Flowood's October Belongs to Its Parks, and to the Groups That Book Them

Flowood has a full October 2026 calendar, but the City of Flowood produces none of it. NAMI Mississippi, Breakthrough T1D, the American Cancer Society, the team behind Dogwood Festival Market, and a volunteer-run Celtic heritage society each hold a weekend. All but one use a Flowood park or a Flowood parking lot. The city's own big seasonal event, the Chili Cook-Off and Grand Lighting of the Park, has run in December.

That matters for planning. To know what's happening on a given Saturday, you have to know which group has the park, what that group's schedule looks like, and what rules the park sets for it.

Five Organizers, Four Weekends

Three Flowood parks show up in that table, plus a reservoir park run by the state water district. The city doesn't sponsor any of these events. It does decide what the events can look like, and Flowood Nature Park shows that best.

Twenty-Five Hours on the Same One-Mile Loop

NAMIWalks Mississippi opens registration at Flowood Nature Park at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3. The opening ceremony is at 9, the walk starts at 10, and the event wraps up at noon. The route is one loop around the park. About 25 hours later, at 1 p.m. Sunday, the Breakthrough T1D Walk event opens at the same address. A T1D parade and opening ceremony follow at 2 p.m., and the one-mile walk begins at 2:30.

Both groups end up on the same route because there's only one. The City of Flowood describes a one-mile, paved, distance-marked trail. It runs from the parking lot around the lake, which has a fountain, then into a mature hardwood forest at the back of the park, with markers naming native trees and plants. The park has four rentable pavilions with grills, five small rest pavilions, and a covered amphitheater that can be rented.

The park's posted rules explain why both walks feel quieter than a typical charity event:

• Nonprofit walks have to be pre-approved by the Parks and Recreation Department and can't be booked online.
• No amplified music, inflatables, alcohol or tobacco.
• No bicycles, skateboards or skates.
• No glass containers, and parking only in marked spaces.
• Pets must stay leashed, and the park is open daylight to dusk.

If you walk the loop most mornings, Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon of that first weekend will be the busiest it gets all month. The rules work in your favor if you'd rather walk alongside the events than skip them, since there's no amplified sound, no bikes on the path, and dogs on leashes. It's also worth knowing the park sits just past Winner's Circle Park, which matters again in December.

October 10 Is Split Between a Shopping Center and the Reservoir

On the second Saturday, two events with very different scales run at the same time.

Dogwood Festival Market's Harvest Festival runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. behind McAlister's Deli. It's free and includes pumpkins for kids, harvest games with prizes, refreshments, crafts and face painting. Pumpkins are one per child while supplies last, and the rain date is Sunday, Oct. 11. Questions go to the DRB Group by email. The whole event fits inside a three-hour morning stop.

CelticFest Mississippi takes the weekend. It's held at Bobby Cleveland Park at Lakeshore, 1112 Northshore Parkway. That address is in Brandon, and the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District owns and runs the park. Flowood still has a stake in the festival because the host hotel is Candlewood Suites Flowood.

The festival has been around longer than most people realize. The Celtic Heritage Society started it in 1991 as a one-day Irish music festival in Jackson, in partnership with the Mississippi Agriculture Museum. The 2020 festival was canceled two weeks before it was set to open. In 2021 it moved outdoors to Lakeshore on the Barnett Reservoir, where there's room for full Highland Games competition, and in 2023 it settled on the second weekend in October. The society has no paid staff and is run entirely by volunteers.

Here's what to know before you go:

1. Hours. Saturday runs 9 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. and Sunday runs 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
2. Gate prices. Advance discounts ended Sept. 30, so starting Oct. 1 tickets cost the same online and at the gate. A Saturday ticket is $25 for adults and $20 for students ages 14 through college with ID. Kids 0 to 13 get in free but still need a ticket.
3. The cheapest way in. After 6 p.m. Saturday, admission is $10 for everyone 14 and older. That ticket covers the Torchlight Procession and Calling of the Clans, the fire performances, and the Céilí Mór, a large Irish dance party that starts at 8:30 p.m. in the Water's Edge Main Stage tent.
4. Payment. There's no ATM on site, some merchants only take cash, and every card sale carries a 3% processing fee.
5. Parking. Parking is free on the grass outside the gates. Once that fills, overflow goes to Pelahatchie Park, and you'll have to walk because there's no shuttle. The festival asks people to carpool or use a rideshare.
6. What to bring. Leashed, well-behaved dogs are welcome, and chairs and blankets are fine. Outside food and drink aren't allowed, and bags may be searched.

Saturday has a lot on the schedule. The Parade of Tartans steps off at 11:45 a.m. and the nine-event Scottish Highland Games include a professional men's competition. The Iron Palace Podcast hosts a five-event stone-lifting competition, and there are sheepdog herding demos, free axe throwing and kayak rentals from Pearl River Kayaks. Albannach, the Harbor Trio, and Seán Gavin with Don Penzien headline the main stage. Clan MacLean is this year's honored clan. Food vendors include The Celtic Monkey, Crooked Letter Kitchen, Scotsfare Heritage Meat Pies and Singin' Fireman BBQ.

There are also two free events on Friday, Oct. 9, the night before. Backyard Rebellion Highland Games holds a throwing clinic at 6 p.m. on the games field, and Backwater Grill Taphouse & Oyster Bar at 2643 Spillway Road in Brandon hosts an informal Irish music session at 7 p.m.

Since the Harvest Festival ends at 2 p.m., you can do both: go to Dogwood in the morning, then buy the $10 ticket and head to the reservoir after 6.

Liberty Road Gets the Last Weekend

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of Central Mississippi starts at 7 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24, at Flowood Liberty Park, 694 Liberty Road. Monty Permenter is the American Cancer Society's listed contact.

The same road has a newer stop. The Clarion Ledger reported in August 2026 that the food truck version of The Ice Box of Mississippi had opened at 509 Liberty Road, selling shaved ice in flavors such as cherry, blue raspberry, cotton candy, peach and piña colada.

Two Approvals That Aren't Open Yet

Two businesses in this summer's state health department approvals could change where people stop between events, but neither one has a confirmed opening date.

Sugar Hi Cakes, owned by Stephanie Alford, was approved for 5490 Castlewoods Court, Suite C. It's a new location for a local bakery known for custom celebration and wedding cakes, cinnamon rolls, cookies and seasonal baked goods.

Dutch Bros Coffee received a permit for its first Mississippi location at 411 West Pineview Drive. The Clarion Ledger's Sept. 11 roundup cautions that approved businesses "haven't necessarily opened for business yet." July coverage had placed the site on Strickland Drive, so the September address is the one to use.

The City's Own Event Comes After the Leaves Fall

The Chamber of Flowood calls its Chili Cook-Off and Grand Lighting of the Park an annual event. It's held with the City of Flowood at Winner's Circle Park, 100 Winner's Circle Drive, and combines the park's Christmas lights, hot cocoa and the Trail of Trees with a chili competition. In 2025 it was rescheduled to Thursday, Dec. 11, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. As of Sept. 30, 2026, the Chamber's November–December listings don't include a 2026 date for it. The only event posted for that stretch is the Pickleball DRS Fall Classic.

Winner's Circle Park sits right next to the Nature Park where October begins. Between now and December, nonprofits and private organizers fill Flowood's calendar, and the city's own event follows in the park next door.

If you're working out which of these weekends works best around a showing, a closing or an open house, Highland Realty keeps track of the Flowood calendar along with the market. Schedule a Local Market Consultation and we'll go over your timing with you.