This gallery contains 14 photos.
Southeast Louisiana’s winter weather is so fickle. One day it’s cold, damp and gray and the next is sunny with blue skies and mild temperatures. During Christmas break from work hubby and I decided to go looking for pelicans in … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
I have been lucky in friending Plaquemines Parish P.J. Hahn, Director of Coastal Zone Management on facebook and following his photography. I did so during the oilspill of 2010, knowing he would provide local, honest first-person reporting of an incident … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
I am a shoreline person. My blood pressure drops when I hear the sound of the surf. I adore walking barefoot in the sand. I live within a mile of a bayou, I cross Lake Pontchartrain 2 times a day … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
We were pleasantly surprised today when we finally decided on what to do on Saturday… we went to Camp Salmen Nature Park to see what updates have been done since our last visit in February. Originally a Boy Scout camp … Continue reading
This gallery contains 1 photo.
The Big Fix premieres this Friday as part of the New Orleans Film Festival. This documentary film details the massive government cover-up which has taken place in the wake of the BP oil spill. There will be a press conference … Continue reading
September is the high point on the tropical activity calendar. We who live on the Gulf Coast accept the fact that our Labor Day weekends might possibly be hampered by tropical activity. And this year we have Tropical Storm Lee.
What follows are my pix taken on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain (approximately 30 miles away from the French Quarter). The pictures are not as sensational as the Weather Channel would have you believe about Lee’s intensity. Lee is more of a slow moving storm than a powerful one. As I type this (Sunday at 8 AM) it’s still pouring outside.
This was taken from Lakeview Drive, better known as Rats Nest Road in Slidell. The old piers destroyed by Katrina are in the foreground and the new Twin Spans can be seen in the background.
This train was moving slowly across the submerged marshland heading towards Lake Pontchartrain.
Six years Post Katrina, St. Genevieve Catholic Church in the Bayou Liberty area of Slidell (my neighborhood) is finally rebuilding.
I like this shot of the crosses of the chapel and church.
Bayou Liberty boat berths. Those poles in the foreground represent sunken boat slips.
Swings and benches submerged in Lee’s flood waters.
This is what this area normally looks like.
Hubby pointed out the beauty of the Spanish Moss and the waters of Bayou Liberty.
This crazy truck driver drove through the flood waters to drop off a friend.
The “new” Bayou Liberty Bridge taken from the Church side of the Bayou.
A view of the piers on the St. Genevieve grounds.
A bright spot in all of this wet windy weather is that our 6 month old lab discovered how much he LOVES water!
This year’s Rising Tide blogger conference was held at Xavier University in New Orleans. If you would like to read the events of the day, you can look on Twitter, hashtag #rt6 or @risingtide. New this year was an adjacent room hosting a tech school featuring several sessions on how to get the most out of your blogging and social media experience. Another great addition this year, the conference was webcast! The space at Xavier is one of the best yet, with plenty room to spread out, a myriad of vendors, and cool environs to participate in the event. The opening address by Sr. Monica Loughlin was a very warm welcome by the conference hosts, and Sr. Monica gave the audience a history of St. Katharine Drexel, the founder of Xavier, noting that she lived her life going against convention in order to achieve her vision, and that she would have been proud that a grassroots blogger assembly was being held on the grounds of her dream made reality, Xavier.
The first speaker was Richard Campanella, who spoke eloquently on the historical geography of New Orleans, and those implications on the current state of New Orleans’ neighborhoods. He has spent countless hours as a researcher gleaning information from local archives to write many books on the city. He presented a thorough picture of the city and surrounding regions and established a foundation of the relevance of New Orleans as a truly unique part of the country. The next presentation, the panel on social media and social justice promoted using social media to mobilize grassroots opposition to unjust legislation in state and federal politics. Moderated by Dr. Kimberly Chandler of Xavier University, it was a dynamic panel with good information on how to participate in social justice. Jimmy Huck who writes The Huck Upchuck blog, and follows Latino and immigrant issues in and around New Orleans presented issues concerning Latinos in New Orleans and stated that this demographic is much more plugged in than many people think and are able to participate in social media activism. One panel member noted that social media can also be used against the activists, with the case in point concerning the recent London Riots: pictures of rioters were posted on a website with a number assigned and people were asked to notify the authorities if they knew the individual in the picture. Scary thought indeed…
The lunchtime panel spoke on the Macondo/BP/Deepwater Horizon oil spill that began April 20, 2010 killing 11 people. The panel reviewed the spill timeline, and Bob Marshall discussed the fact that the Minerals Management Service was “in bed” with Louisiana politicians and the oil companies and how it is virtually impossible to change any oil company policy to benefit the citizens of Louisiana and the environment where we all live. Anne Rolfes reported that the oil industry has an exponential number of accidents that are not reported. Drake Toulouse of Disenfranchised Citizen commented on the post-oil spill financial claims distribution mess that Ken Fineberg inherited, and how his promises of distributing checks within 7 days went unfulfilled. The delays wound up wearing people down so they just gave up and took a check, but unfortunately are still living with the disaster effects on their health and finances. All agreed that the American Petroleum Institute controls congress, therefore citizens have little control over this mess and we are all screwed because of that. It was also reported that any remaining monies from the 20 billion BP put into the GCCF fund would be returned to the company, instead of distributing it to people suffering from the spill. Bob Marshall said that he recently watched again the 1948 Louisiana Story movie and how so long ago there was no value on the swamps and wetlands, but now that we realize the wetlands destruction equates a loss of a way of life in Louisiana, it might be too little too late to save the wetlands.
