Morgan City, Louisiana is a town of over 12,000 people and is known as the home of the Shrimp and Petroleum Festival, an offshore drilling rig you can visit, and the closest Shoney's for miles. My family and I have visited Morgan City on several occasions, but I had no idea the town held two parks.
Lake End Park and Brownell Memorial Park might sound familiar to some of you, but it wasn't familiar to me. I had never heard of either of them until a patron mentioned them to me at the library. She told me that Lake End Park is her son's favorite place to go camping and about the park with the bell tower. I told her I would look them up and I did. Upon googling "Lake End Park Morgan City" I came across the website for the campground and memorial park.
Lake End Park is located on Lake Palourde along Hwy 70. The campground can accommodate RV/campers, tent camping, and has a few cabins available to rent. Other amenities include a walking trail, fishing piers, boat launch/marina, a playground, pavilions, a snowball stand, and even a small sandy swimming beach.
We only visited the park for a few minutes and I am ready to go back and explore it more. It seems like a great place to relax, maybe fish a little, get some sun, and spend time with family and friends. It was very quiet even though they had a lot of people there, it being 4th of July weekend. Also, I went with my two cousins, so I would like to bring my mom, dad, and sister next time.
For reservations (RV/camper hookups, tent camping, cabins, and other reservations), yo u can visit the website here or call 985-380-4623. If you just want to visit the park, like we did, there is a $5.00 a car fee to enter.
For reservations (RV/camper hookups, tent camping, cabins, and other reservations), yo u can visit the website here or call 985-380-4623. If you just want to visit the park, like we did, there is a $5.00 a car fee to enter.
Brownell Memorial Park is a 1/2 mile down Hwy 70 from Lake End Park. It is 9.5 acres of pure Louisiana swamp complete with cypress trees, elephant ear plants, and plenty of wildlife. The land for the park was donated by Mrs. Claire Horatio Brownell as a memorial to her parents, Charles Horace Brownell and Frances Pierson Brownell.
The park is very tranquil and serene, just the way Mrs. Claire intended for it to be. Upon arriving and parking, my cousins and I visted the Cajun cabin that serves as a Welcome Center for the park.
The lady working the desk was very nice and welcoming. The cabin features many photographs of Mrs Claire and members of her family, as well as, many pictures that lay out the history of the park and its main feature: a 106-foot Carillon Bell Tower.
The tower consists of 61 pure bronze bells that play beautiful songs every 15 minutes. The bells in the tower are computerized today, but were once played by hand! The apparatus that was used to play the bells by hand can also be seen in the Welcome Center.
Aside from the bell tower, the park has a bird watching trail and is a photographers' dream. The picturesque Louisiana landcape is an incredible backdrop of all types of photography: nature, bridal, senior photos, family photos, and the list could go on. The lady in the welcome center told me that many pictures are taken in the park and we witnessed some being taken of a young girl while we were there. I plan to make a trip with my sister to take some of her senior pictures there.
The park is free to visitors and open to the public 9am to 4pm Thursday through Sunday except major holidays. You can read more about it here or call the park at 985-384-2283. Below is a gallery of some of the other pictures I took while at the park.
I hope you enjoyed this post and remember if you have visited any of the places, let me know in the comments of each post or on Facebook. If you haven't visited, let me know if it's a place you would like to visit.
Remember to start a conversation! Share these posts with your friends and let me know what you think.
Happy traveling!
Remember to start a conversation! Share these posts with your friends and let me know what you think.
Happy traveling!