Cazan Ballet continued ...
If You Go . . .
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ashington happens to be the third oldest settlement in Louisiana, celebrating its tricentennial in 2020. The quaint town was once a hustling and bustling steamboat port between New Orleans and St. Louis, where cotton, cattle, sugar and molasses were the chief products transported up and downstream supporting the commerce of a growing nation. The old Steamboat Warehouse, a relic from the past, located on Bayou Courtableau has since been converted to the “Steamboat Warehouse Restaurant,” whose cuisine is as close to any upscale restaurants you’ll find in New Orleans. The town has reinvented itself since the old days. The downtown area has numerous antique shops along Main Street and the circa 1936 three story brick school has been converted to the “Old Schoolhouse Antique Mall” that’s full of collectible riches. Notably St. John’s Episcopal Church, built in 1874, was the site of one of the scenes in the movie The Free State of Jones starring Matthew McConaughey. The church and property are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and were acquired and restored by the Washington Garden Club.
Great Egrets begin courtship displays and nest building in late January and continue mating displays on into March. Males typically choose the nesting site and get started building the nest, and chicks can be seen at the Cazan Lake rookery through June.
displays on into March. Males typically choose the nesting site and get started building the nest, all while displaying for females. In Douglas W. Mock’s research published in the American Ornithological Societies Condor Journal in 1978, he described
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the displays as social signals, labeling various Great Egret movements the stretch, snap, and bow. Sometimes bachelor male’s displays even incorporate props: bowing with a stick held in his long stiletto-like bill. That morning, we watched a
J U N E 2 0 // C O U N T R Y R O A D S M A G . C O M
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he City of Ville Platte is located just eight miles from both Chicot State and Cazan Lake. Chicot offers cabins, RV and primitive camping sites for visitors to the area, along with a host of activities such as fishing, hiking, and canoeing. Ville Platte is also known as the Swamp Pop Capital of the World, and hosts a vibrant, quirky little museum on the subject certainly worth a visit. Travelers looking to stay overnight can find accommodations at The Cottage Bed and Breakfast (Book at 337-363-3388) or at the local Best Western. And, Café Evangeline offers excellent dining and quaint atmosphere for visitors.
