Caddo Lake travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises, spa and resorts

Caddo Lake is the only naturally formed lake in Texas, Louisiana with trophy bass, canoeists twisting, interlocking bayous among the most challenging to navigate. Its 26,000 acres are cherish by the environmentalists as a rare wetlands environment. Caddo is more of a large bayou, composed of many smaller waterways. It is home to over 200 species of birds; hundreds of kinds of mammals, reptiles and fishand countless plants.

To be honest it’s a kind of creepy place, spectral shapes shift in the mist that rises from its cilantro-colored surface and ghost stories seem to ooze from its forested shores. The lake was named after the Caddo Indians, who settled in the area in the early 1600s. There are two theories of its creation: The Caddo Indians held that it was formed by an earthquake and flooding; other, recent theories say it was the result of the Great Raft — a huge logjam in the Red River, which forced enough water into Big Cypress Bayou to create the lake.

At the same time, the lake is deep and wide enough to handle big steamships. Aside from an eclectic collection of weekend homes, there are only a few populated areas around the lake, including Karnack (population 2,500). Local highlights features the Uncertain General Store & Grill, where you can delight yourself with an array of fried swamp food like shrimp, french fries and hush puppies.

If you want to take a break from the forest primeval, there is the aforementioned town of Jefferson, population 1,954. There’s much to be explored on a stroll through Jefferson’s museum, the restored Excelsior House Hotel and quiet streets lined with restored antebellum homes. Photos by: Erich Schlegel