Lake Pontchartrain

Twice I’ve had to question my Mother’s sanity. Once was when The Blair Witch Project was released. My mother ran her ass out of the theater (out of fear) and watched the entire movie on and off from the little window opening of our screening room door. How the hell she was more afraid of the movie than my brother and I were… I simply can’t tell you. I don’t know myself.
The second time I had to question her marbles was the first time we drove over Lake Pontchartrain.
Now I knew my mom had a slight fear of water, which is why she used my brother and I to tackle HER fear of it by starting us out with swimming lessons very early in life. But the first time we drove over this lake, I was dumbfounded. My Mom’s best friend had to coach her through her tears to stop crying and stay focused as we drove across the lake to New Orleans. To clarify, Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is a pretty long bridge (roughly 23+ miles) crossing an impressively massive lake with no land to the left, right, back or front of you for a pretty big portion. Just water on all sides, homie. So for those 25 miles (with about 10 of them being all water), I had to watch my Mom’s wobbly hands shake left and right. My mom was freaking out. I couldn’t believe she gave birth to me.
I actually like it, though. Not too fascinating, but kinda cool. Makes you wonder how did we as humans construct such a thing.
But from then on, No Ma’am. We released my Mom from driving duties on trips to New Orleans. We’d either take the 10 fwy, or someone else would drive if we decided to sight see and take the Causeway. Take a back seat, Woman.
FACT: According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is the longest continuous bridge passing over water! Say WHUUUUUUT?!

When the might Mississippi rises from the melting snow in the north and can’t discharge its millions of cubic feet of water into the Gulf of Mexico using its natural flood plain, man stepped in to stop the threat of major flooding in New Orleans and also to prevent Old Man River from changing its course and wiping out billions of dollars in infrastructure along its banks. Over the last hundred years or so the Army Corp of Engineers has fought this battle and developed alternatives that are genius in some ways and detrimental to the environment in other ways, when given the choice Mother Nature always loses at the cost of protecting people and property no matter how they spin it.
This is the case with Lake Pontchartrain, after being defeated by the historic floods over and over the Army Corp of Engineers came up with a few plans to deal with the problem. The blueprint to resolve the frequent threat of flooding centered around diverting the massive flow of the river when required. This would require a diversion that brought mixed feelings to the folks living in the rural areas along the river banks in Louisiana but the justification was sold as being the best solution for the most people affected. So the building of the Bonnet Carré Spillway began and was completed in 1931 after the historical flood of 1927. This massive flood control structure consisting of 350 bays containing about 7000 wooden planks that can be removed as needed to divert the water through Lake Pontchartrain and eventually into the Gulf of Mexico reduces the threat down river. Mission accomplished, but at what price and for how long.
Lake Pontchartrain sadly had to be sacrificed to avoid catastrophic flooding 12 miles to the south where New Orleans lies. This beautiful lake with its beautiful shoreline and its hundreds of square miles of surface water hides all the under-​lying damage inflicted on this amazing Eco-​system. The Mississippi River by design is natures way of purging and cleaning the rivers and lakes of the eastern United States and has done its job for thousands of years, since the influence of man and the introduction of chemicals, fertilizers and other extreme hazards the river has become saturated with this unhealthy effluent along with millions of tons of silt. Since these waters were diverted through Lake Pontchartrain by man not by nature the damage to the native species of both plants and animals has almost reached an irreversible level. This beautiful lake doesn’t have the ability to cleanse itself over time with the periodical opening of the flood control system, although it is a very large body of water the introduction of hundreds of millions of gallons of polluted fresh water the lake’s entire makeup has changed. The salinity and oxygen fluctuations and the enormous amount of silt has turned this once beautiful brackish estuary into a environmental nightmare. Thanks to a few dedicated volunteer groups and the «Save Our Lake» campaign this lake has an outside chance of surviving for future generations I would of loved to have seen this beautiful lake prior to man’s alterations.

Talk about a love hate relationship. When I decided to write a review for the lake I was torn. I had to think about what I’d say for a while. In fact, this is the only review I have had in draft for more than a month. Because I really, really love Lake Pontchartrain, but I also kind of hate it.
I think the lake is stunning. You know, if you’ve read any of my reviews, that I love the water. I believe that’s part of the reason I like bridges so much. Crossing a bridge gives me the ability to gaze out at the body of water I’m crossing. I have a particular fondness for Lake Pontchartrain because it’s mine. It’s close to home, I’ve swam in it, sailed on it, fished from it, and fell in love near it. It’s mine, you know?
Lake Pontchartrain took so many things from me as well. It destroyed many, many of my friend’s homes. It destroyed many lives of people I know personally and people I don’t. It took away great restaurants that I enjoyed visiting. It took a very long time for me to get over hating the lake after Hurricane Katrina.
It’s hard for me to hold a grudge, though. I’ve forgiven Lake Pontchartrain. It wasn’t her fault, after all. Mother Nature though? I’ve got a bit of an issue with her.

