Mile 620.0 - RBD 620-617 Old Levee at Knowlton

RBD 620-617 Old Levee at Knowlton

Not surprisingly the river is forever trying to break through its banks at Wood Cottage and below. In the twenty years of paddling this area I have seen countless bank stabilization projects and watched the river swallow up everything left by man, one season removed, the next season replaced by big Corps Boats and machines, the next season again removed by high water, such is the constant see-saw relationship between man and the river.

An interesting landscape is found along the river here, the muddy flats scoured and sculpted by the water which frequently overflows the banks, in places looking like the muddy plateaus above Utah's Desolation Canyon. A blue hole was carved into the thick black sediment just over the rip rap near mile 618 one year, and if you hit it at the right river level you will find a pool of clear water with the freshest swimming in the deep south, it's reminiscent of a Florida spring water pool when the water is just right. At other times, however, it will be submerged in muddy water or left a rank pool covered with slime. The Mississippi River is all about timing.

Hardwoods stand tall along the remnants of the old levee, and smooth mounds which imply ancient Native American earthworks underneath. The old levee has been broken many times, but you can see pieces of its dark muddy shape underneath the foliage, look for the tallest stands of trees and there it will be seen. As you round the bend past Keith's Landing the old levee merges with the river at a place that has been broken in two big floods. Keep reading below...