After a delicious lunch by J’Anitas, David Simon the second featured speaker explored the conceptual background of his series Treme’. He presented the fallacies of logic, speaking specifically about “standing” and ad hominem arguments, the second in which a person uses an argument against the other person as opposed to the subject being argued between them. He noted that politicians frequently use the ad hominem fallacy of logic, such as in health care debates and other political discourse. He also posited that “standing” is the lamest way politicians diminish political discourse, using as an example the controversy over the demolition of a row of houses on S. Derbigny street that were featured in the poster of the first season of Treme’. Simon also noted that because he is not a New Orleans local, he got Treme’ right because he bluntly inserted himself into New Orleans situations that perhaps a local would not have ventured, caring nothing about “standing” for or against anyone or anything. Simon also cautioned the audience about the biotech development proposal slated for construction alongside the new LSU medical center, and how Johns Hopkins in Baltimore promised the same. Unfortunately a decade later, the empty dirt filled lots which were to be filled with new businesses and research buildings are still that, empty…
After Simon, a delightful and lively panel discussion on New Orleans Food was moderated by Jeffrey of the Library Chronicles. The panel talked about the miraculous post-Katrina recovery of the restaurant industry and the ensuing burst of food creativity as described by Todd Price. Rene Louapre who writes Blackened Out pointed out how there have been no New Orleans chefs participating on Bravo’s Top Chef series, and the reason probably is that New Orleans chefs in their 30′s have abundant opportunity to open restaurants in the city than anywhere else because of the storm and the abandoned food establishments just waiting to be put back into commerce. Chef Adolfo Garcia recalled how many chefs worked together after Katrina to help each other and mobilize restaurant re-openings because there were so many people in town that needed places to eat: first responders, contractors, insurance people and others who had money to spend and nowhere to dine. A lively discussion ensued about assigning the nomenclature of Creole to the current cuisine being served in town and the question arose: is New Orleans losing its food identity? Alex del Castillo talked about mobile food vendors, “taco trucks”, setting roots into brick and mortar restaurants that contribute to the eclectic mix of New Orleans creole cuisine. Chris deBarr of Green Goddess Restaurant had the most optimistic take on it all: in merging the varied cuisines of the different cultures of New Orleans (Italian, French, Caribbean, African, Vietnamese, etc.) the true identity of Creole cuisine is discovered by marrying local cuisines and cultures into great food.
Next was the presentation of the Ashley Morris Award, and this year’s recipient was Dedra Johnson of the G_Bitch spot blog. An extremely well deserved recipient, she tirelessly writes about the state of the New Orleans public school system. And finally, the exuberant Brass Band panel, hosted by Big Red Cotton discussing the history of and return after Katrina of New Orleans brass bands, closing out another wonderful Rising Tide conference. The TBC Brass band trumpeted another successful year and heralds the continuation and success of an inspiring event. Thanks to all the Rising Tide VI organizers, vendors and participants for making this year another memorable conference!
For the first time in over a month hubby and I had a Saturday where we could do some hiking and picture taking. It was a wonderful release.
A place that’s been on our”gotta visit” list is the Southeast Louisiana National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters in Lacombe, just 15 minutes from our house.
Upon entering the site, you’re drawn to the landscaping. The attention to detail is apparent and it reaches back over 200 years.
This site is rich in history and beauty. The August heat appeared to be too much to handle, but it really wasn’t at this site because of the abundance of trees. We arrived at 10 AM and were done by noon.
Here is a brief rundown of the history of this paradise in Lacombe, taken from one of the info boards:
Likely a portion of French or Spanish Land Grant during the Colonial Era, the earliest known owner was Louis Reggio prior to 1820. The property changed hands a number of times later that century, with the Cousin and Ducre names common today in the Lacombe area among the owners during this period into the 20th century.
The land was acquired in 1935 by Judge Wayne Borah (the youngest Federal Judge in the country at the time), who built a residence.
This structure is a Chimney Swift Tower
He and his family did extensive landscaping, laying out the foundation which is known today as the “Bayou Gardens” of Lacombe.
