Hello, I am about to move from Minneapolis to New Orleans. I’ve been kayaking for just over 12 years and I was wondering if there are plenty of cool places to kayak down there? Do people kayak in the gulf and are there healthy beautiful lakes? I’ve kayaked in the ocean before but it was much colder. Please anyone who kayaks or has kayaked down there chime in.
Won’t be “cool” until autumn, but
I’ve canoed a number of shady bayous that are equally suitable for kayaks. Cane bayou is on the north side of Lake Ponchertrain, and runs down to the lake, as do a number of other bayous with at least some wilderness qualities. I’ve also done Bayous Trepangier and Lafourche west of the city, which end on Ponchertrain. The lake is clean enough much of the time.
East of the city is the Pearl River system, very suitable for kayaks which have the drive to counter the current in the river channels and get you into the smaller swamp or marsh passages.
Water level permitting, there are river runs in Bogue Chitto State Park (sandbars) and Tickfaw State Park (shaded cypress swamp). Tickfaw maneuvering can require “horsing” your kayak a bit, but is no big problem.
Fellow by the name of Herndon has guidebooks for LA and MS. I’ll have to leave it to the ocean kayakers to tell you how to access the Gulf of Mexico. There are few ocean beaches near New Orleans. Mostly swamp shades into salt marsh.
cool
Get on the Facebook Groups “Mississippi River Paddlers” and “Lower Mississippi River Paddlers”… might be nice to help out as a river angel too while there in NO. Plenty of thru paddlers headed from Montana to the Gulf and also Lake Itasca to the Gulf. 50-paddlers last year passed thru NO headed there. Plenty coming down right now. I’m sure they would appreciate any advice, resupply, water, hot shower, laundry, cold beer or boat storage once finished at Mile Zero.
Thanks
I appreciate the insight.
Will do !
thanks