Today we moved to Ocean Springs Mississippi and are camping at Davis Bayou on Gulf Island Nat. Seashore. This campground is not on the water like the last one. The seashore is on islands about 10 miles out in the Gulf. There are boats that will take you there but not this time of the year. You can go by private boat though. We won't be visiting the islands. When we were pulling into our campsite a news reporter and camera man approached us and asked it they can interview us about tourism in Mississippi. I was on the news that night on WLOX out of Biloxi. In the afternoon we visited the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge and saw a short movie on the cranes. The Mississippi sandhill cranes are a separate subspecies of sandhill crane and they do not migrate. They were among the first species listed as "endangered" when the Endangered Species Act was enacted in 1973. By the 60's the population of cranes was 30-35. The refuge has restored habitat to its previous open savanna state to protect and restore an endangered species that began in 1975 with the creation of the refuge. The cranes are long-lived birds that mate for life but rarely lay more than two eggs per year which makes population increases a slow process. It was a cold and windy day so we did not see any cranes.
 |
| Me on TV |
Feb. 3
After breakfast we went towards Mobil to see another wildlife refuge. This one didn't have a visitors center but had a large building where they did research. We stopped and talked to a man there. We ate lunch at a restaurant Dick had seen on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives called The Shack. It was a very unique place and the BBQ was good.
Feb. 4
Rain most of the day. We stayed around the campground until late in the afternoon and went for a ride to Gulfport and back through Biloxi along the beach right along the gulf. There are miles of no buildings along this part of the gulf because they were wiped out by Hurricane Katrina. A few large hotels and casinos have rebuilt but the rebuilding is slow. For dinner that night we saw on GPS there was a Olive Garden in Biloxi so we drove to find it. There was a vacant lot where it once stood. We ended up at the Beau Rivage Resort and Casino for their seafood buffet.
Feb. 5
It's cloudy and cold today as we leave to go to New Orleans Louisiana. Our campground is Pontchartrain Landing and is on the inner harbor navigation canal on Lake Pontchartrain. This area was under 19 feet of water after Katrina. The devastation from Katrina is evident everywhere we look. Many houses are boarded up and abandoned and they can't tare them down because they can't find the owner. These people were given anywhere from one hundred thousand to two hundred thousand dollars to rebuild but they took the money and left the area. The population of New Orleans was one million before Katrina and it is now three hundred and forty thousand. Dick wanted to try crawfish so we found a grocery store that sold them already cooked. The black woman who worked in the deli showed him how to clean and eat them. The tails are pretty small so it would be hard to make a meal of them.
Feb. 6
It's sunny and nice today as we get ready to go into the French Quarter. Our campground has a bus to take us there and it only cost $5 each. Our bus driver is a New Orleans police officer who works Bourbon St. in the Quarter. He told us not to go out of the French Quarter were it is safe and only a few blocks away it is not. Our first stop in at the famous Cafe Du Monde to have Beignets, French donuts, and coffee. The line was halfway down the block but it didn't take long to get inside. Beignets are piled high with powdered sugar and coffee, hot chocolate or juice are all they serve. We walked along the streets and stopped in many of the shops. Mardi Gras items were for sale everywhere. The French Quarter lies along the Mississippi River so we walked to see it. We had a good lunch of red fish with crawfish cream sauce. There are people playing music, being statues, tap dancing, singing and anything to get people to put money in their bucket. We took a buggy ride around the streets that was pulled by a mule.
 |
| Buggy rides |
 |
| Man as a statue |
 |
| Building with ornate balconies |
 |
| Mississippi River by the French Quarter |
 |
| French Quarter |
 |
| Narrow streets |
Dick and I have now been in every state except Hawaii. On this trip we have been to 35 states so far, more to come on the way home.
Feb. 7
It was cloudy when we left this morning but blue sky poked through as we drove through Louisiana. Early in the afternoon we get to our destination, Beaumont Texas. The campground in nice and we get settled for the night. Did some grocery shopping and went out to eat at a Mexican restaurant.
Feb. 8
There is not a cloud in the sky as we leave the campground. Today we head further into Texas. The drive through Houston was not too bad. There was lots of traffic but more going the other way. We got great views of downtown Houston as we drove through on the freeway. We arrived in Calliham Texas around three and got settled in our friends, Bill and Jean, campground. We have known Bill and Jean since 2000 when they campground hosted at Laird Park in Idaho. We have frown here to visit them several times and gone crappie fishing so we know the area. Last year they put in a 18 site campground by their house. There is an oil boom in south Texas and the campground is filled mostly with oil field workers. We go out to dinner with them and have a nice visit. We plan on staying here for a month so my blog will not have much traveling in it. We are about 70 miles south on San Antonio on Choke Canyon Lake. I can see the lake from my motor home window. Choke Canyon is an enormous reservoir and has great fishing.
 |
| Downtown Houston |
 |
| Skyline of downtown Houston |
Dick and I took a little ride in the Jeep around the lake and he got a haircut in a nearby town. The weather is very cold and a cold wind is blowing. We didn't get the rain that was expected today but dark clouds hung around all day. Cooked ribs for dinner and added side dishes and shared the ribs with Bill and Jean.
Feb. 10
It was so cold in the night our water hose froze. Got down in the 20's in the night and a cold wind was still blowing this morning. We all drove to the town of Victoria and ate at a seafood restaurant and did a little grocery shopping. It is going to be cold again tonight but will start warming up over the weekend. Definitely Happy Travels, Barb
No comments:
Post a Comment