right before you get to the bridge, assuming the water levels aren’t high. This spot is excellent for lunch or snacks!
Stuckey’s Bridge is known for the legend of the Dalton Gang member, “Stuckey.” He supposedly owned a nearby inn where he would murder his victims and then bury them on the Chunky River’s bankside. Stuckey was eventually caught and, according to legend, hanging from the bridge. People report seeing a ghostly figure and hearing splashes around the bridge. There is not much to this legend. Most of it is not grounded in history from what I’ve researched. I’ve never experienced anything strange around the bridge, and in fact, quite enjoy the area.
Dunn's Falls
After our uneventful bridge break, we paddled on! I was under the impression that the river was moving faster now as we paddled further south. The next significant landmark to reach, in my opinion, at least, is Dunn’s Falls. Yeah, you read that right. Believe it or not, there are waterfalls in Mississippi. It may not be as grand as some, but Dunn’s Falls is a relatively impressive 65-foot waterfall. It is human-made and was created in the mid-1850s by John Dunn. I love bringing technology like action cameras and drones into nature, but this an early example of how technology and nature can blend. At one point, the waterfall was used to power an old water wheel that still sits atop of the falls today, although it’s no longer working.
When paddling towards Dunn’s Falls, you can soon realize how a 65-foot waterfall can exist in Mississippi. The river begins to be surrounded by pristine bluffs. It almost looks like you’re in another state, but this is indeed a part of Mississippi’s natural beauty. During our paddle, the hillsides were covered in bright orange and yellow. This small stretch of river was probably one of the most beautiful sights of autumn I’ve seen.
Once we arrived at Dunn’s Falls, we hopped out of the kayaks to explore. You can hike up the rocks, and you’re able to stand at the bottom of the falls. It’s a great photography opportunity, and I wish I had taken a better picture of the mill. On the edge of the falls, you can find a wooden staircase leading up to Dunn’s Falls Park. From up top, you can explore the inside of the watermill or even do a hike if you wish.
If the water level is low, the riverbank across from the falls can make a pleasant campsite. Dunn’s Falls might be the last adequate spot for camping for a stretch. Not much further south, Okatibbee Creek will merge with the Chunky River to form the Chickasawhay River. This is right before the access points of Enterprise, Mississippi. I do not recommend camping in the section between Enterprise and Stonewall, Mississippi. This stretch of the river is more populated and less scenic. It’s doable, but there are much better locations to choose from.
Paddling into the night
The time was around 4:00 pm when Corban and I left the falls. With the sun setting around 6:00 pm, we didn’t have much daylight left to make it past Stonewall. We knew we would have to paddle through a portion of the night to get into a more remote section of the river. When looking for a camping spot, I try to choose an area devoid of people or any signs of people recently visiting.
Our pace was pretty good, but the night did fall before reaching Enterprise. I can’t recommend anyone paddling an unfamiliar river at night. There are obvious dangers involved. I am familiar with this river and confident in my abilities, so for us, there didn’t seem to be an issue during this specific paddling trip. The two significant causes of caution were debris around any bridges and where the Chunky River becomes the Chickasawhay River. With the Chunky River and Okatibbee Creek merging, the water does get slightly more intense. Right after the two streams meet, the river soon forks before joining back together. Please stay on the right path of the river if you ever choose to paddle this section. Downed trees and debris usually block the left. I’ve made the mistake of paddling down that path once.
Other than the small swift section, the river became calm and serene. The current was slow, and the moon was full. The two of us were able to paddle good portions of the river without headlamps since the moon’s glow was lighting the way. Corban explained to me how, while being under the fall of night, your mind is much more engaged at the moment. For us, our sights were only able to focus on the moonlit objects and the soft glow in the waters ahead of us. Without all the distractions of details, you’re ready to record memories better. I discovered this to be true. It’s almost like I have photographic pictures stored in my brain from my night paddling experiences.
During this trip, I vividly remember the beavers coming out and swimming across the path. As we passed them, they would slam their tails on the top of the water. They do this when they feel threatened, or maybe they didn’t like us. If not prepared for the loud slap, it can give you a good scare!
Another cool creature, or insect somewhat, we saw were the Orfelia Fultoni. I have no idea how to pronounce their name, but they are commonly known as dismalites. They are mistakenly called glowworms, but they are not a worm at all. Dismalites are fly larva that’s native to North America. They can be found around mossy and damp river banks. They emit soft blue light to attract their prey. They are the only bio-luminescent species of flies found in North America. Few people know that they can be found in Mississippi. Most of these can primarily be found in the Appalachian Mountains area. They are seasonal, so the Fall season is your best choice to see these creatures.
Making Camp
After paddling a bit further, we decided to start looking for an excellent spot to call it a day. I mentioned earlier, I like to choose the most remote locations for camping, but I also want to select sites that take little effort to set up camp. Sandbars are usually the best choice for tents, and this area of the river has plenty of sandbars. There aren’t many sandbars on the upper portions of the river.
Making camp on a large sandbar was short for us. I pitched the tent, and Corban gathered the firewood. I popped out the camp stove and boiled water for noodles, pre-packaged cooked chicken, and cheese sauce. I messed up the sauce part by adding too much water, but it didn’t matter; it tasted awesome to us! However, we were just ready to scoff down anything at the point, so our opinions probably weren’t the most credible. Cooking is optional for shorter trips. There are plenty of no-cook meal ideas to choose from.
After the meal, we sat around the campfire and continued our discussions from the day. On the water, there is a lot of time to talk, probably too much! Most of our conversation was about content creation. For me, I’m continually working on creating or dreaming of content for Do it like Dooley. For Corban, he is starting to pursue his hip hop music career, Mind of Sinclair. Please give him a listen!
The Final Stretch
The next day came fast. Temperatures dropped down in the 40s, which is not as bad as I’ve experienced. Still, it felt extra cold to us that particular morning. From here, all that was left was to make it to the finish line. Our take-out point was the HWY 512 boat ramp in Quitman, Mississippi.
What I find interesting is how different sections of the river can look. This last section for us had a lot more cypress trees with only the occasional bluff. I mentioned earlier that one of our views was the perfect definition of autumn. Well, there is a close second here. The picture below doesn’t do it justice, but it honestly looked like something from Lord of the Rings in person. Some of the banks here are hard stone covered in moss, with smooth indentions from where the water has eroded it over the years. It’s truly worth the extra mileage.
Around 14 miles were left for us to finish. That was easily doable in 5 hours. The problem was we were starting to run low on energy. As the river kept winding around, the current got slower or even worked against us. Still, we tried to maintain our pace until we finally reached the boat ramp. Little did we know, another challenge was awaiting us, and that challenge was getting out of the river.
Sounds easy enough, but as soon as you step out from the river’s sand and onto the bank, you sink into knee-deep mud. It covered the whole ramp, making the concrete below extremely slippery. Trying to pull my kayak up to the steep incline proved impossible alone. We had to use a little ingenuity. We tied a rope to the kayak and had one of us pull while the other pushed the kayak from below. I hate dragging my kayak around, but that was the only option. If possible, I recommend avoiding this ramp. This challenge wasn’t just a one-time incident. Using it as a starting point, I’ve seen a trip almost end before it even began due to a nasty fall. There is a better boat ramp at 565 Co R 690, De Soto, Mississippi. It’s around 12 miles further south of the Quitman ramp. If you can make the extra mileage, I suggest exiting there.
In the end, if you get the chance to kayak in Mississippi, please check out this waterway. It truly is a gem, and it’s what I consider my home river. If you would like a copy of my google earth files for this trip, send an email to me at [email protected].
