• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
Heart of Louisiana Logo

The Heart of Louisiana

  • Staycations
  • Regions
    • New Orleans Region
    • Capital Region
    • Acadiana
    • Southwest Louisiana
    • Central Louisiana
    • Northshore
    • North Louisiana
    • Bayou Region
  • 60 Second Road Trips
  • TV Stories
  • Buy Photos
  • Recent Posts
  • Show Search
Hide Search
Home/Acadiana/Chicot State Park
sunrise behind cypress tree sun reflection in lake

Chicot State Park

Surround yourself with the natural beauty of Lake Chicot and see native flowers and plants in the state arboretum at this central Louisiana State Park. Chicot features a long wooded hiking trail and canoe trails through the tree-filled lake.

Cypress trees standing in lake reflect in water in early morning light

Chicot State Park is the largest of Louisiana’s 21 State Parks and is located in central Louisiana near the town of Ville Platte. Paddle a canoe or kayak along an 8-mile water trail that lets you quietly explore the beauty of this 2,000 acre lake.  Lake Chicot is a favorite for fishermen wanting to catch largemouth bass and crappie.

Trails of Chicot state park featured on tv

Watch this Heart of Louisiana feature on hiking Chicot State Park

Hike more than 20 miles of trails that take you around Lake Chicot. The state park is located where the flat lands of the Cajun Prairie merge with central Louisiana’s upland hills. And that creates a long trail that can seem like a roller coaster. The trail follows the shoreline of the large lake, rising and falling from hilltops to the bottomland cypress and tupelo swamp along the lake’s edge.

Best place to watch the sunrise

My favorite place to be at daybreak is the 400-foot long fishing pier. The wooden pier extends in an L-shape above the lake, allowing you to stand beyond the trees that crowd the shoreline for a clear view of the lake and sky. Scattered cypress trees, with Spanish moss hanging from their branches, provide photographic accents on the water.

Watch this 60 second video of daybreak over Lake Chicot

This state park features 15 deluxe cabins and 200 campsites. The park also has boat launches for easy lake access as well as fishing piers. And for campers and day visitors, Chicot has an extensive area for picnics and a splash pad for summertime fun. Birdwatchers will enjoy the abundance of songbirds and wading birds that frequent the forests and shoreline of the lake.

60 second video tour of Chicot state park

400-foot long fishing pier at Chicot State Park

images from chicot state park

Enjoy native wildflowers at state arboretum

The Louisiana State Arboretum is also located within the park and features native flowers, plants and trees and a nature interpretive center. You can hike the arboretum’s 5 miles of trails that take you from forested uplands to boardwalks above lowland swamps.

close up of red wild iris in arboretum at Chicot State Park in Louisiana
Louisiana wild iris in bloom at Chicot’s State Arboretum
Kayak in tree covered Lake Chicot State Park Louisiana
Paddle miles of well-marked canoe trails

Explore Chicot’s canoe trails

Paddle a canoe or kayak through the lake’s forest of moss-draped cypress and tupelo trees.

yellow flowers surround cypress tree trunks along nature trail at Louisiana state arboretum at Chicot State Park
Enjoy wildflowers along arboretum trails

hike la’s arboretum at chicot

The Louisiana State Arboretum has five miles of trails that are lined with wildflowers that change with the seasons.

getting to chicot state park

Location: 3469 Chicot Park Road, Ville Platte, LA. – Phone: 337-363-2403

3469 Chicot Park Rd, Ville Platte, LA 70586

Written by:
Dave McNamara
Published on:
May 3, 2022
Thoughts:
3 Comments

Categories: Acadiana, Featured

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Linda Luneau

    March 31, 2022 at 10:56 am

    We camp host at Chicot State Park often. We love the place! Love meeting new people, and the staff are great people. We love helping to keep the park clean.

    Reply
  2. David LeGaux

    May 5, 2022 at 9:01 am

    Send information about your family trip cabins

    Reply
    • Dave McNamara

      May 13, 2022 at 9:24 am

      Hi David. Here is a link to the Chicot State Park cabins information & reservations: https://louisianastateparks.reserveamerica.com/camping/chicot-state-park/r/facilityDetails.do?contractCode=LA&parkId=240027

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Heart of Louisiana logo

Footer

Copyright © 2025 Heart of Louisiana · Web Design

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • About Dave McNamara
  • Contact
  • Advertising Opportunities
  • Archives
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site Map
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Privacy policyOk