Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Pontotoc, MS

We reserved a waterfront spot, but our rig wouldn’t fit despite the website saying so, no biggy though. Was able to swap spots and enjoyed our stay. Very nice park, nice beaches and great for walking pets. Most amenities were closed for the season/ COVID. Great staff. We had few bars (Verizon) and no service on t-mobile. Overall great experience, can’t go wrong with any spot.

We loved the park. Great for walking our dogs. The only issue was the poor road maintenance in getting to our campsite. Other than that, we enjoyed our stay tremendously and will definitely recommend to friends and family.

Nice park with pull through at late notice , great staff. Close to town but didn’t visit. Reasonable at $40. Some sites have Wi Fi I think. Short nice walk and area for dogs. Not far from freeway.

The campground in Jamie L. Whitten Historical Center is easy to find close to the highway. Staff at the entrance was very friendly and helpful. The site was PERFECT: level concrete pull-thru big enough for our 40' rig and Jeep, adorable picnic and firepit area overlooking the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway peeking through the beautiful trees. Hookups right where you needed them. And lots of beautifully maintained trails through the woods for walking our dogs. Two thumbs up!

This campground is on Sardis Lake, but is off the beaten path from everything else. The campground is old, but the sites are roomy. Some are shaded and some are in the sun.

There is a playground and a large open field in the middle for games, sports activities, dogs to run, etc.

The bathhouse isn’t the worst I have seen. It gets the job done, but the floor in the shower area seems to be falling apart.

Off the beaten path. Power and water available for reasonable price. Walking the property was fantastic for us and our dogs. We were fortunate to be there on the last Saturday of the month, when they host a dinner and live music. With just 7 of us, including the 2 hosts and the musician, it was a very neat experience. Even had a “sing along “!!!! This is why we love Harvest Hosts. You would never get an experience like this anywhere else.

We reserved campsites 13 and 14, at the far end, behind the restrooms. You have to park in the parking lot and carry your stuff to the site. But it’s a tent-only campground and there were only a couple other tents there so it was quiet and peaceful. Our lots were large.

There was plenty of firewood to be collected on site.

There’s a boat launch but it didn’t add significant traffic or noise.

The bathrooms were…campsite bathrooms. Not the best, not the worst. No locked on stall doors. No soap. But the toilets flushed so there’s that.

Very pretty view of Sardis Lake.

The negatives: The flies!! They were so so bad! And bighty!! My poor dogs were covered in flies, as were we.

Other negative is just about a previous camper. At our site, we picked up literally a case’s worth of Coors beer bottle caps. Evidently they didn’t throw away a single one, even though garbage is provided and literally just right there.

This is a new campground located near tupelo, Mississippi. They have a central fire ring with swings, a small camp store, laundry room, and bathhouse.

The campground(CG) is easy to find. They opened the check-in gate as we arrived a little before 3:00 PM. The very friendly lady at the gate quickly checked us in, and we were off to the first and only loop that was open in early January. We paid$12.50 with America the Beautiful Pass. We proceeded to site 6 with water& electric(50/30/20 AMP) and backed in with no issues. Site 6 is a wide site, so we had no problems parking our F450 after we unhitched. The CG was not very full this time of year and middle of the week though several rigs came in around dusk. The water pressure as is the norm at most COEs, was over 60 psi, so we used a reducer. We got a fair amount of OTA channels and 4 bars on Verizon. Satellite would have been iffy in this site due to the trees. Whitten has really nice trails that weave down through little valleys to and from the river, which were really nice for walking our dogs. We’ve stayed here before, but this time was just an overnighter. This campground is a great base camp to explore the area and especially the Elvis attractions around Tupelo. In addition, Piezons Pizza in Fulton is one of the best pizza places we’ve come across in our travels. We highly recommend this CG.

Wow! In the middle off Mississippi just a few miles off Natchez Trace parkway is this lovely little campground on a lake. And super affordable. We planned on only staying 1 night but we like it so much we will make it two nights.

Jake from the Dyrt here!  The Mississippi Art & Wine Gallery has spots to camp for those who enjoy some of the finer things.  Check them out and make sure to share some pics of your stay!

