Fountainbleau State Park CREDIT: LA Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism
The facility is run by the National Park Service and features a visitor center with daily tours prior to its COVID-19 closing. As of this writing, even though the gates are currently locked, the park is open and walkways and outdoor spaces have pedestrian access. The ample, shaded land allows for easy social distancing. 8606 West St. Bernard Highway, Chalmette, LA. 504-281-0510.
Bayou Sauvage CREDIT: USFWS
BAYOU SAUVAGE Almost unbelievably, this 26,000-acre national wildlife refuge is just a 15-minute drive from downtown New Orleans, northeast on I-10 to Lacombe. The one-half-mile Ridge Trail is a boardwalk loop, and there are an additional five miles of nature trails.
Bordered on three sides by water – Lake Pontchartrain, and Bayous Cane and Castine – this park is home to over 400 bird species and is a bird watcher’s paradise. Campgrounds and newly renovated cabins for overnight stays by reservation. 62883 Hwy. 1089 Mandeville, LA. 985-624-4443. GRAND ISLE STATE PARK Want to fish? Need to put your feet in the sand? Louisianans usually think of our neighboring Mississippi Gulf Coast when they think “beach.” Yet Grand Isle – Louisiana’s only inhabited barrier island – features a 150-acre state park with sandy beaches and 900-foot pier, perfect for fishing and crabbing.
CHALMETTE BATTLEFIELD
Chalmette Battlefield CREDIT: trover.com
Among the closest New Orleans getaways – and often forgotten – are the Chalmette Battlefield and Chalmette National Cemetery, just south of the city proper in St. Bernard Parish. This is where, in January 1815, General Andrew Jackson’s troops defeated the British and thwarted their efforts to take the strategic Port of New Orleans.
ELMER’S ISLAND Elmer’s Island is a 230-acre wildlife refuge just off Highway 1 on the way to Grand Isle from Port Fourchon. Accessible by winding dirt and Elmer’s Island CREDIT: TRCP.ORG shell road, the island is directly across the Caminada Pass from Grand Isle. Administered by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the island gem offers a peaceful respite, excellent for beachcombing and surf fishing. Administered by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the island gem offers a peaceful respite for beachcombing and surf fishing. See the Wildlife & Fisheries website (wlf. louisiana.gov), or call their office (800-256-2747) for more information. Trevor Wisdom is a native New Orleanian and avid traveler, having lived in Europe, the Middle East, and across the U.S. She has written lifestyles and travel articles for multiple publications.
july/august 2020 | www.nolaboomers.com
Complete with nearly three miles of hiking trails, the marshes here afford excellent bird watching. Overnight camping is available. Admiral Craik Drive, Grand Isle, LA. 985-787-2559.
The refuge is an important stop in the migratory Mississippi Flyway and is year-round home to 350 bird species, making it ideal for bird watching enthusiasts. One of the last remaining marshes adjacent to Lakes Pontchartrain and Borgne, the refuge also is home to numerous alligator residents and other wildlife. 61389 Hwy 434, Lacombe, LA. 985-882-2000.
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