Abita Springs

Abita Springs www.abitaspringslouisiana.com is a town in Louisiana, in the Piney Woods of St. Tammany Parish, part of the Lake Pontchartrain North Shore area. It's about an hour hour East of Baton Rouge, and an hour north of New Orleans, about 15 minutes east of Covington.

Access is almost exclusively by private vehicle. From I-12, head north on US-190 to Covington. Then take SR-36 east to Abita Springs.

• Abita Springs Brewery, 166 Barbee Rd, ☎ 800-737-2311 extension 2, www.abita.com. 13:00 and 14:30 Sa, 13:00 Su. free. The brewery tours include free samples of the breweries local beers. On Highway 36, just west of town towards Covington.

• Abita Springs Tourist Park. The park features the Abita Springs Pavilion, a large, two-story pavillion once sheltering a spring, built in 1884. It is located at the west end of Main St. The park remains open and has a playground and picnic areas. The Abita River runs through it. It is the sight of the Abita Spring Water Festival each October.

• UCM Museum / Mystery House 22275 Hwy 36 ucmmuseum.com A uniquely weird collection of folk-art, curiosities, and (let's face it) old junk, entertainly arranged and displayed.

• Abita Brew Pub 72011Holly Street www.abitabrewpub.com, Lunch & Dinner Tues-Sun

• Abita Springs Brewpub, ☎ 985-892-5837, www.abita.com. 11:00-22:00 Mo-Su. A full restaurant and pub, it offers samples of Abita brews (including their non-alcoholic root beer) and has a gift shop.

• Rosie's Tavern 22067 Hwy 59 (right by the Pavillion park) www.rosiestavern.biz Tel: 985-809-0454

• Blue Willow Bed and Breakfast, 505 E. Rutland St., Covington, LA, ☎ 985-892-0011 (bluewillowbandb@earthlink.net), home.earthlink.net. checkin: 15:00; checkout: 11:00. $125-$250.
• Artesia's Longbranch Cottage, 21516 Hwy 36, ☎ 985-892-1662. Call to confirm availability.

• Covington is just a few minutes drive west
• Baton Rouge
• Biloxi, just under two hours to the east, along I-10.
• New Orleans