Exploring Whiskey Bay
It's that one exit on eastbound Interstate 10 that just seems a little bit different than the others.
Travelers who take Exit 127, commonly known as the Whiskey Bay exit, are driving into the definition of seclusion. While most interstate exits lead to at least convenience stores and fast food restaurants, this one just 30 miles east of Lafayette is almost completely desolate.
It's also the turn-off linked to the mysterious and high-profile disappearance of Michaela "Mickey" Shunick, last seen May 19 in surveillance footage riding her bicycle. Her bike was discovered a week ago in the waters of Whiskey Bay.
This remote exit has a ramp that curves sharply, almost into a complete circle, and leads onto La. 975. Turn left onto La. 975, go just about 40 yards, and there's a huge white sign with "NO" written in large black letters. The sign is a not-so-subtle reminder that there is no public access into the woods beyond that point and trespassing is prohibited. Visitors clearly are not welcome.
Go right onto La. 975, and the road immediately goes under the I-10 Atchafalaya Basin bridge, where the loud thundering of vehicles traveling at least 60 miles per hour overhead nearly drowns out the sounds of birds chirping and bugs hissing in the thick underbrush. It's an odd dichotomy the sense of being in the middle of nowhere, but less than a mile from one of the most-traveled interstates in the country.
"It's a secluded area. Most people that go out there are going to camps or just exiting the interstate for a second and then getting back on," said Maj. Johnny Blanchard, head of the Iberville Parish Sheriff's Office uniform patrol section. "There are no gas stations and no rest areas, just the boat launch. You have to go a mile or two before you see any camps. There is traffic in and out, but there are no residents or businesses anywhere around."
Just about all of that traffic surrounds the boat launch to the right of La. 975. It's a manmade cement slope, steep and heavily ridged, that leads right into Whiskey Bay and, ultimately, parts of the Atchafalaya Basin. A brown wood-and-metal sign just in front of the launch serves as an information center. On Thursday, it featured a missing-person flier with Shunick's photo and description, as well as information on hunting and fishing permits and regulations.
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