The Mississsippi River Will Burn Tonight For A Cajun Christmas Tradition
Hopefully you’ve made it back from the mall safely, and know you’re ready to sit back and wait for Santa to arrive. However, if you’re a resident of Louisiana you might have a little more work to do before it's time to open up all those presents. That’s because residents gather along the Mississippi River each season to ignite huge bonfires on the banks of the river. There’s a few stories surrounding the tradition’s beginnings, but most seem to agree that the fires light a path for Santa to deliver his goods.
Things were looking iffy earlier this year because the water level was too high, and officials were warning residents that they couldn’t light things up this year. However, the waters have gone down to good-to-go levels so locals will be out in full force to celebrate the season. People have been doing this for about 200 years, so even without the official approval, we’re thinking a couple fires just might have snuck out anyway.
By tonight there should be more than 100 different stacks of wood sitting on top of river levees for about four miles between the towns of Gramercy and Paulina. Most of the structures are a good 20-feet high, so when they start burning, you’ll certainly be able to see them. The towers usually burn for about three hours, and that should be plenty of time to guide the reindeer and the big man down to the homes along the river.
Things don’t stop once the bonfires begin to burn, as residents welcome one another with plenty of gumbo and jambalaya to celebrate the season. However, it’s important not to over do it, because the night ends with a trip to midnight Mass. This tradition sure beats the gift exchange at our uncle’s house—we need to get down to Cajun country for Christmas 2010.
Related Stories:
· Christmas Bonfires Keep Mississippi River Glowing [USA Today]
· Five Places For Living Out Your Favorite Christmas Carols
[Jaunted]
· Holiday Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: tobo]
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