Mile 560.5 - Mounds Landing
LBD 560.5 Mounds Landing
In the Great Flood of 1927 a one-mile section of the Mississippi levee collapsed and was pushed aside by the raging flood waters. In that era levees were built along the banks of the river, with no buffer zone to allow for the flood waters to spread and lessen their destructive force. As the river came around the long bend of Choctaw Island it gained power and then became squeezed in this area and easily overtopped man's efforts. The resulting crevasse carved out two giant blue holes each over one hundred feet deep, both of which still exist today and can be seen if you make a stop in this vicinity during low or medium water levels. At high water levels the blue hole gets flooded along with the surrounding forests and there's nothing to see except for an expanse of muddy waters surrounded by woods.
The crevasse led to the flooding of all of the Mississippi Delta below this point, from Rosedale to Drew to Greenwood and everything south. The flood water flowed gently but firmly along and gulped farms, houses, railroad lines, bridges, commissary stores, cotton gins, barns, and everything in its path in between the Yazoo and Mississippi Rivers, until being funneled down above Vicksburg, where it swept back into the mother river and caused it to swell anew (leading to other breaks downstream on the other side, now in Louisiana. This is the famous break that led blues great Charlie Patton to pen his High Water Everywhere Part 1 and High Water Everywhere Part 2 in 1929, a wildly popular song thereafter. Flood victims never outlive the experience.
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Addendum: take-out in Greenville, or Lake Village
[CLICK HERE: Map of Paddling into Greenville]
Some paddlers might find it more convenient to take-out on the Mississippi side of the river (as opposed to ending on the Arkansas side in Arkansas City). Continue downstream from Choctaw Island around Choctaw Bend past Huntington Point, around right-angle elbow Yellow Bend through the Ashbrook Cut-off. (The Arkansas City Gage that we have been using for this section of river is located RBD 544 in Yellow Bend). If you have an extra day you might want to jump into the Old Channel of the Greenville Bends, a fantastic 20+ mile detour through deep woods down a meandering back channel with high muddy banks, birds and prolific wildlife. Start cutting in to the massive opening seen RBD below mile 555. If you don't have enough river time, stay main channel on around Miller Bend through Tarpley and Leland Neck Cut-Offs. For take-out in Greenville start approaching the left descending bank as you float into the Leland Cut-Off mile 539 being ever-vigilant for busy tow activity in this area. Cut into slackwater harbor below last point of land 537.5 and cross over to south side to locate the narrow entry into the County Boat Ramp located within Warfield Point State Park. If the river's high the State Park might be closed. You will have to paddle approximately 5 more miles up the Greenville Harbor to the Greenville Boat Ramp which is on the levee next to the Greenville Casino. Or you can continue 6 miles down the main channel past Warfield Point around Walker Bend. As you come around this right-angle bend slide over to the Arkansas shore RBD for take-out at the Sunnyside Landing RBD 531.5 which is located within a small cut-out eddy a couple hundred yards upstream of the old Highway 82 Bridge. Do not go to the new bridge! (Or you will have gone too far!). Now that the new bridge is completed and the old bridge is being dismantled there is rumor that Sunnyside Landing might become privatized by a local hunting club. This would be disastrous for paddlers in the Greenville area, or any long distance paddlers on their way through. Sunnyside at present is the only landing that has guaranteed access to the main channel of the river regardless of river level for dozens of miles upstream and the same downstream.
Best Campsites Along lower mississippi water trail
[CLICK HERE: Map of Best Campsites]
End of the Trail
Choctaw Island marks the southern terminus of the introductory 104 mile section of the Lower Mississippi River Water Trail from northern end Buck Island. I decided to start here with the wildest and most beautiful section of the river. Later, after this section is made into a reality, I will continue adding sections until the entire Lower Mississippi River is completely covered with good descriptions for paddlers to safely and successfully enjoy the biggest and greatest river in North America, including (from top to bottom):
Missouri Bootheel: Cairo to Caruthersville
Chickasaw Bluffs: Osceola to Memphis
Upper Delta: Memphis to Helena
Middle Delta: Buck Island to Choctaw Island
Lower Delta: Choctaw Island to Vicksburg
Loess Bluffs: Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
Chemical Corridor: Baton Rouge to Venice
Birdsfoot Delta: Venice to the Gulf
With expanded sections describing the paddling in and around Memphis, Greenville, Vicksburg and Natchez.
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