The first thing you notice coming into Baton Rouge from the river is the State Capitol, a thirty-four storey art deco tower rising out of the flat, green land beside the Mississippi. Huey Long, the governor and later senator who ran Louisiana like a personal fiefdom, had it built in the early 1930s, and it remains the tallest state capitol in the country. Long was shot in its corridors in 1935 and is buried in the gardens in front, his statue facing the building. The observation deck near the top gives a long view over the river, the refineries and the endless swamp forest beyond.
Baton Rouge means red stick, a name the French gave to a painted pole marking a boundary between Native American hunting grounds when explorers came up the river in 1699. Today it is a working city of well over two hundred thousand people, home to Louisiana State University, a big port and one of the largest petrochemical complexes in the country. Industry lines the riverbanks, and the night skyline glows with flare stacks as much as office towers.
For riders on the Great River Road, the city is a hinge. South of it, the River Road follows the levee on both banks past sugar cane fields and old plantation houses toward New Orleans. North, the route crosses into the gentle hills of the Felicianas toward St. Francisville and Natchez. The roads are mostly flat and straight, and the pleasure is in the landscape: live oaks dripping with Spanish moss, glimpses of tankers riding high above you behind the levee, small towns built around a church and a gas station.
Practicalities are easy here. Fuel, food, tyres and motorcycle dealers are all available, and the city is a good place to deal with anything that needs fixing. Eat well while you are in Louisiana: gumbo, boudin, po' boys and crawfish in spring are worth slowing down for. The climate is the challenge. From May to September it is hot and very humid, with sudden afternoon thunderstorms, and the interstate traffic on I-10 and I-12 is heavy and aggressive at rush hours. Ride early, drink plenty of water, and treat the Mississippi bridges with respect in a crosswind.