2/8/22 Mississippi

 2/8/22 Tuesday

37 degrees this morning! Brrrrr.  Stopped at a Waffle House for a mediocre but hot breakfast. It looks like Waffle House is the state restaurant in Mississippi, as we see one every 10 miles or less! 

After breakfast, our first stop is the Mississippi West Coast Visitor Center in Bay Saint Louis, housed in a 1929 train station which was refurbished in 1996.

  It had a nice Mardi Gras costume display and some local history. This area was hard hit by hurricane Katrina - before Katrina there were 78 buildings on the list of historical buildings; after Katrina there are 16 remaining.

We heard somewhere before that Mardi Gras keeps sequin makers in business and the above costume was totally covered in sequins!

 Upstairs was a small gallery of the folk art of Alice Moseley - a local Grandma Moses-type artist.

Greg walked around outside and found this mountain of railroad spikes near the railroad tracks.

Also some information on the 100 Men DBA Hall, an African-American men's social club begun in the 1920's, and a colorful building which was part of the Mississippi Blues circuit.

Nearby, we drove by The Angel Tree.  It is the remains of an oak to which four people clung to survive Hurricane Katrina.  The tree subsequently died but has had several angels carved into the remaining branches.

One of many bridges crossing various bays along the Gulf Coast.

Then, on to Biloxi, whose name means "first people".  The Biloxi Visitors Center is an impressive new building built post-Katrina and was filled with history.  The Spanish explorer DeSoto was in this area in the 1540's, followed by the French who made this their Capital in 1699.  Mississippi joined the US in 1798 and became the 20th state in 1817.  It is noted for seafood, a large Air Force base, popular beaches and casinos.

The Biloxi lighthouse was just across the freeway.

From Biloxi we decide to visit the Mississippi Sandhill Crane Nat'l Refuge.  Apparently this is not the time of year when the cranes visit, unlike Arizona and NM where this is prime time. (They are here in the Fall, we read.) We stretched our legs on a trail but saw little except lots of trees and shrubs. But it was a pretty day for a walk!

We next headed to Big Biloxi Campground in DeSoto National Forest, which turned out to be a great place.  We were one of about 5 campers among the trees.   Enjoyed electric, hot showers and water for $13 a night!  Greg made a nice fire and we charged all of our electronics. Enjoyed chili and a cozy night even though the temperature dropped to freezing!

2/7/2022 Louisiana Gulf Coast

 Monday, 2/7/2022

Continuing along the Louisiana Gulf Coast, there are many homes with blue tarps on the roofs.  Occasional cement slabs where something once stood, some of which have an RV parked on them.  This area has been hard hit with hurricanes the past few years.

Many homes are on stilts in this area; we pass a few with interesting names - "Coon Ass Hilton". (Coon ass is a controversial term sometimes considered an ethnic slur against Cajuns.  Others consider it a badge of pride, which we assume is what the folks who named this home thought).

And here is "Camp David".

Gas has gotten more expensive- $3.20 at home, $3.65 at Stella's Grocery (though they don't have much in the way of competition).  We have to take a small ferry at Cameron. Lots of bridges, including draw bridges along this watery route.

Quite a few flocks of black birds. It has been a while since we've seen such large flocks! 

We cross the Intercoastal Waterway a few times.

Beth has forgotten extra camera batteries and a new portable power pack at home.  We check at a Best Buy we come across and find that the batteries aren't available anywhere in Louisiana.  Beth buys a replacement power pack that we hoped to use to charge Greg's hearing aids at night, but it doesn't seem compatible...

Crawfish are just coming into season and we pause to watch this guy emptying his catch from wire cages in the shallow water fields.

In Morgan City, we look for a place that sells poor boy sandwiches (usually great in this part of the country) and end up at a small house called Rita Mae's Kitchen, recommended by Google.  It has about 8 tables in 3 rooms, and is mostly full, but we are seated.  Good shrimp po'boys, but not great. 

We continue on to Houma but find the Bayou Terrebonne Wildlife Museum closed, even though the website shows open.  This will, unfortunately, be a repeated scenario.  Thanks, COVID.

We avoid New Orleans area and soon cross into Mississippi.  Rickey Levy Memorial Park, on a pier near Bay St. Louis, is where we land for the night, along with hundreds of nearby gulls.

Pretty as the sun sets, but after the sun is down it lights the sky even more brilliantly!

