Holly Harbor Lodge

23/04/2025

Happy Earth Day!

“Ukiyo” is a Japanese word that translates literally to “floating world”. What this means is to live in the moment and enjoy a slow life. Here you will find the basics of the natural world: earth, wind, fire, and water. Sometimes that’s all we need.

Experience Ukiyo at Holly Harbor Lodge.

23/03/2025

Laura Griffith is the winner of the painting poetry paddling weekend package!

23/03/2025

We love the new sign! Thank you Sheri Unav Rachal!

24/02/2025

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The People of the Swamp: Life, Work, and Survival in the D’Arbonne Wilderness

The D’Arbonne Swamp has long been home to those who understood its rhythms—hunters, trappers, loggers, and riverboat captains who lived by the rise and fall of the bayou. Their stories are etched into the landscape, woven into the history of a region where survival required ingenuity, toughness, and a deep respect for the land.

Settling the Swamp: Early Inhabitants and Homesteaders

Long before European settlers arrived, Indigenous peoples thrived in the D’Arbonne Swamp, using the bayous as transportation routes and hunting grounds. They built dugout canoes from cypress logs and understood the seasonal cycles of the water, fish, and wildlife. Their legacy remains in the names of rivers, in the scattered mound sites hidden beneath layers of time, and in the deep-rooted knowledge passed down through generations.

The 19th and early 20th centuries saw an influx of settlers who viewed the swamp as both an obstacle and an opportunity. Early homesteaders built raised cabins on stilts to withstand the floodwaters, relying on fishing, trapping, and small-scale farming to survive. The isolation of the swamp made life difficult, but those who lived there developed self-sufficiency, crafting their own tools, medicines, and survival strategies.

Hunters, Trappers, and Fishermen: The Swamp’s First Economy

For many, the swamp was not just a home—it was a livelihood. Trappers set lines for mink, otter, beaver, and muskrat, selling pelts to traders who carried them downriver to markets in Monroe and New Orleans. Hunters stalked deer, wild hogs, and waterfowl, their skills passed down through generations. Fishermen harvested catfish, crappie, and gar, often using simple yet effective techniques like trotlines and hand-fishing.

Some of these traditions continue today, though modern regulations and environmental changes have altered the landscape of swamp life. Still, the knowledge of the swamp—where to find game, how to navigate the waterways, when to expect the seasonal floods—remains invaluable to those who call it home.

The Loggers and River Workers: Taming the Bayou

At the turn of the 20th century, the swamp’s vast forests became a battleground for industry. Logging crews moved in, cutting massive stands of cypress and hardwoods, floating them downriver to mills in Monroe and beyond. Some men worked the sawmills, while others—called “sawyers” and “raftsmen”—rode the floating logs, guiding them through treacherous waters.

The riverboat captains who navigated the bayous became legendary for their skill and daring. They piloted steam-powered paddleboats, hauling cotton, timber, and goods between settlements. Their stories, filled with near-disasters, encounters with outlaws, and battles against the unpredictable waters, remain part of the swamp’s folklore.

A Changing Way of Life

By the mid-20th century, the swamp’s economy began to shift. Logging slowed as virgin forests disappeared, trapping declined with changes in fashion and market demand, and modern roads and railways replaced the riverboats. Many families moved away, seeking jobs in towns and cities, while others adapted to new ways of making a living.

Despite these changes, the spirit of the D’Arbonne Swamp remains in the people who still live along its edges. Some continue the old ways, hunting and fishing much as their ancestors did. Others have found new ways to celebrate and preserve their heritage—through storytelling, guiding tours, and sharing the history of a place that refuses to be forgotten.

The Enduring Legacy of the Swamp’s People

The people of the D’Arbonne Swamp were shaped by its challenges and opportunities. They were resilient, creative, and deeply connected to the land. Today, their legacy lives on—not only in the history books but in the families who still carry the knowledge, the traditions, and the stories of life in the swamp.

Source Acknowledgment: This essay is based on historical accounts from Bayou D’Arbonne Swamp: A Naturalist’s Memoir of Place by Kelby Ouchley, published by Louisiana State University Press. We found this document in The Ovid T. Switzer, Jr. Papers, of which we have on loan.

11/01/2025

Much to my sadness, Christmas is over! But, we always have something to celebrate at Holly Harbor Lodge! On blue winter days like today, we read, listen to a crackling fire and enjoy the sapphire lake that surrounds us.

07/01/2025

Ask us about our January-February winter wonderland special rates! $100 off discount on two nite stays! Or 15% off one night stays! At Holly Harbor Lodge you feel cozy and warm with amazing views!

31/12/2024

Leftover wedding flowers made for a beautiful Christmas mantle! Due to quick turn around of guests coming in today…Christmas is still here!

28/12/2024

The new dock should outlast us! Thank you Santa!!

22/12/2024

Christmas @ Holly Harbor!

19/12/2024

Holly Harbor Lodge welcomed the Tic-Tacs of the Union Parish Library for game nite year end finale! Great kids!

04/12/2024

We do have vacancy December 20-22 weekend! Come feel the Christmas spirit of winter on the lake from the cozy comfort of a crackling fire!

01/12/2024

The dock final facelift stage with a pelican parade for entertainment!

28/11/2024

Guests, family, friends…we are thankful for you!!

23/11/2024

18/11/2024

Today’s Lunch Bunch book club having lunch & a book on the back porch!

16/11/2024

“Ukiyo” is a Japanese word that translates literally to “floating world”. What this means is to live in the moment and enjoy a slow life. Holly Harbor Lodge architecture was designed following the concepts of Fung Shui: wood, earth, fire, water, and metal nestled on a pennisula surrounded by water on three sides.

This is the essence of Holly Harbor Lodge. Being in an all glass house, with vaulted wood beams, rock accents, majestic fireplace, surrounded by the lake, one can not help but feel “ukiyo”.

Add to that a rising sun in the East and Holly Harbor Lodge is definitely your wakeup call for detaching from your worries and embracing the seasons of life.

Artist Garrett Carlson captured this concept beautifully in our new logo. We feel very so very grateful and honored that he shared his talents with us! (garrett co)

Experience Ukiyo at Holly Harbor Lodge.

07/11/2024

In this dreary, gloomy, heavy-laden atmosphere of fog, we can not see ahead. On the lake we can not see the other side. This morning though, I do see the first of the American Coots that migrate through here annually. Coots look like ducks, but they are actually poultry. Who knew chickens could long distance fly, right? They glide together in communities, sometimes in straight lines meadering through the lowered lake and other times on dance teams veering right and left like synchronous swimmers. This morning they find some respite on the sandy islands that have risen in the drawdown. I watch them from the porch swing in silence and found some comfort in their ease. They are movers. Migratory. From Canada to Mexico, their range continues to change. They cluster. Together they skim across the water in silence with a soft rumble of a united murmur more similar to a soft cluck than a quack. They are seemingly at peace. With a gentle pace, they float. There is tranquility and comradery, dare I say kindness, as they drift together among the jagged decaying stumps of the lake in the new place they find themselves. I admire that. I wish for that.

Swamp Sunshine