We went for a boat ride/tour of Lake Martin outside of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana last week. I was hoping to see some birds but did not see many. We got to see many gators though plus Bald Cypress trees, birds and swamp. Great two-hour tour.
First we'll look at the gators...they ranged in size from 5-ft to 12-ft. Lake Martin is about 8 miles around and, in the summer, the guide told us that every tree and stump out in the lake has a gator on it ! About 200 of these bad boys.
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| Come just a little closer ! |
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| This one shows you how close you can get. They don't like loud noises, like the boat engine but, other than that, they're not disturbed by us. |
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| Kim decided to get a little too close to this one ! Now we call her One-Arm Kim. |
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| This one log had over 20 turtles on it. |
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| If you are to venture into this area and get caught, they take your boat away, fine you AND you have the option of buying it back at the auction that they have for impounded boats! |
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| This is an old, old deer stand from the 50's. It used to be down near the ground when the tree was much younger and it was dry land here. Imagine standing in that can all day waiting for a deer to come by? |
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| There are many homemade duck blinds in the lake. You're not allowed to bring anything into the lake to construct them. This one is the most innovative in that it actually looks like an old tree but this was all made from lake materials that were floating around. |
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| There is a very large rookery here that is home to nesting Great Egrets....hundreds of them ! This is just one tiny fraction of the area that's protected. |
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| Here is a Great Egret. |
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| Roseate Spoonbills also come to mate and have little Spoonbills. |
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| More Great Egrets...either looking for a mate or resting. |
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| Also, Little Blue Herons come to mate and have babies. This is just one such bush covered with them. |
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| The Little Blue Heron in mating mode....usually his crown is smooth but it's fluffed up now to attract a female. |
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| This is what the Little Blue Heron looks like when not mating. |
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| We did get to see an Osprey after it caught a fish. |
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| The Osprey will position the fish in it's talons so that the fish is facing straight, for aerodynamic flying. |
We took two long walks and one boat ride to see part of Lake Martin. Nice place to visit.
