Atchafalaya, Doiron’s Landing

Kayak route launching from Doiron’s Landing, above Morgan City, Louisiana, more or less on the south side of the Atchafalaya Basin. Great route, crosses the Little Tensas Bayou (as labeled by Google maps, labeled by DeLorme as something else) with its tugs and barges, then goes into the swamp. The route also samples a few out and back channels while doing the loop. The north-south out and back that is inside the loop eventually narrows to the point of impassability at the yellow turnaround dot, and the water becomes very clear. Dozens of alligators were observed throughout the trip but it was very hard to get the drop on them, photographically speaking. The launch is about an hour from Lake Fausse Pointe State Park where I stayed and, as usual in the huge Atchafalaya Basin area, this means back and forth gas $$. The launch requires a 5 buck dashboard permit that is purchased at the Doiron’s gas station across the street. The permit allows launching at three nearby spots, this one faced west towards the waterway. Depending on how far one can paddle in a day there are a variety of additional route alternatives here. I think this was one of the nicer Atchafalaya paddles, I saw nobody on any of the internal channels and the scenery was better than usual. If you’re not from this area, good luck pronouncing ‘doiron’.