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Gulf Intracoastal Waterway - Louisiana

Cruising/Navigating the GIWW in Louisiana

Lake Borgne, LA to Sabine River, LA

Louisiana’s section of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW/GICW) begins near the mouth of the Pearl River, MS near (MM "41.0 EHL") at 30°15.042’ N / 88°23.666’ W in Lake Borgne.

From Lake Borgne, this section of the GIWW runs generally in a westerly direction for 307.0 miles ending at 30°03.2’ N / 93°43.2’ W (MM "266.0 WHL") on the Sabine River at the Texas state line.

Navigation

Buoyage

Louisiana’s GICW is marked with your standard Aids to Navigation which also display yellow triangles or yellow squares. When westbound along Louisiana’s Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, marks displaying yellow triangles should be kept on your starboard hand and those marked with yellow squares should be kept to port.

While typically the yellow triangles will be found on red markers and yellow squares are found on green markers, caution should be exercised along this route in the vicinity of the Mississippi River, Lower Atchafalaya River, Vermilion River, and Calcasieu River where the GIWW intersects or coincides with the channels marked by the Lateral Buoyage System.

Charts

NOAA chart coverage of this portion of the GIWW beginning at (MM “41.0 EHL”) to (MM "266.0 WHL" is provided by charts #11367, #11365, #11355, #11350, #11348, and #11331. These charts can be viewed by clicking on the links below:

Chart #11367 - Waveland to Catahoula Bay
Chart #11365 - Barataria and Bayou Lafourche Waterways
Chart #11355 - Catahoula Bay to Wax Lake Outlet
Chart #11350 - Wax Lake Outlet to Forked Island
Chart #11348 - Forked Island to Ellender
Chart #11331 - Ellender to Galveston Bay

Distances and Mileages

All distances along the Louisiana’s Gulf Intracoastal Waterway are given in statute miles unless otherwise noted. Statute miles are used in order to conform to the distances shown on the small craft charts typically used along this route.

This portion of the GIWW between the Mississippi State line and the Texas State line is measured based on both decreasing and increasing mileage East and West of Harvey Lock from (MM "41.0 EHL") to (MM "266.0 WHL").

Channels

The Federal project depth for the Louisiana portion of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway provides for a minimum channel depth of 12 feet. Even though every effort is made to maintain the project depth, the actual controlling depths in the channels may vary due to shoaling reducing the available water depth until maintenance dredging can be accomplished.

Communications


Bridges, Locks, & Overhead Power Lines

Bridges

This list is believed to be accurate as of January 2024. If any errors or omissions are noted, please e-mail us at with any corrections or recommendations.

Gulf Intracoastal Waterway Bridges - Louisiana (GIWW)

The Rigolets to New Orleans
Mile Marker Bridge Charted Vert. Clear. Schedule Restrictions VHF
13.0 EHL Paris Road Bridge 137’ Fixed Bridge    
7.5 EHL Florida Avenue Lift Bridge 0’/156’ Opens on Demand Closed 0630-0830 & 1530-1745 Mon.-Fri. Excl. Federal Holidays. 13
6.7 EHL North Claiborne Lift Bridge 40’/156’ Opens on Demand Closed 0630-0830 & 1530-1745 Mon.-Fri. Excl. Federal Holidays. 13
6.5 EHL Inner Harbor/Industrail Lock   On Demand Passage in conjunction with adjacent bridge schedules. 14
6.2 EHL St. Claude Avenue Bascule Bridge 0’/70’ Opens on Demand Closed 0630-0830 & 1530-1745 Mon.-Fri. Excl. Federal Holidays. 13
2.5 EHL Crescent City Connector Bridge 150’ Fixed Bridges Twin Spans  
 
Gulf Intracoastal Waterway Bridges - Louisiana (GIWW)

