THE ROUGAROU

While on a high adventure trek at Swamp Base, Scouts and Scouters spend a night on Rougarou Island. There they sleep in hammocks and listen to their Trek Guides share stories of Louisiana folklore and (maybe) fall asleep to the sounds of barred owls and bullfrogs as they call through the night. 

Caution signs are found throughout Rougarou Island, a camping location on Night 2 in the swamp.

Occasionally though, they may hear other mysterious sounds. Local legend tells of a creature known to roam the area around the island called the Rougarou….

There are many versions of the tale of the Rougarou, but most describe it as a werewolf-like monster with a human body and the head of a dog, the Rougarou is known to reach 7 to 8 feet in height and has inspired fear into the hearts of many Cajun children. The legend is normally told to encourage children to behave (don’t wander in the swamp after dark and don’t break the rules of Catholic Lent).

A normal person by day, and a monster at night, someone may be cursed to be a Rougarou for 101 days or may turn into one for breaking Catholic Lent rules. To protect yourself from the Rougarou, you can place 13 pennies or 13 of other objects in front of your door (or hammock). Rougarous can only count to 12 and are stuck in a counting loop until sunrise and they turn back into a human.

The sun sinks down inside the swamp,

Nighttime creatures begin to romp,

Cicadas scream and Barred Owls call, 

Cozy in bed, to sleep you fall,

When suddenly awoken, a howl you hear

Frissons down your arms, and your heart filled with fear!

Don’t scream, don’t shout

The pennies were all laid out,

That creature is stuck counting all night

Don’t worry you, about that Rougarou bite.

Happy Halloween from the Swamp Base Team!