From the west, LA 10 begins at an intersection with US 171 in Pickering, a point in Vernon Parish located between DeRidder and Leesville. It proceeds east as an undivided two-lane highway, immediately crossing the Kansas City Southern Railway (KCS) tracks, and passes along the southern edge of the U.S. Army base at Fort Polk. LA 10 then turns to the southeast for and passes through the Vernon Unit of the Kisatchie National Forest. Curving back to the east, the highway continues before intersecting LA 399 in an area known as Cravens. After a brief concurrency with LA 10, LA 399 turns to the northeast toward Fullerton Lake. East of Cravens, LA 10 curves to the southeast and passes through the small community of Pitkin. Here, it intersects LA 113, which heads south to US 190 in Reeves. LA 10 and LA 113 proceed eastward out of Pitkin together. LA 113 then splits to the northeast toward Glenmora while LA 10 heads southeast through Dido and into Allen Parish.