Features

  • View of the entrance of the Bayou Lacombe Center

    Explore Bayou Lacombe Visitor Center

    Enjoy the hiking trails that wind through the grounds or explore interactive displays. Free. Open Thursdays-Saturday. 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

    Learn more...

  • Photo of Santa with child and mother in the Cajun cabin

    Cajun Christmas

    Join Santa and Mrs. Claus at Bayou Lacombe Center for crafts, cookies, and cocoa. Saturday, Dec. 14 from 2 - 4 p.m. FREE

    Cajun Christmas

What's Happening at the Refuge

Bayou Gardens Open House

February 29, 2020 Camellias and Spanish Moss

From 1935-1956, Bayou Gardens was a must see horticultural attraction on the northshore of Lake Ponchartrain. Now the headquarters of the Southeast Louisiana National Wildlife Refuges, the gardens are maintained by volunteers and showcase an impressive variety of camellias and azaleas. Join us to celebrate the historic garden with FREE garden tours, nature-friendly gardening workshops, arts and crafts, and more!

Bayou Gardens Open House

Take a Virtual Hike at Boy Scout Road Interpretive Trail

View of the Boy Scout Road boardwalk trail

Explore the pine savannah and marshes of Big Branch on this two-mile long trail from the interpretive boardwalk at the trailhead to an overlook of Bayou Lacombe.

Take a Virtual Hike at Boy Scout Road Interpretive Trail

Hey 4th Graders - Get a FREE pass to the National Parks

Every Kid Outdoors logo with children, trees and birds

Calling all 4th graders. Get a free pass for you and your family to all federal parks, lands, and waters for the year! Vist Every Kid Outdoors to claim your free pass.

Visit the Every Kid Outdoors Website

Attention Young Artists

Two Geese swimming. Junior Duck Stamp 2016-2017

Could your work be on the next Junior Duck Stamp? Support conservation, education, and the arts with a Junior Duck Stamp!

Junior Duck Stamp
Get Your Bird On!

Birding Big Branch Marsh NWR

A woodpecker feeding on insects on a pine tree

From Swallow-tailed Kites and Brown Pelicans to warblers — find out what birds might be sighted and where!

More about birding at the Refuge...

About the Complex

Southeast Louisiana National Wildlife Refuges Complex

Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife Refuge is managed as part of the Southeast Louisiana National Wildlife Refuges Complex.

Read more about the complex
About the NWRS

National Wildlife Refuge System

NWRS Logo

The National Wildlife Refuge System, within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, manages a national network of lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife, and plants.

Learn more about the NWRS
Follow NWRS Online