Welcome to the Byways to Space network – the only one of its kind in the country.This scenic byway includes six routes that cover more than 30 miles through or near the NASA Stennis Space Center’s (SSC) 125,000-acre buffer zone. Often canopied by oaks, the roads and trails meander through the scenic countryside, passing former historic settlement sites, scenic vistas, natural waterways, and parks perfect for hikers, bicyclists, birders, kayakers, and nature lovers.
Westonia was a sawmill town named for Horatio Weston. The drive on this scenic byway provides a spectacular view of thousands of acres of pine plantation with sporadic hardwood trees, including live oaks. When Stennis Space Center was constructed, it was necessary to relocate people living within a six-mile radius of the Center due to the acoustic impacts associated with rocket engine testing. This byway honors those families that gave up their homes and a way of life in order to make way for the United States space program.