The River in These Parts and The Floods of 1927 and 2011

The River in these parts is a real monster -- vastly different from the gently flowing River north of St. Louis that stays within its banks with the help of a carefully engineered system of 29 locks and dams.

Down here the River is very deep and flows at a speed of 7-8 mph. Flooding is controlled by a very extensive levee. in 1927, River broke through the old levee here in Mississippi and flooded over a million acres of land and swept away homes and people. Thousands of people lost their lives in that flood, which gave rise to the construction of a vastly improved levee system.

Over the centuries the River has often changed course down here leaving in its wake many crescent shaped oxbow lakes like Lake Washington and Chotard Lake that were once part of the River. Today these lakes and surrounding wetlands make tremendous refuge for natural habitat at places like Lake and nearby Eagle Lake.

There are a lot of large alligators in this area. Only a few months ago, some hunters shot a 700 pound alligator near Eagle Lake. People down here have told me that an alligator could outrun a horse in the 40 yard dash. It is unlikely that an alligator would ever chase a human being, but I am told that the best thing to do if chased by an alligator is to zig zag. Apparently they don't change direction well. Reminds me of former Viking Herschel Walker!

in addition to alligators, this area is full of snakes, including rattlers, cottonmouth and water moccasins. And the oxbow lakes are the home of some massive fish, including alligator gar fish that have large teeth and can be over 10 feet long and weigh hundreds of pounds. And, yes, those menacing Asian carp are in the River down here, too. As a local fisherman told me, these are not good lakes for swimming!

The Chotard Landing Resort is one of the few establishments that lies inside the levee. The flooding down here in 2011 is thought by many to be the worst since 1927, but the levee held. Unfortunately, the Chotard Landing Resort was completely flooded when water levels rose over 60' this spring. Much of the devastation it suffered has not yet been repaired.