Photo By Chuck Cannon | Spanish moss draping cypress trees line picturesque Saline Bayou, a popular spot for...... read more read more
FORT POLK, La. — As a member of the Fort Polk community, one of my favorite pastimes is taking advantage of the outdoor activities available throughout the state. From rolling hills to piney woods to beautiful lakes and rivers to the Gulf Coast, if the great outdoors is your cup of tea, then Fort Polk is a perfect assignment.
The place you can most likely find me on a sunny Saturday is the Kisatchie National Forest, which according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service, stretches across more than 604,000 acres of Central and West Central Louisiana.
Among the activities available to those who choose to visit the Kisatchie are fishing and hunting, multi-use trails that support horseback, foot or ATV travel, bird watching, scenic drives, overlooks and picturesque rivers and bayous.
There are also plenty of camping areas that include primitive sites and RV hookups.
July is National Parks and Recreation Month and a great time to check out the outdoor recreational opportunities the Bayou State has to offer.
Among the 20 state parks in Louisiana, several are within a short drive of Fort Polk, including: North and South Toledo Bend state parks; Chicot State Park; and Sam Houston Jones State Park.
Other areas only a short trip from Fort Polk include: Longfellow-Evan geline State Historic Site; Saline Wildlife Management Area; Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge and Game Preserve; and Sabine National Wildlife Refuge.
In addition to Kisatchie National Forest, other national forests that are within a short drive of Fort Polk include: Sabine National Forest along the Toledo Bend Reservoir in Texas; Angelina National Forest near Jasper, Texas; Davey Crockett National Forest near Lufkin, Texas; and Sam Houston National Forest, about 50 miles north of Houston.
But by far, my favorite place to visit is Kisatchie National Forest. My wife Susan and I have meandered through the piney woods hills and hardwoods bottoms of the forest, and waded in fast-moving creeks with crystal clear water.
I had the opportunity to take a canoe trip down Saline Bayou that offered a wonderful view of the Louisiana wilderness.
At the Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge and Game Preserve I saw more birds than you can imagine, along with several of Louisiana’s most famous residents — American alligators. In the refuge, these remnants of the time when dinosaurs roamed the Earth can be seen sunning themselves along the roadways and on the banks of bayous, offering up-close views.
And while Louisiana’s Gulf Coast might not have the blue waters found off the coasts of our neighbors to the east and west, you can still find places that are OK for swimming or salt-water fishing.
So, if you enjoy the great outdoors, don’t pass an opportunity to explore Louisiana during your time on Fort Polk. And what better time to start than now, during National Parks and Recreation Month.
For more information on Louisiana’s parks visit www.stateparks.com/louisiana_parks_
and_recreation or www.crt.state.la.us/louisiana-state-parks/.
For more information on the Kisatchie National Forest visit www.fs.usda.gov/kisatchie.
| Date Taken: | 07.13.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 07.13.2018 09:45 |
| Story ID: | 284112 |
| Location: | FORT POLK, LA, US |
| Web Views: | 114 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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