Noxubee Crest Mountain Bike Trail

Noxubee Crest Mountain Bike Trail

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	Noxubee Crest Mountain Bike Trail
Location:	Mississippi
Nearest Town:	Ackerman
Directions to Trailhead:	Drive 3 miles south on Highway 15 from Ackerman. Turn left after passing the Ranger Station. There is a sign saying Choctaw Lake. Drive on paved road to the lake and park on north side after crossing the dam. This is the trailhead with signs, etc. The singletrack trail starts immediately across the road.
Trail Description:	This is a series of loops utilizing singletrack, doubletrack and forestry roads to complete the entire course. The singletrack is new and still rather primitive, but there are almost no techical obstacles on it. The trail is marked with tags with bicycle symbols on them, orange tags leading away from the lake trailhead, yellow tags leading back, and blue tags showing crosstrails. Maps plotted by GPS are available at the Ranger Station on Highway 15. The singletrack generally leads directly into hardwood forests, following ridges and traversing sidehills, but sometimes going into low places where there are occasional,well-made bridges to cross. There are no plans to include horses or motorized vehicles. Hikers are welcomed.
Trail Length:	25.5 miles total
Trail Type:	Singletrack & Fire Roads
Skill Level:	Intermediate
Submitted By:	Hugh Ector

Cherie from Starkville, MS Date: March 29, 2003 Trail Ridden: Ridden Once
Recommended Route: Other recommended trails in the same area: I ride the research park and Noxabee Refuge weekly
Review: Great ride! I'm not from MS, and have been looking for a nice trail to ride....I believe I found it!	Overall Rating:

Mike Murphey from Starkville, MS Date: March 22, 2003 Trail Ridden: Once a month
Recommended Route: Use south trailhead in very wet conditions. The north trailhead starts with two miles of bottomland. To access south trailhead turn north off of Hwy 25 onto Poplar Flat road (the intersection is 100 yards west of regional jail entrance near Louisville, Ms.) Go 2 1/2 miles north and turn right onto Sheepranch Road, which is a small dirt road. Go one mile to Noxubee Hill Cemetary and park. Other recommended trails in the same area:
Review: The Noxubee Crest trail system currently consists of a large loop running from the north trail head at Choctaw Lake to the south trail head and back, and four connecting trails. The outside loop is two thirds single track and one third wood road while the connecting trails are single track. The south two thirds is very hilly, with about 300 feet elevation change, while the north third is flat to rolling bottom land. While there are no rocks to dodge, the occassional very steep grade (up to 35%), off camber trail, twists and log fall will challenge most riders. Expect single track to be slow untill hardened by riders. Some of the bottom land does flood, but drains quickly. Check hunting seasons before riding very early morning.	Overall Rating:

Hugh Ector from Starkville, MS, USA Date: December 19, 2002 Trail Ridden: Once a week
Recommended Route: Park at the Trailhead at Noxubee Hill Cemetary (1 mile off Poplar Flats Road). Do a clockwise circle starting with a singletrack trail and ending with a gravel road back to the trailhead. Other recommended trails in the same area: See the other review of Noxubee Crest Trail.
Review: After parking at the cemetery on Sheep Ranch Road, go down the hill approximately 25 yards on Noxubee Hill Road to the beginning of the singletrack. Follow the yellow markers past Pigeon Roost Road to Rock Crusher Road. Turn right; then go to the second blue tag-marked trail (a "Y" rather than a right angle); follow it to the gate at the end of Rock Crusher Road. Turn right again, and follow blue markers to Pigeon Roost Road; turn right once again(now following orange markers to Noxubee Hill Road); turn left and go back to starting point at the cemetery. The singletrack portion of the trail is new and hard enough to give anyone a workout (though without technical places). One moves at a rather slow pace through the woods, but the roads will help one increase his/her speed significantly. There is very little traffic on the roads. Rock Crusher road is gated and has no motorized traffic. In the future there will be more singletrack options on this southern portion of the trail. This is a trail suitable for anyone, Beginners to Advanced, though it lacks technical obstacles, it should be an excellent workout for anyone.	Overall Rating:

Hugh Ector from Starkville, Mississippi, USA Date: November 30, 2002 Trail Ridden: Once a week
Recommended Route: Start at the trailhead at Choctaw Lake. The first 1.5 mile singletrack from the lake is flat, but it takes you by a beaver pond and lodge. Get on the road, go left then right through a gate. Peddle across the Noxubee River foot bridge; continue to the field where you go left and get on a singletrack again. Proceed across another bridge and up the hill to a road on top. Turn left again and go down an old road to another singletrack leading down and off to the right. Continue on singletrack, cross the powerline, through more woods to a doubletrack. Follow it up to a forest road. At this point you are about 25 yards from a gate on Rock Crusher Road. You may want to return to the trailhead at this time. If so, go back (west) up the road following the blue markers until you come to a "Y". At this point follow the yellow markers back to Choctaw Lake. In another review I'll describe another option using the southeast portion of the trail and starting at another trailhead some distance from Choctaw Lake. Other recommended trails in the same area: Scattertown Trail 1.75 miles, Wilderness Trail (3.5 miles) and Research Park Trail (3.5 miles)
Review: This trail has the potential of being the most important bicycle trail in Mississippi. It gives you plenty of woods, with bottomland, ridge and sidehill riding through a fair portion of the Tombigbee National Forest, typical of east central Mississippi. In addition, the Ranger staff is very encouraging, convincing me that they want this trail to succeed as much as the mountain bike riders do (almost!). Camping is available on the beautiful Choctaw Lake with minimum camping charges. For the faint of heart, a gravel and boardwalk "buffed" trail can be ridden completely around the lake (almost 3 miles), provided one is sensitive to hikers and fishermen also using the trail.	Overall Rating: