Turtle Bayou and Whites Bayou
June 12, 2021
by Kent Walters
Photos Whites Bayou and Upper Turtle Bayou
The Crew
Everyone was at the boat ramp by 10:00 and we prepped our boats and launched at 10:30, heading south on Whites Bayou. This is a narrow ribbon of water snaking through a dense cypress, pine and hardwood forest. The birds were singing and the cicadas were cicadaing. It was very peaceful, except for the voracious mosquitoes. You would think they had never seen a human being! They were biting through the repellant. Oh well, it’s always something. We paddled slowly for 2 miles, over and around a few “mini golf” kinds of obstacles until we came to a stacked logjam that was our cue to about-face.
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| David at Logjam |
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Response to Logjam |
We paddled languidly back the way we came for “White Bayou – The Sequel”.
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| David Barrett |
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Fran Wilcox |
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John Ohrt |
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Alice Nissen |
We arrived at the boat launch, where we de-boated and ate a leisurely lunch in the shade. It was quite pleasant, with a light breeze and no mosquitos.
We got back in our boats and headed north into upper Turtle Bayou. This is a wider body of water, and some of us were zig-zagging back and forth across the bayou to take advantage of the shade wherever we could find it. We turned around before reaching the TGTAT (Tree Growing Through Another Tree), as we were eating into our target “hulls dry” time.
Joe Staying Hydrated
We exited the water around 3:30. Up to that time, comments were that it was a very pleasant and enjoyable outing. After loading the boats, I think the general consensus was that it was really hot. But it was a nice trip that helped us reset our souls.
Wildlife encountered during this trip included iridescent green dragonflies, mosquitos, gnats, turtles, an osprey, a little green heron, swallows, cardinals, a belted kingfisher, woodpeckers, lots of fish breeching (probably gar) and minnows. Also, the button bushes were doing their thing.
Here’s where we went and our stats:
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The author, Kent Walters |