On the east side of the Pearl River near Slidell, about 45 minutes from downtown New Orleans, Honey Island is the wilder cousin of Manchac. It’s one of the least-altered river swamps in the country, and it feels that way from a kayak: tighter channels, bigger trees, and a backwoods character that the airboat crowds never really touch.
What makes Honey Island different
This is a river swamp, so water levels move with the Pearl. High water in spring opens up flooded forest you can paddle straight through; low water in late summer concentrates wildlife along the sloughs. Either way you’ll pass abandoned houseboats, rope swings, and camps that look like they grew out of the swamp itself.
And yes, this is the home of the Honey Island Swamp Monster, Louisiana’s answer to Bigfoot. Take that exactly as seriously as you’d like.
Wildlife
- Alligators, including some genuinely large residents
- Wild boar moving along the banks
- Barred owls, prothonotary warblers, herons, egrets
- White-tailed deer and river otters if you’re lucky and quiet
Should you go guided?
Even more than Manchac, yes. The Pearl River system has real current in places and the side channels braid endlessly. Guides who paddle it weekly know where the water is moving, where the gators hole up, and which sloughs are open at the current river stage. That knowledge is the difference between a highlight-reel trip and a frustrating one.
Compare the operators that run Honey Island trips in our best swamp tours guide.
Related reading
The Honey Island Swamp Monster: Louisiana’s Bigfoot, explained