Who knew that I would ever find myself writing a review about a lake? Oh well, I guess its time I tried something new.
Well one positive, this is a natural lake. Its not like all those wannabe man made lakes that are all over the country. Yes this is a REAL lake.
This lake has a few really long bridges that go across it. The longest one is the Causeway bridge. I rode with one of my fellow Unilocalers on a road trip to Abita springs. The trip across the lake felt like forever.
This looks like it would be a great lake for fishing or boating. I haven’t done that yet but hopefully someday I will.
Its not the biggest lake I have ever been to or the best lake I have ever been to. But its beautiful, peaceful and close to home so that’s good enough for me.

Jelly Roll Morton titled a song after this Lake!
Wow, what a view! Beautiful dark, still water for miles (~40 miles long by ~25 miles wide). Air is heavy and green and humid, but you’ll catch a nice breeze the closer you get to the center. It’s spanned by an outrageously long bridge (currently the Guinness World Record holder for longest continuous bridge in the world).
Morton’s «Pontchartrain Blues» —

I love this Lake. It’s really great at being a Lake. It’s a huge body of water and sometimes it gets high when it’s about to rain.
Ok, in all seriousness, the lake is gorgeous. I could give you a brief history on it, but I don’t want to bore you to death. Also, I don’t know the entire history, and when I don’t know something, I tend to ramble and make stuff up. Like, I could say that Andrew Jackson discovered the lake or something and we both know it isn’t true, but we both pretend it is, because if you call me out on something like that, that’s just rude.
Speaking of rude, it’s really rude when the lake swells up during a bad storm and floods places. And I wouldn’t go swimming in the lake (even if people say that you can) because sometimes the lake gets ornery and decides to get all crazy and try to drown you. Ain’t nobody got time for dat!
In conclusion: the lake is pretty and don’t go swimming in it because you will make Andrew Jackson cry if you do.

Don’t read any reviews, just wiki it. This bridge is amazing. Until you’ve driven it, your inexperience lends one of few remaining virginal driving experiences you can have. This bridge is L-​O-​N-​G, way long. And it’s way important to regional population. Love it, drive it, it’s the one and only Causeway, baby!

I love Lake Pontchartrain. I also loathe Lake Pontchartrain at times. I guess the lake is like a good friend that occasionally pisses you off.
Ever since I was a young child my dad would bring me to the lakefront. Whether it was the powerboat races or just a leisurely drive past the point, I always equated the lake with fun family times. I still can’t drive by west end without making the full circle at the point. Sometimes it makes me sad, but most of the time it makes me smile and reminds me of a different time.
During hurricanes I loathe the lake. It took away Bruning’s, and every other restaurant in the area. During the last hurricane the lake even caused significant damage to what was possibly the diveyest bar in Mandeville.
Now that i live in Mandeville I endure the lengthy commute across the Causeway. If it weren’t for the beautiful view of the lake, it would probably drive me insane.

How have I not reviewed the lake? After all it is one of the 4 directions used in my wacky city (riverside, lakeside, uptown, downtown).
I actually remember swimming in the lake as a small child before it was deemed too polluted for such activity… I hear that it’s safe again though.
I’ve been on sailboats on the lake; I’ve been at the point while the waves crashed over our car; I’ve eaten at restaurants long gone that were on piers out over the lake; I’ve driven over it on the causeway and been grateful that I don’t have to do that everyday. I’ve had picnics on its shores and enjoyed sunsets and sunrises too.
While I’ve always been a «by the river» girl, I’ve always enjoyed jaunting out to our closest «big» body of water.

Discovered this morning that you can actually check into Lake Pontchartrain. Since I was in a car on the bridge and not in the lake itself, I wonder if this would qualify as one of those notorious drive by check ins that some people complain about? Anyway… Someone had been busy setting up locations on Unilocal as you can check in at the toll booth, on south bound bridge, on north bound bridge, and now the lake itself. I wonder if anyone has set up the crossovers?

How does one review a lake, especially one as big and varied as Lake Pontchartrain? I’ve lived with the Lake as a neighbor almost all of my life at this point. I spent summers in high school playing on the lake on a boat. I spent my college career on a campus on the lakefront. I’ve drive across, swam in its waters, played on (what passed for) its beaches, and benefited from the «lake effect» on the weather.
It may not be the cleanest lake, but it’s a part of the New Orleans culture.