In 1946 the home and gardens were acquired by former (crooked) Louisiana Governor Richard Leche, who settled into the lush surroundings with his family and continued the cultivation of the Bayou Gardens.
In 1956 the land was acquired by the Redemptorist religious order and in 1960 the Holy Redeemer Seminary opened. The seminary closed in 1980, but members of the order continued to live at the site, holding religious retreats. And apparently, a cemetery was established for the priests that stayed until the end of their lives.
The rear of the residence gives way to a great lawn that faces Bayou Lacombe
This site is loaded with walking trails, as shown in the map below
There are walking trails off to each side of the great lawn that are easy to maneuver and full of small surprises if you look for them
A trail that begins at the parking lot of the Refuge leads down to a grotto
which leads to a rudimentary brick staircase:
Made with local bricks
This same trail will also bring you to a lovely little area to sit and ponder the beauty of Bayou Lacombe
If you walk it a little while longer, it brings you to another pensive sight overlooking a pond.
The visitor center is huge and loaded with information and displays.
This little girl was killed by a car in Bayou Teche and her remains were saved and brought to the headquarters
The Headquarters represents the eight of Southeast Louisiana (SELA) Refuges:
Atchafalaya (prounounced A-Cha-FaH-lie-ya)
Bayou Sauvage (through which I traverse on my daily commute)
Bayou Teche (prounounced Tesh)
Big Branch Marsh (in our backyard)
Bogue Chitto (prounounced Boog gah Chitta)
Breton – close to my heart because it’s a bird refuge
Delta National Wildlife Refuge
Mandalay – only accessible by boat, near Houma, Louisiana.
A visit to the Bayou Lacombe Center is a win-win situation any time of the year. Besides all of the hiking trails, the kids would love the Visitors Center for the displays (lots of interactive stuff there too). The best part is that admission is FREE!! You can get to the Bayou Lacombe Center by taking exit 74 on I-12. Staffed by volunteers, the visitor center is open Thursdays-Saturdays from 9:00am to 4:00pm. Volunteers are needed to help run the visitor center. Please contact the volunteer coordinator at 985-882-2024.
Less than a mile down the road from Fountainbleu State Park toward Mandeville is the Northlake Nature Center , a four-hundred acre park that is absolutely beautiful.
(click on the pictures below to see the full sized version)
This park offers the opportunity to witness four different ecosystems AND a first hand look at an historic example of crooked Louisiana politicians. A recent archaeological survey revealed the Center site as home to ancient peoples more than 500 years ago.
At the end of the initial boardwalk, you will come to an unfinished “hideaway” club house
As stated in the photo below, this exclusive hideaway golf course initially was the idea of Louisiana Governor Leche in the late 1930′s for his political cronies. This governor has the unique distinction of being the first Louisiana governor sentenced to prison.
Leche and several of his political pasls were indicted in what were termed the “Louisiana Scandals”
The hideaway was destroyed by fire in March 2010 and is not accessible. However, hubby and I took a trip into the park before the fire and got some of the following shots.
Beyond this piece of history is lush, serene swampland and forest.
There are several trails to choose from, all of them pretty primitive, so be prepared to watch where you step!
The boardwalk crosses what is purported to be an active beaver pond
But on this day we only spotted friendly turtles
Lots of turtles!
There are several benches along the boardwalks and paths through the woods.
This area seems to be where they hold nature seminars and is probably used for the annual Great Louisiana Birdfest that happens here.
We spotted this cypress at the edge of the pond.
Notice how the lower branches are bent down as a result of Katrina’s winds.
There are several overlooks constructed throughout the park where you can take in all that this little environmental gem has to offer.
These pictures were taken in February of this year, thus the reason that everything looks muted. If August weren’t so darned steamy, I’d love to be out there right now with my camera.
This photo whispers about the circle of life to me. You can see the victims of Katrina being used to nourish the new growth.
Amidst all that gray stood this proud little tree, all decked out in new green leaves.
Throughout the park are bridges which cross Bayou Castine
I’m not an avid hiker, but I managed to walk around the park for several hours and didn’t feel the least bit tired (with the exception of my bursitis, but that’s a sign of my age 
).
If you ever want to get away from it all and just listen to the sounds of the woods and waterways, make your way to the Nothlake Nature Center to unwind.
Wendell Pierce talks about the rebuilding of a green Ponchartrain Park on Future360.
I have always been fascinated with sunrise. In my 20′s I would party till after the sun rose and be blinded by the light upon leaving the bar. I can remember watching sunrise from Grand Isle State Park and Cocoa Beach Florida. My daily commute puts me in line with pre-sunrise skies every morning, wishing I had my camera with me.
It’s amazing what goes on in the 30 or more minutes between predawn and sunrise.
