Kayaking on the Falgout Canal

Extending from the Intracoastal Waterway that intersects Houma, four major bayous meander southward to the Gulf Coast like four extended fingers on a hand. They include from West to East, Bayou du Large going through the town of Theriot (tier-ee-oh), Bayou Grand Caillou (Kie-you) going through Dulac, Bayou Petit Caillou going through Chauvin and eventually Cocodrie at the end of the Hwy 56, and Bayou Terrebonne going through Montegut.

On Saturday, I took the 18 mile drive from our home down Bayou du Large through Theriot all the way to the Falgout (Fal-goo) Marina where I launched my kayak. I paddled my kayak the full distance of the Falgout Canal and back (3.6 mi. x 2 = 7.2 mi.). It took about 2 hours.

There is a highway that goes along the south side of the canal. At the far end of the Canal, I got out, crossed the highway and took a picture of what has been described as a "cypress tree graveyard," an area that is transitioning from fresh water swamp land to brackish marsh land.

The loss of land in southern Louisiana is of great concern to Louisianans, and should be to the Nation as a whole.

The yellow arrows in the Google Earth photo show beginning and ending points of my trip, and the yellow dot is where I took a picture of the dead cypress trees.

Restoring Louisiana's vanishing coastline

Last night, I had the opportunity to view a compelling documentary entitled "Harvest to Restore America's Coastal Heartland." This documentary eloquently described how important the coastal region of Louisiana is to the entire nation, then introduced the concept of "pipeline sediment delivery" as a means of saving our coastline, wetlands, livelihood and lifestyle in this region. Quoting from the website, "...pipeline sediment delivery holds the promise of expeditiously recreating the natural system of barrier islands, marshes, and ridgelands that provide the only practical long term hurricane protection both to America’s energy hub and to the port and city of New Orleans." The documentary showed how pipeline sediment delivery works, how it’s being used in other countries around the world such as in Dubai. The documentary is well worth watching, and shows what can be done if we put our minds to it. Governor Bobby Jindal just returned from Washington, where he met with the Louisiana congressional delegation and, among other things, discussed the need to move ahead as quickly as possible on projects that will help to save our vanishing coastline.

Ike's impact on Terrebonne Parish

While it is understandable that much of Hurricane Ike's impact in the gulf region is focused on Texas, it's impact on Louisiana should not be overlooked. In Terrebonne Parish alone, some 15,000 homes were swamped by storm surge created by Ike. Governor Jindal has been very vocal about the false economy of not taking action toward coastal restoration and strengthening the levee system, then spending fantastic amounts of money to repeatedly repair flooded homes and businesses. Rita was far more devastating in Terrebonne Parish than was Katrina in 2005. Similarly, even though Terrebonne Parish took a direct hit from Gustav, the flooding that was created by Ike will be harder to recover from. Imagine having a home flooded out by a hurricane, only to see it get flooded out again only three years later. Ike exacted a severe psychological blow to those living in vulnerable communities in lower Terrebonne Parish. Experts on coastal restoration point out that 40 years ago, Ike wouldn't have had anywhere near the impact that it did in 2008 in southern Louisiana. They also have pointed out that a stronger levee only two feet higher would have prevented almost all of the flooding that occurred in Terrebonne Parish.

Consider this. We will be paying in excess of $400 million to complete the 700-mile partially built border fence between Mexico and the U.S., not to mention the billions it costs each year to patrol the border. Perhaps we should take this money and spend it on coastal protection projects and let the illegals do the building. Sounds like a win-win solution to me.

Above picture was taken from the Houma Courier.

Hurricane on the Bayou

As everyone knows, Hurricane Katrina was life-changing event in southern Louisiana. Images of New Orleans under water are some of the most vivid. I had the opportunity to go into New Orleans several times to assist in the clean up, and will share a few of the images I captured in future posts. Houma was just far enough to the west, actually about 60 miles southwest, to have been spared from the extreme wind and water damage that occurred especially on the east side of New Orleans and the coastal areas of MS and AL. Hurricane Rita impacted Houma more than did Katrina, with hurricane force winds occurring as nearby as Morgan City, and coastal flooding severely impacting Houma on the SE side of the Intercoastal Waterway that intersects the city, and points further south in Terrebonne Parish. The sugarcane belt was far more impacted by Rita than Katrina, a sizeable portion of it being severely flooded with water high in salt content.

Judy and I were invited to attend a preview of the IMAX film, "Hurricane on the Bayou," prior to its general opening in New Orleans. Amazingly, much of the footage of this film occurred before Hurricane Katrina, with the anticipation that something like a Katrina was well within the realm of possibilities because of coastal erosion and a relentless loss of vital wetlands. Ironically, from the perspective of the producers, the timing of Hurricane Katrina was almost as though it were on queue. This film is a must-see, if you have any interest whatsoever in Bayou Country and the potential far-reaching impact of not taking decisive action to protect Louisiana's wetlands.