New Orleans to Morgan City
Mile Marker Bridge Charted Vert. Clear. Schedule Restrictions VHF
0.0 Harvey Lock   On Demand   14
0.1 WHL Union Pacific RR Bascule Bridge 7’ Opens on Demand   13
0.15 WHL 4th Street Bascule Bridge 7’ Opens on Demand   13
0.8 WHL West Bank Expressway 95’ Fixed Bridge Twin Spans  
2.8 WHL Lapalco Blvd. Bascule Bridge 45’ Opens on Demand Closed Mon.-Fri. 0630-0830 and from 1545-1745 except holidays. 09
11.9 WHL Crown Point Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
35.0 WHL Larose Highway Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
35.7 WHL West Larose Lift Bridge 35’ / 73’ Opens on Demand   13
49.8 WHL Bayou Blue Road Pontoon Bridge 0’ Opens on Demand   13
54.4 WHL Prospect Blvd. Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
57.6 WHL Park Avenue Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
57.7 WHL Main Street Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
59.9 WHL Bayou Dularge Bascule Bridge 40’ On Demand Closed Mon.-Fri. from 0630-0830, 1145-1215, 1245-1315 and from 1630-1800 except Fed. holidays. 13
93.0 WHL Bayou Boeuf Lock   On Demand   14
 
Gulf Intracoastal Waterway Bridges - Louisiana (GIWW)

Morgan City to Port Arthur
Mile Marker Bridge Charted Vert. Clear. Schedule Restrictions VHF
113.0 WHL North Bend Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
134.0 WHL Louisa Bascule Bridge 73’ On Demand The draw shall open on signal if at least 24 hours notice is given. 13
163.0 WHL Leland-Bowman Lock   On Demand   14
170.3 WHL Forked Island Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
219.8 WHL W. Creole Highway/Gibbstown Bridge 73’ Fixed Bridge    
231.5 WHL Grand Lake Pontoon Bridge 0’ Opens on Demand   13
238.0 WHL Black Bayou Pontoon Bridge 0’ Opens on Demand Closed Mon-Fri 0600 to 0800 and 1400-1600. 13
238.2 WHL Calcasieu Lock   On Demand   14
243.8 WHL Ellender Lift Bridge 50’/135’ Opens on Demand (4 Hour notice required).   13
 

The above tables can be downloaded for your personal and private use. They list the bridges, their schedules, and restrictions in statute miles, nautical miles, and kilometers along Louisianna’s segment of the Intracoastal Waterway from the Pearl River in Louisiana west to the Texas State line.

Louisiana Gulf Coast Bridge Schedule - Download

GICW/GIWW Bridge and Lock Schedule (Florida to Texas) - Download

Locks

Louisiana Gulf Intracoastal Waterway Locks
Mile Marker Bridge   Schedule Restrictions VHF
6.5 EHL Inner Harbor Canal Lock   On Demand Operates within the operating times of the Florida Avenue, Claibourne, and St. Claude operating bridges. 14
0.0 Harvey Lock   On Demand   14
93.0 WHL Bayou Boeuf Lock   On Demand   14
163.0 WHL Leland-Bowman Lock   On Demand   14
238.2 WHL Calcasieu Lock   On Demand   13

Overhead Power Lines

Quite a few overhead cables cross Louisiana’s Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. Numerous cable crossings with a minimum authorized clearance noted at 90’ are located between (MM "34.0 WHL") and (MM "135.0 WHL"). (1) overhead cable at (MM "219.9 WHL") has been reported to have a clearance of only 82’.

Caution - Many of the overhead cables over the waterway carry high voltage, and an extra margin of safety should be allowed when the weather is threatening.

Tides

Tidal ranges are fairly small along Louisiana’s coast. Under normal conditions the mean range of tide averages between less than 0.5 foot at Chef Menteur Pass to about 1.0 foot across the remainder of the state to the Texas State line.

Louisiana experiences (2) types of tides; from the Mississippi state line west to Vermilion Bay the type of tide experienced is commonly refered to as a "Diurnal Tide" - exhibiting (1) high tide and (1) low tide each day. West of Vermilion Bay to the Texas State Line, a "Mixed Tide" gradually takes over having (2) unequal high and low tides each day.

Entrances, Inlets, and Passes

There are literally hundreds of entrances, inlets, and passes between the Gulf of Mexico and the inside waters of Louisiana. Many only suitable for shallow draft vessels or local knowledge, but some can be considered navigable by most vessels. We are going to list only those that are important to accessing the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway or that can be considered navigable for most vessels.

Supplemental Page LogoNEXT - Louisiana Coastal - Entrances, Inlets, & Passes


Next Page LogoNEXT - GIWW (Texas)

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