Lake Bruin State Park

About this park

Lake Bruin State Park is a compact 53-acre park in Tensas Parish, tucked into moss-draped cypress groves on the shore of Lake Bruin, a horseshoe-shaped oxbow lake covering roughly 3,000 acres. The lake takes its name from Peter Bryan Bruin, who once owned a plantation adjacent to the water, and the site began as a state fish hatchery in 1928 before becoming a Civilian Conservation Corps camp in the 1930s for workers building levees along the nearby Mississippi River. The property became a state park in 1956, initially called Lake Bruin Wayside Park before adopting its current name. Despite its small footprint, the park gives visitors access to the entire 3,000-acre lake for fishing, with the best bluegill catches typically found in the shallower waters at both ends, alongside largemouth bass and other freshwater species, plus popular water skiing and pleasure boating on the open water. A long fishing pier running parallel to the shoreline in the campground area has become a favorite spot for watching sunset colors reflect off the water through the cypress trees, and the park offers a sandy swimming beach, splash pad, and boat launch alongside its 48 campsites. Nearby attractions include the Winter Quarters State Historic Site and the extensive Tensas River National Wildlife Refuge bottomland forest.