Stopped here for a night traveling through Mississippi. It is a little out of the way, but quiet. You drive down the Natches trace to get here. The sites were large enough to relax, and the neighbors were not right on top of us. Bathroom was ok, but the shower was not working when we were there. Close to Tupelo if you like Elvis.

We heard about this new RV park through a blog email and decided to check it out. Following our GPS from I-22, we had no trouble finding the campground (CG).  We arrived at 3:00 PM to find the office closed, with a sign on the door indicating they would return at 3:30. Although we had prepaid for our reservation, we had not been assigned a site number. We called the contact number and left a message. A few minutes later, we received a call back with our site number and were informed that we could proceed to site 26 and check in once the staff member returned from lunch. Site 26 with FHUs is 1 of 6 pull through cement sites in the CG. The 4 back-in sites are cement pads. The pad was spacious, providing ample room for our 40’ fifth wheel and F-450 truck. There are two sewer connections on both cement and gravel sites, which is a nice convenience. Water and electric hookups are centrally located on the pad, though the electric connection sits low to the ground, requiring us to bend the surge protector to plug in. The water pressure was adequate at around 40 psi. The CG Wi-Fi worked well for basic tasks such as email and web browsing, including Facebook, though we did not attempt to stream. Facilities include a clean shower and restroom area, as well as a laundry room equipped with four washers and four dryers, each costing$3 per use. During our visit, the small dog run was unavailable due to maintenance or AstroTurf installation. A small playground is located adjacent to it. Most of the sites are pull-through, with a few back-in sites near the cabins. There is highway and train noise, but not too bad. The office carries a selection of snacks, drinks, and some RV essentials. Overall, the CG is a few miles west of Tupelo, with limited attractions nearby. While it offers good amenities and a convenient layout, the remote location may not appeal to those looking for nearby entertainment or dining options. This CG worked well for our overnighter.

Our RV GPS and Waze brought us south from Tishomingo via MS-25 to MS-4 to John Rankin Hwy. It’s a more scenic and narrower road than just taking MS-25 south, but there were no issues. We had made online reservations earlier that day for this Army Corps of Engineers Campground (CG) where we get a 50% discount per night using the National Parks Access Pass. We arrived earlier than 2:00 PM when the check-in gate opens, but there was a sign to go ahead and set up and come back at 2:00 to check-in. As we had our site number, we headed directly to pull through site 9 with water and electric(50/30/20 AMP). This was our third time camping at Whitten and we were delighted to find that they had combined site 8 and 9 into one long site. This site still had the old site amenities, which meant that we had double electric pedestals, water spigots, patio areas with picnic table, standup bbq, and fire pit. We were able to adjust our 5th wheel to avoid the several unlevel areas in this very long pull through. As with most COEs, water pressure was good and the electric worked fine. Whitten CG has a lot of mature trees, so satellite is iffy. We had no north shot for our Starlink. However, we got 2 to 3 bars on Verizon and the Mifi worked well for our needs to include streaming. There’s no WiFi in the CG. Site 9 has water view and does not bump up to other sites, which we found highly desireable. During our first stay in 2019, each loop had a shower house with a washer and dryer that we had used. Our last stay was an overnighter and we didn’t need to do laundry, so we hadn't checked those facilities out. This time we were here for three nights and had planned on doing laundry only to find the doors locked. We asked the camp host about the washers and dryers. He stated that the washers and dryers had been closed during COVID and now they were no long functional and weren't going to be replaced. We again enjoyed the trail system through out the CG and recreation area to walk our dogs. The James L. Whitten Historical Center is interesting to go through. There are several fishing piers as well. We came on a Wednesday and were pretty much by ourselves. Both Thursday and Friday campers started coming in around 11:30 AM filling up the CG. The camp hosts didn’t seem to mind the early arrivals and even opened up the office around noon for a few minutes to accommodate check-ins.

Trace State Park near Tupelo, MS. Once you get into Tupelo the signage directing you to the park is easy to find and follow.

The road in is in terrible shape, the lake is missing, the levy being worked on. They have horse, ATV and mountain bike trails which are in okay shape but could use some TLC. There are rental cabins and the store is limited to souvenir type merchandise and disc’s.

