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Understanding vs. Fear Breaking down our misconceptions about swamps. By Ross Baringer   Swamps have carried a negative connotation and inspired fear for centuries, even in Louisiana where most of our culture is in some way connected to that environment. In literature and film they are often portrayed as dark festering areas full of evil….

“Who hoots for you?” by Ross Baringer You don’t have to spend much time in a cypress swamp to realize that every inch of the place is overflowing with life. Millions of organisms are whirling along the repetitive course of their little life-cycles – birth, life, death, rebirth rolling on and on in perpetuity. Things both…

Why Are We Afraid of Spiders? by Jeffrey Chitek Being a kayak guide for over 7 years has taught me a lot about people.  You start to see trends in people; what makes them happy, what jokes make for a cheap laugh, how people communicate differently when working as a pair, and most of all, what people fear.  From my experience, what people fear the most, and are most open and vocal about…is spiders.  It became such a dominant and recurring theme in my misadventures that I started to develop my own theories and research on the topic. Its funny to me that something the size of a thumbnail could cause something 10,000 times its size to scream, shake and overturn their kayak.  We once had a lady who upon spotting a spider in her boat, jumped into alligator infested…

Southern Louisiana ‘Our natural history in verse’ by Josh Jack A land shaped in a welter of silt and mud churned from the heart of the continent by the Mighty Mississippi: gouged by rivers, bayous, and canals, and stitched together by the knees of the Bald Cypress. When the floods came they heaped and scoured…

An Easter Egg for Louisiana Bird Lovers by Ross Baringer   Spring is a season long associated with renewal and new life, and the egg has always been a symbol of that season. People have been decorating eggs as part of spring rituals since ancient times, as evidenced by engraved ostrich eggs found in Africa which…

Be a part of the solution Every year, around 28 billion pounds of trash finds it way into our oceans.  The infamous “trash island” know as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch alone is estimated to be greater than the size of Texas.  It seems to be common knowledge that these massive garbage clusters exist, but…

New Orleans to Baton Rouge by Kayak In March of 2017 a small crew of adventurers, assembled by swamp guide and filmmaker Ross Baringer, will embark on a 100 mile expedition to journey from Baton Rouge to New Orleans entirely by water.  The crew will paddle kayaks and canoes through some of the most beautiful…

Lonestar Kayak Tours Opens in Austin Are you looking for the perfect thing to do in Austin, Texas? Lone Star Kayak Tours brings you the very best, with something to suit all interests and needs. Now open in Austin, this is your chance to book the vacation of your dreams. Make Austin Your Next Kayaking Venture…

Brew City Kayak will offer kayak tours, kayak rentals, and paddleboard rentals in Milwaukee, WI this Summer. Milwaukee has long needed more outdoor activities to do in the warm season and Brew City Kayak has answered the beckoning call. Opening Memorial Day weekend, the new outfitter will be open daily through September. Located in Walkers…

New Orleans will host the 2017 NBA All Star Game this coming weekend, February 17-19, 2017 and we’re excited! You may remember that the event was initially located in Charlotte, NC, though due to a transgender bathroom law that NC will not change, it will now be held at New Orleans Smoothie King Center, where…

My name is Ray Swaney and I live to create art, representative, surreal, cubist, and completely abstract.  I am also a poster designer, and a slam poet.  Feel free to check out my online art blog for some art, poetry, and large temporal gaps between blog entries.  Cheers

Kayaking New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans Kayak Swamp Tours has became so popular that we’re helping our good friends open up a new company, Hidden Adventure Tours. Kayaking New Orleans and the area surrounding the crescent city, mainly swamps, is a must-do when visiting New Orleans but there are so many waterways and swamps to…