Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
245 LBD Devil’s Swamp Bayou Note: the main entrance to Devil’s Swamp is at the south end of the bayou, ten miles downstream left bank descending, below and behind all of the fleeted barges near mile 235.8 LBD. If you are interested in seeing Devil’s Swamp
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
246.2 RBD Small Dune There is a small dune of yellow-white sand right bank descending as you exit the Profit Island stretch of river, that could make for a good emergency camp in southerly or southwesterly winds, but is open to the north wind. In any northerly winds continue
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
246.5 - 245.8 LBD Sandbar at Bottom of Profit Chute As you come around the southwesterly point of Profit Island you will pass a skinny sandbar with camping up to 30 BG, that connects to a long 2-mile sandbar stretching along the entire southern or bottom end of
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
246.5 - 246 LBD Profit Island Chute (Exit) As you exit the Profit Island Chute (if this is the route you have taken) be sure to “look both ways” before re-entering the main channel of the big river. Wait until the coast is clear and then paddle hard for
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
247.2 RBD Smithfield Boat Ramp Steep Ramp is made of revetment, not maintained regularly, and is often covered with clumps of mud. May no longer be accessible from the levee, the 4WD path between the levee and the ramp appears to be cut by a lagoon in the batture,
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
250.2 RBD Wreckage of Crane Boat The flood of 2011 uprooted this crane barge from somewhere upstream and slammed it against the outside of the Profit Island Bend, where it now lays at a severe angle making a sunning location for turtles in low water, and a catfish harbor
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
250.3 RBD Bald Eagle Nest Several Bald Eagle nests can be seen high in the arms of some tall trees along the perimeter of Profit Island, on both sides of the river, a sign that you are still within one of the few remaining “wild” stretches of the Lower
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
252.8 - 252.2 LBD Profit Island Chute (Entrance) Profit Island divides the Mississippi almost cleanly in half. The Chute is slightly smaller, but not much. The best camping is along the top and back ends of the Island in higher water levels, and around the backside and bottomside
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
252.2 - 246.5 LBD Profit Island Profit Island was created when Islands No 123 and 124 joined each other and became one bigger island. Profit (originally spelled “prophet” for one of its first settlers) is the last “really big island” still intact on the Lower Mississippi River. It
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
253.6 LBD Amoco Pipeline Dock Busy dock in the middle of an otherwise wild-feeling and treed stretch of river below the Port Hudson Bluff, the Amoco Pipeline Dock is often in use by tows with barges. Exercise the normal precautions around docks, and keep your distance, particularly in high
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
255 LBD Georgia Pacific Port Hudson Paper Mill Maker of well known brands such as Angel Soft and Quilted Northern Toilet Paper and Brawny Paper Towels, the Georgia Pacific(GP) Paper Mill is located just south of Thompson Creek. Not shown on the Army Corps maps because there is no
Vicksburg to Baton Rouge
255 - 254.2 LBD Thompson Creek Bluffs (Mississippi Loess Bluff #8) While the smallest yet seen of the Mississippi Loess Bluffs, the Thompson Creek (or Port Hudson) Bluff is nevertheless easy to access and almost as interesting as any of the others. I am surprised by bald eagles almost