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Wednesday, October 12, 2011
The placid looking Lake Chotard in The Background Was Over My Head in May 2011!
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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.
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.
Bo Weevil (middle) with hunting buddy Hank (right) and his son Matt (left)
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Day 33 - Chatham, Mississippi to Lake Chotard, Mississippi (53 Miles)
Alligators and Cottonmouths and Wild Boars, Oh My!! it came to my attention today that the wildlife down here has changed radically from what i was used to at home.
Bo met me for breakfast and took me on a very interesting tour of the Lake Washington area. Bo is one of a dwindling number of private owners of farmland in this area. Much of the farmland has been bought up by large corporations that use very effective and efficient modern farm equipment and employ very few people. As a result, this area has become very sparsely populated.
Like most of the local farmers who remain in this area, Bo is a true outdoorsman whose passion is hunting. Just south of Lake Washington, the farmland gives way to deep, dense woods. Bo and his hunting buddies have bagged more than their fair share of deer and wild boar in those woods. In the wetlands and fields around Lake Washington, Bo and his friends hunt ducks, geese and pheasants. According to Bo, there are three types of religion in this area: hunting, the Baptist Church and SEC football.
Bo introduced me to many of his buddies while i was at Lake Washington. i really liked everyone i met. But they speak with a thick southern accent and i have to listen intently in order to understand what they are saying. For instance, what i am riding is known down here as a BA-sickle (with a strong accent on the first syllable).
The ride today took me through the most remote country i have come across since leaving the stretch south of Bemidji in northern Minnesota. i ran out of water about three hours into the ride. Since there were no homes in sight i flagged down a rare passing motorist to find out where i could get some water. He was obviously a hunter as he was dressed in camouflage hunting apparel and had his face painted. He told me i could get water at "the store," but that there was no store for 40 miles. So he gave me a bottle of water from his truck and went on his way.
The only town i went through today was Mayersville, which consisted of a small cluster of houses around one commercial establishment - a prison. Unlike the many other prisons i have passed on this trip, this prison was right up next to the road. Many of the prisoners were out in the recreation area and waved and shouted as i rode by. They were dressed in prison garb with broad black and white horizontal stripes. It looked like Elvis Presley's Jailhouse Rock.
i ended the ride today at a very remote hunting and fishing resort called Chotard Landing on beautiful Lake Chotard.
Bo met me for breakfast and took me on a very interesting tour of the Lake Washington area. Bo is one of a dwindling number of private owners of farmland in this area. Much of the farmland has been bought up by large corporations that use very effective and efficient modern farm equipment and employ very few people. As a result, this area has become very sparsely populated.
Like most of the local farmers who remain in this area, Bo is a true outdoorsman whose passion is hunting. Just south of Lake Washington, the farmland gives way to deep, dense woods. Bo and his hunting buddies have bagged more than their fair share of deer and wild boar in those woods. In the wetlands and fields around Lake Washington, Bo and his friends hunt ducks, geese and pheasants. According to Bo, there are three types of religion in this area: hunting, the Baptist Church and SEC football.
Bo introduced me to many of his buddies while i was at Lake Washington. i really liked everyone i met. But they speak with a thick southern accent and i have to listen intently in order to understand what they are saying. For instance, what i am riding is known down here as a BA-sickle (with a strong accent on the first syllable).
The ride today took me through the most remote country i have come across since leaving the stretch south of Bemidji in northern Minnesota. i ran out of water about three hours into the ride. Since there were no homes in sight i flagged down a rare passing motorist to find out where i could get some water. He was obviously a hunter as he was dressed in camouflage hunting apparel and had his face painted. He told me i could get water at "the store," but that there was no store for 40 miles. So he gave me a bottle of water from his truck and went on his way.
The only town i went through today was Mayersville, which consisted of a small cluster of houses around one commercial establishment - a prison. Unlike the many other prisons i have passed on this trip, this prison was right up next to the road. Many of the prisoners were out in the recreation area and waved and shouted as i rode by. They were dressed in prison garb with broad black and white horizontal stripes. It looked like Elvis Presley's Jailhouse Rock.
i ended the ride today at a very remote hunting and fishing resort called Chotard Landing on beautiful Lake Chotard.
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