Will I see alligators year-round? Will I be safe? What about mosquitos? Thousands of people visit Alligator Bayou each year, and many of them are kind enough to send thank-you letters. Here are a few of our favorites.

IBERVILLE - LOUISIANA'S MOST FAMOUS EXPLORER

Alligator Bayou and Bayou Manchac are intimately connected with Pierre Le Moyne, Sieur d'Iberville, Louisiana's most famous explorer.  Historians and civic officials disagree about many facts related to Iberville, but one thing is certain:  Iberville sighted the red stick (a cypress pole festooned with bloody fish heads) on March 17, 1699, paddled down Bayou Manchac on March 25, 1699, and spent the night at Alligator Bayou.

Francofete 1999 Flag
Louisiana's colorful FrancoFete flag greeted dignitaries and press attending the March 2, 1999 commemorative ceremony.
He wrote in his journal, "This place where I am is one of the prettiest spots I have seen, fine level ground, beautiful woods, clear and bare of canes..." The next morning, Iberville and his party of daring Frenchmen paddled down the Bayou Manchac shortcut to the Gulf of Mexico and opened this trade route to eventual settlement by world cultures.


Historic Plaque Unveiled By Louisiana's Lieutenant Governor

Iberville's appreciative words are inscribed on a brass plaque unveiled on March 2, 1999, by then Lt. Gov. Kathleen Blanco, who oversaw the Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism, and by Frank Bonifay, owner of Alligator Bayou Tours and co-founder of Bluff Swamp Wildlife Refuge & Botanical Gardens.

The ceremony, a FrancoFete event and press conference, celebrated Iberville's historic ascension of the Mississippi River, his journey down Bayou Manchac and the night he spent at Alligator Bayou.
Alligator Bayou winds into the 13,000-acre Spanish Lake Basin and a wetland habitat of bayous, swamps and lakes. This unique tour will take you deep into the heart of Louisiana swamps.
Walk through our 6 acre alligator eco-habitat, see our huge alligator snapping turtles in their habitat complete with frogs, fish and a few surprises, plus we've got cajun cottages, canoe rentals, gift shop and more.
The colors and textures of the swamp are some of the most amazing scenes you will ever see.
Stop by and shop for awhile. Located in the Alligator Bayou Bait Shop (and complete with snake and gator exhibits), the Duck's Nest Shoppe features unique, one-of-a-kind gifts made by Louisiana craftspeople.
Our bayou-side pavilion is the perfect place for your "fais do do." Let us design a unique and unforgettable wedding, banquet or party, with or without a swamp tour.
Louisiana's most historic wetlands habitat is the perfect place to learn about and celebrate history, biology and swamp ecology.
Located in Louisiana's Plantation Country, the Spanish Lake Basin is bordered by Bayou Manchac, an Indian short-cut from the Mississippi River to New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexico.
In 1993, the co-owners of Alligator Bayou Tours learned that hundreds of acres of bottomland hardwoods in the Spanish Lake Basin would be cut for lumber. This valuable habitat was saved by Frank Bonifay, Jim Ragland and community members working in cooperation with local, state and federal government.
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A Toast
Then Lt. Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco and officials from Ascension, East Baton Rouge and Iberville parishes toast Iberville's landing at Alligator Bayou, Bonne Fete and FrancoFete.
Our historic marker is located at Alligator Bayou near the intersection of East Baton Rouge, Ascension and Iberville parishes.  Dignitaries from state offices, the three parishes and the Louisiana Travel Promotion Association were present at the ceremony and at a birthday cake and wine celebration toasting Bonne Fête and FrancoFete afterward.

The hosts of the event were Frank Bonifay and Jim Ragland of Alligator Bayou Tours.  Along with Ascension Parish citizen Kermit Braud, they are co-founders of Bluff Swamp Wildlife Refuge & Botanical Gardens, a national non-profit organization which has preserved for posterity 901 acres of Bluff Swamp. In October 1998, Alligator Bayou Tours and Bluff Swamp Wildlife Refuge won the 1998-99 Louisiana Rural Tourism Success Award for their efforts in forging a public-private partnership that saved the swamp and brings international tourists here to enjoy the eco-cultural resources of our beautiful area.

The Reinactment
Edmund Boudreaux of Biloxi (left) and
Joseph O of Gonzales re-enact Iberville's
March 25, 1699 landing at Alligator Bayou.

Lt. Blanco and Company

Cajun conservationist Kermit Braud (left) trumpeted the event with his hunting cowhorn while Lt. Gov. Blanco (center) and Frank unveiled the commemorative plaque.

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