Always try to come with a nice rested buff and good food. At least carrot soup+jam and some meat. Bonus points if you bring a portal link back to base with you, so you dont leave anything behind. Theres a lot of stuff to be looted in the swamp.
Upgraded troll armor can work but it falls short if you face starred draugr and elites. Try to bring your bronze armor and a proper shield. You can time the draugr arrowshots and stun them for extra dmg as well.
I personally dont bring the hoe to the swamp, but I can see its use can have some advantages. I just sprint and hop between fallen treetrunks and stuff. Theres always a route to avoid swimming through the puddles. I prefer modifying the route a bit rather than modifying the land itself, depending on the length of the trip and the amount of obstacles sometimes it isnt worth it. Im forced to swim on very few occasions, so the leeches dont really catch me unless Im being careless.

I would recommend find a crypt close to shore and grab whatever iron is inside. Take it back to base and use it to upgrade the forge, so you can lvl 4 your bronze armor.
Tip to explore the crypts a bit more safely; bring a 2h hammer like the stagbreaker. With its aoe attack you can kill most of whats waiting for you at the other side of the door without them having a chance to reach you, saving you from a lot of risky situations (and poison mead). If you cant reach right away, mine a bit of the muddy pile so you can get closer, or get enough angle to squeeze some arrows inside.