Saline Bayou

Saline Bayou is a 100-mile-long (160 km)[2] tributary of the Red River in Louisiana in the United States. In 1986 it became the first blackwater river in the American South to have been designated in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. It is located within the Kisatchie National Forest of southwest Louisiana.[3]

Saline Bayou
Saline Bayou in Winn-Natchitoches Parish
Location
CountryUnited States
StateLouisiana
Physical characteristics
Discharge 
 • locationClarence, LA
 • average1,192 cu/ft. per sec.[1]
TypeScenic
DesignatedOctober 30, 1986

Saline Bayou flows for 100 miles, mostly through cypress hardwood bottomlands, but only 19 miles (31 km) is within the Wild and Scenic Rivers System.[3] However, the state of Louisiana designates the entire 100 miles a Natural and Scenic River.[4] It is popular for floating with canoes.[5] The bayou forms the western boundary of Winn Parish. Along U.S. Highway 71, south of the village of Clarence, it separates Winn from neighboring Natchitoches Parish, where it meets the Red River.[3]

The bayou is black in color because of tannic acid. It hosts abundant bird and animal life and is heavily wooded. Among the creatures found in Saline Bayou are woodpeckers, minks, snapping turtles, snakes, and alligators.[3]

Saline Lake is an artificial impoundment of Saline Bayou, located on the Natchitoches/Winn border some 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Natchitoches. It encompasses 8,400 acres (34 km2) and is heavily wooded, particularly known for its fishing: white perch, large mouth bass, and sunfish.[6]

References
  1. https://waterdata.usgs.gov/la/nwis/annual/?format=sites_selection_links&search_site_no=07353000&agency_cd=USGS&referred_module=sw
  2. U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed June 3, 2011
  3. Tim Palmer, ‘’The Wild and Scenic Rivers of America’’, 1993, p. 186. Google Books. Retrieved August 29, 2009.
  4. http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/louisiana-natural-and-scenic-rivers-descriptions-and-map
  5. "Saline Bayou National Wild and Scenic River". discoverourtown.com. Retrieved August 29, 2009.
  6. "Visitor Information, City of Winnfield". cityofwinnfield.com. Archived from the original on April 11, 2011. Retrieved August 29, 2009.

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