Out in the Swamp

From New York I took a two and a half hour flight to New Orleans. As soon as I exited the airport the heat hit me. It's extremely humid here and so far there has been no break. The infamy of the pound continues, the taxi driver who took me from Louis Armstrong International to my hotel in the French Quarter wanted to know if I had any pounds he could buy from me. It turns out the driver's wife is from Coventry and they are making a trip to the UK this summer. He told me he's heard it's not so hot in the summer, more like 70 degrees. I laughed and told him, "if your lucky". I'd been watching Henman's typically dramatic first round match on the plane, amazingly he won before we landed, but I'd noticed the crowd wrapped in their coats. Although it isn't a pleasant heat here, but then again it is the low season.
I signed up for a swamp tour in the afternoon. Considering the city is still recovering from Katrina, the tourist industry seems to be in full flow.
I was collected from my hotel and along with 10 or so other tourists (including one fellow Brit) driven out to a jetty near to a huge area of swamp land.

Boat Tour

Our guide was a Cajun who grew up in New Orleans, but would visit his grandparents regularly in the swamps. He and his sister own some 35,000 acres of swamp land, the rest belongs to the government. Apparently they have had many offers, but want to preserve and protect the area.

This tree was used in Interview with a Vampire.

A Cajun is a person of French extraction. Originally banished from France a really long time ago (okay I don't know everything) they settled in Newfoundland, until they heard of a new French community in what is now New Orleans. They made there way south, but rather than receive a warm welcome, many were slaughtered, those that escaped settled in the swamp lands. Cajun is still spoken and is now quite trendy. Although up until the 1970's Cajun's were persecuted in the US. Now however they can make good money from Hollywood studio's wanting their help to train actors in the local dialect. Our guide told us how locals with Irish ancestry where now passing themselves off as Cajun for Hollywood dollars, damn those Irish.

Our Cajun Guide, who's name escapes me.

We saw so many alligators it was really quite remarkable. The guide would feed them marshmallows, (apparently this is okay for them!) by placing them on the end of a stick. Our guide explained if he were to throw meat from the boat the alligators would assume we were meat too and try to get on board. Thankfully they never thought we were marshmallows.

I believe this is the money shot.

I can understand why so many films use the swamps as a setting, the area is very beautiful and has a mystical quality about it. It's teeming with wildlife, huge blue dragonflies kept landing on the boat and we saw about ten alligators on the two hour trip, along with many species of birds, insects and frogs. Thankfully we didn't see any snakes but the guide did warn us what do if any fall in the boat from the overhanging branches. The trees look beauiful decorated with Spanish moss.
I had packed my mosquito spray before setting out on the trip. But our guide explained mosquitoes aren't a problem out in the swamps as the water is constantly moving.


While I've been here I've learned the land New Orleans is built on was formed by the Mississippi making soil deposits. Unlike most rivers that erode land the Mississippi actually creates land. In the 1930's, canals were created through the wetlands and saltwater came into the equation. This destroyed a large portion of the wetlands and in turn reduced New Orleans natural defence from hurricanes. Also for a long time the Mississippi couldn't make soil deposits on land because of the levees. Instead the muddy waters would flow out to sea and do damage there. See this is what happens when man interferes in nature's plans!


Now the levees being created post Katrina are designed to allow the Mississippi to make her soil deposits and trees are being planted on the remaining wetlands to create stability through their roots. Although it wasn't the Mississippi levees that breached but rather those on around Lake Pontchartrain.