Louisiana’s “Love The Boot Week” is April 18-24, 2022. This is the week we come together to show our love for our state. Love the Boot Week is dedicated to cleanup and beautification events in all 64 parishes. Together we can take positive steps to create a better life for all of us and protect our state from litter. Join The TECHE Project as we tackle the litter issue on the ONLY National Water Trail in Louisiana—the BAYOU TECHE!

During this week, we are encouraging our members (and future members) who live along the bayou to pick up trash from their kayak or party barge, plant their bank-line or just clean the bank-line of unsightly garbage. Send us photos of your work to techeproject@gmail.com so we can post on our social media.

You can also join us on April 18 to pick up trash between Leonville and Arnaudville, ending at Bayou Teche Brewing for a nice, cold beer!

Thanks to a state parks grant secured by the city of New Iberia, an official dock at 108 Duperier Ave. will be opening soon for paddlers. This makes 13 official floating docks along the Bayou Teche National Water and Paddle Trail, with only two more to go! The TECHE Project recently received good news about grant funding for the last two docks, and we expect to have them in place in 2023.

An Information Kiosk installed by The TECHE Project can also be found at the dock site and features stories about the Civil War, bayou transportation, Bunk Johnson, the World Championship Gumbo Cookoff and lots more.

New Iberia’s dock is only part of the city’s plans for providing more access to Bayou Teche. A kayak park, marina and additional boat slips along the bayou are all in the city’s plans for the future.

We released our Annual Report for 2021 at our Annual Membership Banquet in New Iberia on March 26. Members and others interested in finding out more about our accomplishments over the past year and what’s coming in 2022 can download the report here.

Our Annual Membership Banquet at the Sliman Theater in New Iberia has been postponed from Feb. 12 to March 26 due to COVID concerns. The event from 4-8 p.m. will include speaker Anne Darrah on the Lil’ Brooklyn Neighborhood Initiative in New Iberia, dinner, drinks, music and an update on our activities over the past year. Attendees will also have the opportunity to tour the Bayou Teche Museum next door to the Sliman Theater. Members get in free, and others can sign up for a membership at the door, starting at $20. We hope to see everyone on March 26!

Construction has commenced on our floating dock site in New Iberia. The concrete is expected to be poured this week, with dock delivery estimated for February. This dock will take our total to 13, with only two more to go! Find our full list of dock locations here.

We will be holding a Wood Duck Management Workshop at Bayou Teche Brewing (1106 Hwy. 347/Bushville Hwy.) on January 15 from 9-11:30 a.m. The focus is on the ecology and rearing of wood ducks. Nest boxes will be available for sale, and Bayou Teche Paddle Trail mile signs are available for those program participants on Bayou Teche. The target audience is those living on Bayou Teche; however, anyone who is interested in rearing wood ducks is welcome to attend. TECHE Project members and current Wood Duck Box Program participants get in free. For others, the cost is $5. We hope to see you there!

We are excited to announce that the installation of our floating dock in Centerville is now complete. We unveiled the dock during a dedication ceremony at Schwan Park on Nov. 30.

The Centerville access dock was installed via a grant from the Federal Highway Administration’s Recreational Trails Program, administered through the Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. According to St. Mary Parish President David Hanagriff, “The Centerville dock represents the last of five trailheads installed in St. Mary Parish, joining the Charenton, Baldwin, Franklin and Patterson trailheads. St. Mary Parish welcomes tourists and locals alike to come explore the beauty of Bayou Teche and the cultural uniqueness of the communities that lie along this famous bayou.”

Currently, there are 12 official access docks installed on Bayou Teche, and when completed, the Bayou Teche National Paddle Trail will have a total of 15 access points for paddle trips, ranging from six to 12 miles in length. Information kiosks with maps and community stories are also part of each trailhead. The Centerville kiosk was funded in part by a grant from the Atchafalaya Trace Commission, an ongoing partner in the development of the Bayou Teche National Paddle Trail.

View our full list of dock locations here.

The Bayou Teche Museum, in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution and Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, is presenting “Water/Ways,” a six-week traveling exhibit on display through Nov. 27, 2021.

With compelling text, imagery, interactives and videos, the “Water/Ways” exhibit reveals the central nature of water in our lives and takes a deep look at this essential component of life on our planet, which powers the environment’s engine, impacts climate and helps shape and sculpt the landscape.

The Bayou Teche Museum will also host, either virtually or in-person, weekly programming that will include both an adult and children’s book club, Water in Religion, a screening of the movie “Deepwater Horizon,” Water in Poetry featuring two Louisiana Poet Laureates and other local poets, as well as presentations by the Port of Delcambre and The Teche Project.

A schedule of events through November is below:

November 3: Water in Religion at 6 p.m. at the Sliman Theater

November 6: “Deepwater Horizon” showing at 4 p.m. at The Grand Theater

November 10: Book Club – Bayou Farewell by Mike Tidwell at 6 p.m. at the Sliman Theater/Zoom

November 17: Water in Poetry at 6 p.m. at the Sliman Theater

November 23: TECHE Project Presentation by David Dahlquist at 6 p.m. at the Sliman Theater

November 27: Water in Religion with Jordon Courtois; time and location TBA

The exhibit and all weekly programs presented are all free to the public.

Due to continued concerns regarding the surge of COVID-19 cases, The TECHE Project has decided to limit this year’s annual festival to the Paddle Parade. We will have a lunch service at Parc des Ponts from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., so plan to come welcome the paddlers at noon (if you’re not paddling yourself) and partake in great food and libations. There will also be a free raffle for those who can show they are vaccinated. Gift certificates to popular restaurants and other great items will be raffled at 1 p.m.

For those who wish to take part in our two-hour fun and whacky parade from the Poche Bridge Country Club to Parc des Ponts, please register on Eventbrite. Tickets will be limited, so register early. Tickets are $10 and include the annual Festival Pin. We will have two bands (Amis du Teche and the UL Cajun Band Ensemble) accompanying the paddlers on floating, decorated barges! A pre-paddle shuttle is also available for $5 at the door. Wear feathers and dress up your mask ’cause we will give out prizes for the Best Bird Mask!

For more information about the Paddle Parade, click here.