Cryptids are a curious byproduct of folklore. Nearly everywhere has one; whether it be the Jersey Devil, the Flatwoods Monster, or your garden variety Sasquatch. Louisiana has its own special flavor of werewolf known as the Rougarou, a snarling creature brought to us from our French Canadian ancestors. But for many of the younger generation, the Rougarou might seem a forgotten legend; an antiquated story only hinted about in historical texts and a particularly haunting figure at The Audubon Zoo. But for the past 13 years, the legend of the Rougarou has taken on new life as a symbol; not just of our Cajun heritage but of the vibrant swampland it is known to call home. Down in Terrebonne Parish, the beast’s likeness is evoked by locals looking for an excuse to play some good music, break out ancestral recipes, and celebrate the region we love.
This is Rougarou Fest.
Jonathan Foret, director of the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center and founder of Rougarou Fest, is a native of the region, having grown up between the Atchafalaya Basin and New Orleans, and holds fond memories of a yearly festival known as LAGNIAPPE ON THE BAYOU; a community-wide celebration that would bring neighbors from all over the area to celebrate with good food and better times. Now a distant ghost of a memory, Jonathan and others like him have worked to keep that memory alive with their own brand of Fall festivities.
“My generation was known as Lagniappe Kids because of how prolific Lagniappe on the Bayou was for us,” said Foret. “Public schools would close early on Fridays and everyone would join in the fun of celebrating our heritage. It was a very formative memory of mine. Now, many of the folks from that generation are gone. But the new generation is stepping up to revitalize the traditions they set down.”
Rougarou Fest, a free-to-attend event, began as an opportunity to combine Foret’s love for the culture and dedication to protecting the wetlands which are fading as surely as oral tradition. When searching for a symbol to focus an event like this around, his mind went to the classrooms where the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center does much of their educational work, and the knowledge gap already setting in among the students.
“The Rougarou has gone from a scary creature that will pull toes at night to a guardian of the swamp and protector of the wetlands but it wasn’t always that way,” said Foret. “Years ago, I would go into classrooms and talk about how the Rougarou lives in the swamps that are eroding away and the kids would look at me like I was crazy. I realized just then that our oral traditions had not been passed down and might soon disappear if nothing was done.”
In an effort to quell the cultural erosion, as well as the coastal one, Foret and the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center began Rougarou Fest as a celebration of all things South Louisiana. And the response has steadily increased for over a decade, now into their 13th year. While the October season makes for a good excuse to host costume contests and trunk-or-treat events; the core of the event is the resurrection of long-abandoned traditions and stories. Like the Rougarou, these touchstones are being reborn for visitors year after year and gaining new life in the minds of a new generation.
“Beyond our coastal restoration advocacy, Rougarou Fest has deep meaning for folks who may have lost their homes in storms like Hurricane Ida and left the area,” said Foret. “They use this festival as a time to come back and visit their friends, to eat food they haven’t had since they were children, listen to music their grandparents played, even hear Louisiana French spoken openly. It is a service we are proud to provide to our community, both young and old. At the end of the day, the festival is a way to celebrate what we have while we still have it and have a place where we can have challenging conversations about our environment around something a little more light-hearted.”
The number 13 has great importance in the lore of the Rougarou. Legend says that a way to protect yourself from the cryptid is to place 13 pennies, or small items, at your doorstep. The Rougarou, unable to count past 12, will then spend the entire night trying and failing to count the items before retreating once the sun rises. This story has become the inspiration for the 13th Rougarou Fest, with both the commemorative poster, created from a collage of Lagniappe On The Bayou posters, and a family-friendly scavenger hunt throughout the event taking cues from the bedtime story. These, along with a new folklife village, the first Rouga-Con Comic Con, and the yearly traditions of carnival rides, nutria pardoning, the crowning of the Rougarou Queen, The Krewe Ga Rou Parade and so much more prove that Rougarou Fest is bigger and better than ever.
If you’ve got a mind to travel back in time, and sneak a peak at a creepy cryptid or two, head down to Terrebonne Parish and learn what all the fun is about.
To learn more, please visit rougaroufest.org.
See y’all in the moonlight!
