A Very Busy Season

A photo by Claude Nall



Do you have a reservation?

This is a common question being asked at the landing for the last few weeks by the tour guides to people who show up expecting to get on a Louisiana swamp tour without calling and making a reservation first.

On Tuesday, six people from Switzerland were very disappointed because someone from Lafayette told them they could just drive out and step on to a boat, with no reservation.

And they left without doing a tour.

On Thursday, when I got in at 1:30, eight people had been standing around for over an hour hoping to get on the 2PM tour, to no avail, every boat was booked solid.

My boat is running at near capacity for nearly every tour as seen below.



On almost every tour some asks if we will see alligators...

And I usually ask that person if they want to get up close and personal.

Is that close enough for you?

So... if you want to get up close and personal with a big gator,

and we have a lot of them,

normally seeing about 40 or 50 total on every tour,

I suggest you make a reservation before driving out to the lake.

My cell phone for reservations is 337 298 2630.

It breaks my heart to see so many people coming to the landing with great expectations,

thinking this is like a Disneyland attraction where you can just show up,
get in line, and it is on.

And then having to leave without getting out on the water.


Also, bear in mind there are no public restrooms at Lake Martin Landing, we launch from a public boat landing into a primitive wilderness area.

The new Nature Conservancy visitor center will provide a restroom on the other side of the lake, but I don't know if it is open yet, and it is a couple of miles from the landing.The Nature Conservancy Cypress Island Preserve Visitor Center

This week I am doing private photo safaris to remote locations where spoonbills are nestingand even though I am seeing more spoonbills at Lake Martin everyday, none are nesting close to the road the way they did before the lake water was being drained for the last few years.

But... you can get some great photo opportunities on rookery road with the little herons

And... along Prairie Highway near Lake Martin, the Red Iris are in bloom

See you at the lake