The body of water that is “Grand Bay” is split between Mississippi and Alabama state waters. It is the namesake of the Grand Bay NERR, Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), and yes- the town of Grand Bay, AL! Grand Bay, AL is the neighboring town across the state line. The Grand Bay Coastal Resources Center is the headquarters of the Grand Bay NERR and NWR, and the building is located in Moss Point, MS.

The most accurate way to find our building is to type in “6005 Bayou Heron Rd, Moss Point, MS 39562” in your GPS or map app on your smartphone. Typing in “Grand Bay NERR” may take you to a part of the Reserve, but it won’t take you to the building.

It’s FREE! You can walk in Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to visit our interpretive center and check out our trails. Occasionally we have weekend events, so check our Facebook page for the most updated events and workshops.

In our interpretive center, we have a resident Mississippi diamondback terrapin named Tobi, and she’s popular with visitors! While we do not operate like our friends at zoos, aquariums, and some natural science centers, you can find all sorts of birds, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, and bugs if you just take a walk outside and look around! The purpose of the Grand Bay NERR and NWR is to provide protected space for our native plants and animals to thrive and maintain a natural balance in our local ecosystems.

Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity, resources, and talent to take in injured animals. If you are on the Mississippi Gulf Coast with an injured animal, try contacting Gulf Coast Wildlife Rehab at 228-238-5505, Wild at Heart Rescue at 228-669-7907, or Wildlife Care and Rescue Center at 228-669-2737. For coastal Alabama wildlife rehabilitation contacts, check out this list.

Check out our volunteer page here: Volunteering.

 All job applications can be found at https://dmr.ms.gov/employment/. If you are a college student or recent graduate, we typically look for summer interns starting in February or March, so check back often!

Boat and watercraft registration is handled by a different state agency, the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks. To contact them, call 601-432-2400.

Hunting is permitted through the Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). Grand Bay NERR (state) and NWR (federal) lands overlap. Since the Grand Bay NWR spans both Mississippi and Alabama, you must be aware of hunting regulations in both states. For hunting regulations and to find a hunting permit, visit https://www.fws.gov/refuge/grand_bay/ . The hunting permit is also available at the Grand Bay Coastal Resources Center at the front desk.

Unfortunately we do not have campgrounds on Grand Bay NERR or NWR property. Our parking lot does have space for visitors with RVs traveling through during the daytime operating hours, but we do not have the proper resources you would expect at a campground or RV park. *Please note that to get to our building, you do have to cross a railroad. We’ve successfully had big delivery trucks, freight trucks, charter buses, and school buses cross the tracks no problem.

We love dogs! However, they must be leashed on our trails as we do not have dedicated off-leash areas. For more info on leash law tips in our county, visit https://www.co.jackson.ms.us/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=24 .

Grand Bay NERR is a beautiful place to kayak! Oftentimes we have free kayak trips open to the public, but those are scheduled with a staff guide and kayaks and life jackets are provided. For every day kayaking, we do not have the capacity or permissions to be able to rent out our kayaks, so we suggest bringing your own if you’d like to paddle on your own. We do have a Blueway! Check out our Blueway and other great kayaking locations here. Nearby places that rent out kayaks are the MGCCC Estuarine Education Center and the Pascagoula River Audubon Center.