Sunset on the Mississippi

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This is, in our estimation, one in a list of thirty marvelous places, flavors, events, and experiences that anyone who lives in—or loves—our part of the world should experience at least once in his or her lifetime.

No doubt about it, levees are a good thing. But for all us flatlanders living in the lee of these earthen barriers, it’s sometimes easy to forget that we live alongside one of the planet’s greatest waterways. So it makes sense to clamber up once in awhile and contemplate the elemental power of a mile of moving water sliding silently by. Reminds us why our ancestors ever settled here to start with.

Great spots for river sunset viewing are from the Natchez Bluffs (with the added benefit of being within steps of the bar at Bowie’s Tavern) and the levee top path (pictured) in downtown Baton Rouge.

For more: A must-read for anyone living in sight (or perhaps, more rightly, within the natural floodplain) of the Mississippi River should read the eye-opening book Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How it Changed America by John M. Barry. You will never again underestimate the river’s power, both over nature and man.