The staff at the park were very helpful and the facilities, which included a showerhouse/multipurpose room and screened porch were very well taken care of. I definitely liked the large shower stalls!

The sites are spacious, including a fire area, picnic table, electric hookup, water and sewer hook up. You have some privacy and depending on your site sparse to full shade.

There is Disc golf, fishing, and currently limited water sports.We used the multipurpose room and a nearby site that had more then enough room for all of us to sit around the fire.

Tupelo, Mississippi is nearby with Elvis’s birthplace. In addition there are several recreation areas to visit on the Natchez Trace with historical information and trails to explore.

Ranger review: RoM Outdoors RoM Pack at Trace State Park, Tupelo, Mississippi 

Campground Review: I took the scenic Natchez Trace Parkway from Tennessee down into Mississippi and exited near Tupelo to continue into Trace State Park for a camping event I was attending over the weekend. Once you get into Tupelo the signage directing you to the park is easy to find and follow. 

The park itself needs some work. Recent cuts from the state have left the park in need of road work and the levy repair is taking a while to complete according to locals. Where we camped the lake was dry and full of weeds. You could tell by the shoreline that it would be possible to anchor your water craft very near your campsite in several locations once it is refilled with water. 

That being said the staff at the park were very helpful and the facilities, which included a showerhouse/multipurpose room and screened porch were very well taken care of. I definitely liked the large shower stalls!

The sites are spacious, including a fire area, picnic table, electric hookup, water and sewer hook up. The spacing between sites is good too, you have some privacy and depending on your site sparse to full shade.

Disc golf, multi-use trails, fishing, currently limited water sports.

After set up our group met in the multipurpose room and then congregated to a nearby site that had more then enough room for all of us to sit around the fire. 

Tupelo, Mississippi is nearby and I visited Elvis’s birthplace , “Scarlet’s Donuts”(maple bacon donuts, and tamales) and an excellent BBQ place “Clays House of Pig”. So if you like to sneak to town while camping this is a nice area for it. There are thrift and antique stores close too.

Product Review: As a Dyrt Ranger I recently received a **RoM Outdoors ** RoM Pack https://romoutdoors.com/ to use , abuse and review while camping. I explored one of the three main trails in Trace SP. The trails are multi-use (ie. ATV, Horse, Dirt bike, Hikers) so pay attention to the signs and be aware of the area. We hiked 4.5 miles. The first thing you will notice about the RoM****Pack is that it has some weight to it (4.6 lbs)even empty. This is due to the outer water resistant material and the inner, soft, insulated material. There are two detachable bags, and a smaller inner pack to carry them in when you remove them to transform your pack into......a hooded poncho or ground cover , cool idea!

So obviously this is not an overnight type backpack or something a fast packer would use. It is however a versatile option for day hikes, visits to the park or sporting events and I used it to pack my Dachshund when he was done hiking ;)

I haven’t attempted to attach a hydration bladder and decided to just place my entire hydration pack into the main area of the RoM Pack. This works in two ways. First if I don’t need the poncho/blanket I have my hydration in easy reach. Second if I do use the poncho/blanket my hydration pack fits fine under the inner pack on my back with poncho over that. 

Definitely practice folding and unfolding the poncho/blanket . I had my usual dysfunction , just like with the hiking maps, I got it unfolded and user ready but then had issues putting it back into its original folded configuration. I eventually got it back together. There is a video on their site to make it easier. Just remember it will get faster with muscle memory over time.

Once again this is not a pack I would use for extended deep woods adventures. It’s great for your day hikes with the kids, concert in the park or hike into a picnic spot, would work for hunting too.

Pro’s: All in one (ie, carry pack, two secure bags, blanket/poncho, inner pack, Molle straps to add other accessories)

Water resistant outer shell

Soft warm inner lining

_Durable material _

Well made

Con’s: Heavy

Limited packing space( the large middle pocket is gone when you unfold it_)_

_Not for overnight/deep woods(_technically not a con, not the concept of the bag)

This will be my go to bag when adventuring with my grandkids. I would/will suggest this pack to friends with specific uses in mind. There are currently three color options and several other products to explore on the ROM Outdoors site