Alligators, Bayous and Crab

There you have the ABC's of our Tuesday. We drove the Creole Nature Trail though far south Louisiana. We saw lots of alligators. After we stopped at the Cameron Prairie NWR Visitor Center, we drove their Pintail Trail and Boardwalk.



At first we didn't understand why there was a warning that hiking was not allowed on the trail. That was before we saw this fellow.



And this one.



And this one.



No wonder we couldn't hike. We didn't even get out of the truck to take pictures. As our eyes became trained to see the alligators, they were everywhere. Interesting, but scary We understand why we saw these signs posted in the area.



The Creole Trail goes south through all the bayous and farms between I-10 and the Gulf of Mexico. This is what much of the countryside looks like.



We drove through Cameron, one of the towns hit hard by Hurricane Ike in 2008. First we noticed these new houses built on stilts.



And others built on a small hill of earth as well as stilts.



Someone used to live on this concrete pad. Their home is entirely gone.



It is truly amazing how much damage a hurricane can do.

Further on we made a short trip on a ferry. It only cost $1 to cross the small bayou or river. I think it is a regular part of life for those who live here.



I had read it was blue crab season, but I had no idea how you catch crabs. It seems you tie a sturdy string around a large portion of chicken leg and thigh, then lower it into the water.



When it starts to jiggle, you pull it up and catch the crabs that are trying to gnaw on the chicken leg and put them in a net.



Here you can see how many crab two women had caught and saved in their cooler. You also can see the blue color on the crab legs.



In addition to alligators, bayous and crab, we saw turtles. This one was the road in the state park as we left in the morning.



And we saw these in the wildlife refuge.



We also saw butterflies.



And lots of birds, including this Baltimore (or Northern) Oriole



and an Indigo Bunting



and also this Scarlet Tanager.