SOUTHERN ESCAPADE 2/6/2022-2/23/2022

2/6/2022 Sunday

Excited to be on the road again!  This will be our third trip during COVID times.  Though things are beginning to be more relaxed, we still are a bit nervous about crowds, so we'll stick to mostly off-th-beaten-path type places.  Still finding a mix of things open,  with shorter hours, closed when supposed to be open, and closed either temporarily or permanently.

We begin with a jaunt down to High Island, off the Texas Bolivar Peninsula.  Some great birding spots in this area in the Spring, but not much happening this time of year. There is a new elevated walkway since our last visit and - good news - no mosquitos!

A few egrets and cormorants, but temperature is in the 40's, so not a lot of activity. The gators are off somewhere trying to stay warm.  In a few more weeks things will be hopping, as this is a rookery for the egrets and the spoonbills.

We continue through Port Arthur, Janice Joplin's hometown, and into Louisiana and decide to boondock on the Gulf at Rutherford Beach.  A few fishermen and an ATV rider leave as evening falls, and all is quiet for the remaining few campers, which are well spaced out. We pick up a few shells and enjoy the beautiful sunset. 

9/26-9/30/21 Visiting. Benson, AZ, Silver City, NM and Junction, TX then home.

 9/26-9/30/21

51 degrees this morning and light rain and fog.  We head south and hit heavy rain and heavy traffic going through Flagstaff and into Phoenix. 

 We stop for gas a little further south and find more reasonable prices at $2.94.  We often use an app called "Gas Buddy" to find gas stations, as it gives locations, distance from you and prices.

Stop at a nearby In-N-Out for lunch.  This is the second time we have tried them and will probably be the last - overrated.

We reach Tom & Sue's house in Benson about 1:30 and enjoy a good visit.  Lots of catching up to do! We feel honored to be their first guests since COVID! Tom makes some great breakfasts and we enjoy a long walk with Sue, who just completed her second cataract surgery and is thrilled with the results.  The cloud cover makes for pleasant temperatures - much cooler than we expected - 70's! Lots of hummingbirds at Sue's feeder this time of year!

 

We work on a complicated jigsaw puzzle, chat and eat.

Sue spotted this love - ly cactus on our walk. 

And we were surprised that fire ants in Arizona are larger than in Texas and build these concave cones rather than the mounds in Texas.  But all of the dang little things bite!

Wednesday, 9/28

After delicious blueberry pancakes, we set out for Silver City, NM.  Cloud cover continues and the Chiracahua Mts are socked in. There are signs that the rain has preceded us as we travel east on I-10 before cutting north.  

 Great to see Anne again!  We visit a bit and then Beth goes with her to pick up lovely Ginger who just got a haircut.  Sweet dog isn't too sure what to make of Greg and I.  Anne says she hasn't had much company since COVID, so this is kind of new for Ginger.

  Good catch-up visit including a game of Mexican Train and a wonderful dinner which includes enchiladas and green chili stew. This IS New Mexico.  Fun discussing camping, travel, family, COVID, education (Anne was a teacher and administrator for years) and more.  

Wonderful scones from Diane's Bakery in the morning - a bit of a delicious tradition.  And then we are off towards home. Anne has a small rv similar to ours and will be heading out herself in a few days.

Lots of truck traffic on I-10 and crazy busy through El Paso (about 10 times the traffic in the photo above).  Then the long haul through west Texas. Greg spots one driver doing jumping jacks behind his pulled over rig (to break the monotony?)  We pass through a busy border patrol station, as we aren't far from Mexico. 

They asked if we were citizens and whether we had anyone else with us in the back, wished us a pleasant day and waved us through.  We think they only check out suspicious vehicles or one of every so many vehicles for random checks. 

 600 miles to the small town of Junction, Texas, which has a city park with free camping. We arrive as the sun is setting. We've stayed here before, along the Llano River. 

Thursday,  9/30

Back to I-10, with little break in the mostly flat land.

Don't remember the name of the town that put this huge roadrunner alongside the highway.

Through San Antonio and east toward Houston. Back to horrible traffic and toll roads. 

 We find everything in order at home, thanks to neighbors.  The squirrels have left a mess on the patio, as they do every year, gnawing pine cones and leaving debris.  Still good to be home. 

Seems we've brought the rain with us!