Recently – well actually Memorial Day – we decided to climb out of our oh-so-comfortable cocoons at 5AM to travel the ten minutes to Goose Point in Lacombe, Louisiana.
For the locals it’s known as Lake Road, an extremely narrow piece of land that joins the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain with the lake.
Lake Road taken from the end
Lake Road is not paved and is just wide enough for two vehicles to pass each other. I believe it is part of the Big Branch National Wildlife Refuge. On any given day you can find dozens of people parked along the road crabbing or fishing. In fact when we passed at a little after 5:30 in the morning there were several people already out there going after the early morning catch.
In the few minutes before the sun actually shows itself on the horizon the red wing blackbirds are out playing. This is one of my favorite “common” birds because of its call. There is something about the sound of a red wing blackbird that lets you know you’re far away from the sounds and activity of a normal day at work or in the city. They’re playful little things, too. I had fun trying to photograph them.
What I never knew until this day was how much energy it takes for this little bird to sing my favorite sound. Check out this guy.
Finally the event that we were waiting for began
The sun rises quickly and so many things are happening during this time. It’s difficult to decide what to shoot!
Still singing his little heart out!
I imagine there was once a camp or a pier here
These little plants caught the rays from the sun so well they appeared to be glowing.
I didn’t realize until after I looked at this picture that the plants have little purple flowers on them.
I love the texture of the marsh grass in this picture.
A marsh rose and wild morning glory
Crab boat going out on the lake to lay those crab traps to catch the best tasting crabs around!
This little guy scampered back into the bushes when we stopped to get his picture.
It was a wonderful experience and worth getting up early for. By the time we were finished it was already 7 AM and we headed out for breakfast and then more picture taking. A time well spent!
On WWL-TV at noon today, the New Orleans Baton Rouge Steamship Pilots Association is organizing a fund to help the victims of the flooding from the opening of the Morganza Spillway. In conjunction with the American Red Cross, donations can be made in person at any local First NBC bank: the account accepting funds is named the Morganza Relief Fund and will remain open until June 17, 2011. Please consider helping our fellow Louisianians suffering through this catastrophe, and remember their sacrifices so metropolitan New Orleans and Baton Rouge could be spared.
Well, the appropriate “powers that be” decided (at last) to open the Morganza Spillway Saturday afternoon. There’s a lot of sadness happening in the area and throughout the country with a few exceptions, as usual.
Photo courtesy of the Washington Times.
I found this to be a “lose/lose” situation. I have a heavy heart for the humans and wildlife that are going to be hurt because of this decision, but it was a call that had to be made. My thoughts and prayers are for all of those who’ve suffered because of the Mississippi River flooding.
photo courtesty of uk’s dailymail.
A few months ago I found a Groupon for a Honey Island Swamp tour (2 for the price of one!) and jumped on it. Having lived in Southeast Louisiana for over thirty years, I have never taken a swamp tour (yet tempted by all of the signs I see in Slidell), and was very curious about what the tour would reveal.
Offered by Pearl River Eco Tours – located on the far eastern edge of Slidell – the two hour tour was very enjoyable and informative.
We were lucky that a cool front had entered the area overnight and the weather was perfect…..
Garden of Eden Perfect: low humidity, cool breeze and a lot of sunshine.
The facility itself is easy to find and pretty much nondescript, not a tourist trap at all. What follows are pix taken by my hubby and me. Enjoy. (click on pictures for larger versions)
Our tour was in the late afternoon, so we didn’t see many birds, much to my disappointment. But I managed to catch this guy in flight.
There were several hungry gators along our tour, most of them small (5-6 feet in length).
The elephant ears were huge!
To get them closer to the boat, the guide fed them marshmallows and pieces of red hot dogs.
The bark of a cypress tree.
Tiny water beetles coming to the surface for air.
I thought this plant looked like a jellyfish.
Our guide informed us that the correct name for this plant is the swamp lotus.
Blue Heron
I was wondering what they used the bamboo sticks for before we boarded the boat!
This once was a cypress tree that was 30 feet in diameter.
The people on our boat were from as far away as Hong Kong and as nearby as Picayune, Mississippi. It is a great treat to go into the swamp and get away from everything. At one point on the tour our guide turned of the boat’s engine and we just floated down a lush, green bayou and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the place. The only sound was that of the birds and the breeze.
If you are ever interested in a swamp tour, here’s their website. A tour has to be booked ahead of time due to the popularity. Have fun and bring the sunscreen!
Good morning, NOLA!
Here for your pleasure is another random (as in whenever I get around to it) post of links that impressed me from the NOLA blogosphere as well as articles of interest that are not local but are NOLA-related. Without further ado, you must click over to:
Well, it’s past midnight and I’m ready to visit la-la land so off I go. Remember, you can catch many of these stories, and more, weekly via NOLAFemmes on Twitter. Or, you can wait for the random post here. Until next time….
