Lake Bruin State Park

Lake Bruin State Park, one of nineteen Louisiana state parks, is located on Lake Bruin, a clear ox-bow lake of the Mississippi River near St. Joseph, the seat of Tensas Parish in the northeastern portion of the state. The lake consists of more than 3,000 acres (12 km²) of water surface. Park visitors enjoy fishing, water sports, and camping. There are cypress trees in the lake which have stood since before the Spaniard Hernando de Soto traveled through the region in the 1540s.StateParks.com [http://www.stateparks.com/lake_bruin.html] ] The 53-acre park was established in 1928 as a fish hatchery. [The Camping Club [http://www.thecampingclub.com/zzspotl/lakebruin.html] ] The park has twenty-five improved campsites, all with water, electricity, picnic tables, and wheelchair-accessible bathhouses. There is also a primitive camping area for tents. The park has three fishing piers, year-round boat launching, and a shed for docking boats. Rental boats are also available. Largemouth bass are caught year round, with the prime months being April-June and September and October. Crappie or white perch are taken in the early spring. Bluegill fishing is best in shallow waters at each end of the lake.

Summer afternoon temperatures reach well into the nineties at Lake Bruin. Night temperatures in the summer drop into the seventies. During winter, high temperatures are in the fifties. On winter nights, the mercury may dip into the thirties. [GoingOutside.com [http://www.goingoutside.com/stateparks/10872_Lake_Bruin_State_Park_Louisiana.html] ]

The park address is 202 State Park Road in St. Joseph 71366. It is reached from the St. Joseph exit on U.S. Highway 65 via Highway 128 east and Louisiana Highway 606 north. It is accessible from Natchez and Vicksburg, Mississippi, and Ferriday in Concordia Parish and Tallulah, the seat of Madison Parish. Lake Bruin is open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. The park remains open until 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and on days preceding legal holidays. The entrance fee is $1 per person. Those sixty-two and above and children under three are not charged. Camping and boating fees are extra. Patrons may telephone [phone] or 888-677-2784 toll-free. [Louisiana Department of Culture Recreation and Tourism [http://www.crt.state.la.us/parks/iLkbruin.aspx] ]

Many fashionable homes have been built in recent years outside the park on Lake Bruin. Some are vacation homes, but most are permanent residences.

Nearby attractions

Close to Lake Bruin is Winter Quarters State Historic Site, located on Lake St. Joseph, another ox-bow lake of the Mississippi River some six miles (10 km) southeast of Newellton on Louisiana Highway 608. This former plantation survived the American Civil War. It was the home of physician Haller Nutt and was spared the torch by his wife, Julia Nutt, who fed and housed Union Army soldiers under General U.S. Grant so that the structure would not be destroyed. Winter Quarters features a museum, guided tours, and special events.

Tensas National Wildlife Refuge, located off Interstate 20 via U.S. Highway 65, is a convert|57000|acre|km2|sing=on refuge of bottomland forest with hunting, fishing, hiking, wildlife-viewing, canoeing, interpreted trails, a boardwalk and educational programs. A visitor center contains brochures, exhibits, species lists, and regulations.

Fourteen miles northwest of St. Joseph is Buckhorn Wildlife Management Area, which may be reached through Louisiana Highways 4 and 128 in Tensas Parish. Buckhorn has convert|8955|acre|km2 of bottomland hardwood forest and opportunities for hunting, fishing, and wildlife-viewing.

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