swamp | leschalmers

Leaving New Orleans we cross the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, the longest bridge in the world. Heading west we drive through miles and miles of swamp, that is we drive over miles and miles of swamp. Louisiana is so close to sea level the delta does not drain. With typical US attitude there are miles and miles of concrete freeway connecting the South with the North, East and West.

“The” Bridge.

Swamp Highway

Swamp

Baton Rouge, State Capital of Louisiana boasts the tallest Capital building in the US. This no doubt because it is the lowest state. Commissioned by enthusiastic Governor Huey Long during the recession of 1931 (at a cost of five million dollars) it was no doubt a controversial decision. The building is spectacular to say the least and a great legacy for Huey who unfortunately was assassinated in the building four years later.

Huey’s Edifice

Inside the capital building. The bullet holes are still in the wall. The brass chandelier are two ton each.

The San Antonio Texas freeway system is diabolical. We stayed twenty kilometres out-of-town and decided to head for the CBD to look at the Alamo. With GPS programmed and iPhone fully charged we set off. We are driving a VW Jetta, so named due to it’s ability to reach jet like speeds very quickly and just as well. The map below is a simplified guide to the San Antonio freeway. I say simplified as it also has an upper and a lower level, one superimposed on the other. I struggle to describe the scenario that takes place in my head when very polite GPS lady continues to insist that I, “keep left and stay in the right lane” then “bear right, keep left, enter the freeway and take the second exit left to the lower level I-10 westbound”. In the centre of San Antonio stands a large building with the State Flag flying on top. The purpose of this building and it’s flag is to give hope to the motorist that they are actually getting closer to town with each “lap of the track” they complete on their homing pigeon like trek to the centre of the universe, sorry, centre of San Antonio.

You take the the first exit right, you take the second exit left, you do the Hokey .......

Cobweb Theorem. You take the first exit right, you take the second exit left, you do the Hokey …….

The Cobweb.

The perfect San Antonio freeway vehicle.

The centre of the Texas universe.

Guadalupe River

Postscript for Rob Ellis. Top speed for today one hundred and eighty kilometres per hour. We were still passed. I need to try harder.

It’s quite a drive across the flat cotton field country into the swamp that is Louisiana. I’m not being cruel here, the majority of the lower part of Louisiana is a swamp. It’s got hilly bits you can live on but basically it’s a swamp. I know this because swamp tour guide/boat driver, Charlie, told me and as it’s a sin (sorry once again bible belt) for a tour guide to lie it must be so.

This is my way of saying we did the swamp tour, saw the “gators” and had the free geology lesson. When I say “gators” they were really “gatorettes” at least by Australian standards. We did see a six footer (1.8 metres) which would still be snack food for Australian “salties”. Finally we found something we have a bigger one of in Australia. That’s good syntax y’all. Thinks to self “I fit right in here”.

The alligators in the swamps down here are a bit like our freshwater crocodiles, that is to say they are not as aggressive as salt water crocodiles. Charlie says you can swim with them and the real risk is the water moccasin or cotton mouth snake (agkistrodon piscivorus), which are also found in the swamps down south. Since I don’t have gills or scales, of any significant size at least, I’ll leave the swimming with the afore-mentioned nasties to “Chuck and the kids”.