Lake Bistineau State Park A
Just east of Shreveport, and about 10 miles south of I-20, is Lake Bistineau and Lake Bistineau State Park. The lake is amazing and a great place to paddle. On my first trip there I stayed at the state park (if using a tent note that not all the campsites are level) and just went exploring. That is why the route above is all jumbly, going into Clarke Bayou, going north and south. By chance I found a very nice canoe kayak trail that is well marked and which winds south through the cypress. It’s one of the better trails I have seen, done by the Bayou Chapter Ozark Society, smartly designed. The lake is formed as a result of blocking the north-south Dorcheat Bayou. The main channel out on the lake is marked periodically with signs so you can follow those up and down. And since the organization of the place is so obviously north south it’s easy to make your own route in the woods on either side. But it can sometimes be a bit tricky to find exactly where the park sits on the west side. In the past, and maybe still, there was a summer draw down of Lake Bistineau to help kill off invasive aquatic vegetation and this would affect paddling options.
Above: Now that’s a picture.
Above: Lake Bistineau is one of the prettiest places.
Above: Beavers sitting on their house in the sun.
Above: A dead snapping turtle shell carcass. At first I thought the shell could be dried and maybe displayed at the park office or something but it was just too soggy and rotten.
Above: The water was high, and the current on Clarke Bayou was moving pretty fast.
www.SawdustRiver.com 