# LA 1: End of the Road *down the longest street in the world* LA 1: End of the Road is a ~110-mile back-roads route from Donaldsonville to Grand Isle on LA 1 and LA 308, driven in 1–2 days, that stays off US 90 four-lane through the Gulf Coast. - **Drive:** Donaldsonville → Grand Isle - **Distance:** ~110 mi - **Days:** 1–2 - **Highways:** LA 1, LA 308 - **Avoids:** US 90 four-lane - **Region:** Gulf Coast - **Themes:** Natural Beauty, Eats & Institutions, History & Markers, Small Towns Bayou Lafourche was once a mouth of the Mississippi, and the unbroken 100-mile ribbon of settlement down both banks earned it the nickname the longest street in the world. LA 1 and LA 308 run it as a pair, one on each bank, through sugar country and shrimp country to Leeville's sinking tombs and Grand Isle, Louisiana's only inhabited barrier island. This is the road to watch the coast disappearing in real time. Markers: Bayou Lafourche corridor markers run both banks; land-loss interpretation thickens below Golden Meadow. ## The drive, segment by segment ### Sugar Bayou *Donaldsonville → Thibodaux · ~30 mi* Down from the river through cane fields and the bayou's old plantation towns, Madewood gleaming on the 308 bank. Stops: - **River Road African American Museum** (Donaldsonville) · History & Markers — The river parishes' Black history told at the bayou's head: free towns, root doctors, and the country's first Black mayor elected here in 1868. - **Madewood** (Napoleonville) · History & Markers — An 1846 Greek Revival pile on the LA 308 bank, one of the bayou's grandest survivors. - **E.D. White Historic Site** (Thibodaux) · History & Markers — The Creole cottage of a chief justice, interpreting the whole bayou's story, including the 1887 Thibodaux massacre of striking cane workers. ### The Long Street *Thibodaux → Golden Meadow · ~45 mi* Lockport, Larose, Cut Off, Galliano: one continuous waterfront town where shrimp boats park like pickups. Stops: - **Golden Meadow shrimp fleet** (Golden Meadow) · Eats & Institutions — Trawlers tied up along the highway shoulder; the blessing of the fleet still opens shrimp season here. ### To the Island *Golden Meadow → Grand Isle · ~35 mi* Leeville's cemetery in the marsh, the elevated toll road over open water, and the island at the end of everything. Stops: - **Leeville Cemetery** (Leeville) · History & Markers — Tombs subsiding into open water where a farming town stood a century ago. Coastal land loss, made unmistakably literal. - **Grand Isle State Park** (Grand Isle) · State Parks — The state's only inhabited barrier island: birding fallouts in April, the Tarpon Rodeo in July, houses on ever-taller stilts. ## Tips and best time to go - The Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo (late July) is billed as America's oldest fishing tournament; book the island early. - Ride LA 1 down and LA 308 back to see both banks of the long street. ## Worth a detour - **Laurel Valley Village** — The largest surviving 19th-century sugar plantation quarters complex in the country, weathering quietly on LA 308 below Thibodaux. - **Elmer's Island** — A wild beach refuge just before Grand Isle: birds, surf fishing and no development at all. ## Frequently asked questions ### How long is LA 1: End of the Road and how many days does it take? LA 1: End of the Road is about 110 miles and takes 1–2 days at a back-roads pace. ### Where does LA 1: End of the Road start and end? It runs from Donaldsonville to Grand Isle. ### Which highways does LA 1: End of the Road follow? It follows LA 1 and LA 308. ### Which interstate does LA 1: End of the Road replace? It avoids US 90 four-lane, using LA 1 and LA 308 instead. ### How many stops are on LA 1: End of the Road, and what are the highlights? 6 stops are mapped, including River Road African American Museum, Madewood, E.D. White Historic Site, Golden Meadow shrimp fleet and Leeville Cemetery. ### Which ready-made itineraries include LA 1: End of the Road? The Great River Road, Southern Act (6 days). ### When is the best time to drive LA 1: End of the Road? The atlas’s seasonal note for this route: “The Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo (late July) is billed as America's oldest fishing tournament; book the island early.” ## Ready-made itineraries using this route - [The Great River Road, Southern Act](https://dixieroadtrip.com/trips/great-river-road-south) — 6 days, ~650 mi ## Connects with - [Bayou Teche & the Cajun Prairie](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/cajun-corridor) — New Orleans → Eunice - [River Road & the Felicianas](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/river-road) — New Orleans → Natchez - [US 90: The Creole Coast](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/us90-coast) — New Orleans → Pensacola --- Canonical URL: https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/la1-end-of-road Publisher: Dixie Media (Dixie Road Trip, https://dixieroadtrip.com/) Last updated: 2026-10-05