Day two dawned and my friends and I were up and out by 7:30 to continue our exploration. The haze and humidity of yesterday seemed to be gone, clearer skies in its place but the sun was out now and it was hot. Thankfully there was a breeze all day and it saved it from being unbearable. The plan today was to head East towards Pascaguola, MS, thinking to see what the beaches in that area looked like. I'm happy to report that they are much cleaner than here in Biloxi/Gulfport but it may have been due to the fact that clean up crews were out again in full force and seemed to have been there for hours before us. They walk in a straight line, side by side, down the beach, scanning for the oil as they go. Overall this beach felt more like a private beach area as the houses lining the street across from the beach are much bigger, nicer, with lots of land, big expansive porches and long driveways. Admittedly one thing I was finding hard to do was taking pictures of the cleanup crew in a more up close and personal way. It felt intrusive and my fellow photogs and I didn't know how they would react. We didn't have to worry in the end as they didn't seem to mind or are maybe being told not to react and ignore photographers.
After spending the morning here and finding again both the ugly of the cleanup along with the beauty of the beaches, we decided to explore inland and take in a tour of a bayou area in Louisiana. It was worth the trip, my friends and I enjoyed it immensely. The bayou and swamp are beautiful and didn't look at all like I pictured. But most importantly I'm happy to report I did see a gator, he was small and not too scary looking. My two friends and I and one other person were on a small flat bottom boat that the captain could zip us through fast or slow down and get in close to view the details of the trees, water lilies and wildlife. We saw Cranes of all kind, sliding turtles, and a host of other wildlife. Our guide was really good, a native of the area he showed us the signs that still linger of Hurricane Katrina like the shrimping boat that was on its side at the edge of the water. It had been flung there like a toy from 30 miles away during Katrina and it wasn't the only one. We saw at least four to five boats of various sizes that had come from other parts of Louisiana strewn around the area. Our captain told us it took them 2 years to clean up from Katrina in this area.
As day two came to a close, I was happy we took the bayou tour so we could see another part of the area that is so important to its survival. Fortunately the oil will not impact this section if it stays in the water, however, it will be a completely different story if a Hurricane makes it this way again. The wind from that type of storm could potentially bring the oil inland.
After seeing the bayou, my sincere hope is this Hurricane season is quiet and that the cleanup efforts continue.
Final day tomorrow here in Mississippi and then home to New England by late Sunday night.
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