2024 Map of Chef Menteur

About this map

The Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge dominates this coastal landscape, protecting a complex network of lagoons and bayous at the edge of New Orleans. The map documents the transition from the city's built environment to the brackish wetlands between Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Borgne. Human development is concentrated along the narrow corridors of the Old Spanish Trl and within Venetian Isles, a community defined by its intricate canal system and proximity to Chef Menteur. The arterial significance of the Intracoastal Waterway is evident as it cuts through the marsh, facilitating maritime traffic separate from the natural winding of Chef Menteur Pass. Numerous named water bodies like Chico Lagoon and Bayou Gentilly illustrate the deltaic geography, while the boundary between Orleans Parish and St. Bernard Parish traces a line through the open waters of the south.