In hurricane-ravaged Cameron Parish, an annual festival celebrates a disappearing way of life1/1/2025 Story by Alena Maschke Walking onto the grounds of the Cameron Parish Fur and Wildlife festival, attendees are greeted by the sound of duck calls and shotgun blasts. Grab a fresh oyster topped with pickled quail egg on your way in, make your way past the nutria rat-skinning competition and straight to the gumbo cook-off tent, where contestants vie for the title of best wild game, poultry or seafood gumbo.
Nicknamed the “oldest and coldest” harvest festival in southwest Louisiana, the fur and wildlife festival marks the beginning of Mardi Gras season in this part of the state and celebrates a heritage of commercial hunting and fur-trapping that teeters on the edge of disappearance. But at least once a year, locals make sure that while an industry might be gone, its culture is not forgotten. “It keeps everybody together — it’s a community deal. And we ain’t gonna let it die,” said Ben Welch, a Cameron native, second generation alligator farmer and member of the festival’s organizing committee for nearly four decades. Fur-trapping, shrimping and fishing were once the main industrial drivers in Cameron Parish — many of its oldest families moved to this remote part of the state for its rich natural resources. “That’s their livelihood — they came here to do it,” Welch noted. But global market trends have made it increasingly difficult to make a living that way. Shrimpers and fishermen along the gulf coast have struggled to compete with imported seafood. Fashion trends have moved away from real fur and most recently, the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have complicated access to some of the biggest markets for fur export. In the meantime, liquified natural gas has emerged as a major industry in the region, with southwest Louisiana being coined the LNG capital of the world in recent years, replacing traditional ways of making a living in Cameron Parish. “The newer group, they’ve all taken to working in the plants, the industry. They’ve moved away from that type of livelihood,” Welch said. “It’s only going to be so long until they don’t know anything about nutria trapping, muskrat trapping, raising cattle. They ain’t going to know nothing about it.” The festival’s gumbo cook-off now features a LNG division, where workers can compete on behalf of their companies. Like Keanan Kyle Boudreaux, who’s team won the title this year. A field operator for Venture Global LNG, Boudreaux was raised in south Cameron Parish and has been competing in the competition since its inception. While he makes a living in the oil and gas industry, Boudreaux — himself an avid alligator hunter and outdoorsman — said the old and new ways of life in Cameron Parish can coexist, as they have for decades. “Before that, we had the oilfield industry,” Boudreaux said of the LNG boom. “We always had some kind of energy in this town.” Economic disruption and global market forces aren’t the only challenges Cameron Parish has faced. In 2020, two major hurricanes made landfall in the parish, destroying much of what was left after Hurricane Rita in 2005. For many, it was the last straw. Already nearly emptied out after Rita, the parish saw another 15% population decline after the most recent storms. Boudreaux is the only one of his siblings who remains in south Cameron alongside his parents. His sister moved to Atlanta, other family members moved northward, toward the border of Calcasieu Parish and beyond. Boudreaux himself has purchased land to the north. “I don’t want to leave here, but I need a place to evacuate to,” he said. Still, his love for Cameron and its way of life remains strong. “It has deplenished since all these storms, but it’s something that you can’t give away,” he said. “It’s one of the best towns you’ll ever live in.” For those who have left, the festival offers an opportunity to come back home and reconnect with their community. “With the two storms, everybody just scattered,” Welch said. “They come back here to mingle, visit and reunite with their family and friends. That’s ultimately what it’s about.” That sense of community and love for its unique and long-standing culture is what makes Cameron — and the festival — special, said Ashley Gorrell, this year’s Fur and Wildlife Festival queen. A Texas native, military kid and graduate of Leesville High School, Gorrell had gone for the title before and finally snatched the crown this year. “To me what’s special about Cameron Parish is they stay true to their roots and their history, and they just really want to share that with the rest of the world,” the 21-year-old said. “Their community is just so welcoming. Everybody feels like family, whether it’s your first time here or you’ve been coming here since 1955.” While certain to impress, knowing how to skin a nutria rat isn’t an entry requirement. Just grab a bowl of rice and let the hot gumbo flow.
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