Location: Natchez State Park, Natchez MS
We had a slow start this morning due to spending time with a Swiss couple, Peter and Theresa, who've lived for the last 30 years in Australia. They tour the U.S. almost every year for at least a month. They travel much like we do, light and back roads. Peter spent years shooting video of America Road trips for a Swiss TV Channel. It's amazing how much of America they have seen over the years. They've even done the Alaska Highway. We enjoyed swapping stories and giving each other tips of places to visit. They are encouraging us to take a road trip through Australia. In fact Peter was so emphatic about it that he brought over a list of all the places (with prices!) of Aussie camper vans for rent. Who knows this could be fun! One of the true joys of road trips is meeting interesting people like these folks.
Our first big outing of the day was visiting Natchitoches (pronounced "Nack-a-tish").
and the Cane River Heritage Area. Natchitoches is the heart of the Creole culture in Louisiana. The Creole Culture is a blend of Spanish, French, African and Native American culture. It took shape in this area around the 1800's. We took a walking tour of the downtown historic district, then did a tour of several old plantations. The historic downtown is quaint, still lined with brick streets, and has a gorgeous grassy embankment along the Cane River which is lined with fragrant magnolia trees. This is the town that the movie Steel Magnolias was actually filmed and is based on a true story of the author's sister from this area.
It rained hard last night, which was fortunate because it lowered the temperature and made for some dramatic cloud formations. It also set the tone for viewing some of these plantations. We were by ourselves on most of the tours. As we walked the fields, out buildings and slave quarters it was quite powerful. I wanted to honor and be respectful of the contribution and hardship of the people who spent their lives on these grounds. Walking over the wet plowed grass along the corn and cotton fields and viewing the plantation in this humidity made it feel so real.
Our next adventure was finding the Old River Control Structure on the Mississippi River. Ned and I have been reading "The Control of Nature" by John McPhee. In it he describes how the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers is trying to control the flow and direction of the Mississippi River. A pretty amazing (if not ultimately futile) effort. We were fascinated by how the Mississippi River used to flow into the Red River thus eventually making the Red River the more dominant river. A key element into preventing this, and keeping New Orleans from drying up, was building the Old River Control Structure. We had to go see it. Since the main point of this trip is driving the Great River Road and learning all about Ol' Miss, this was a natural starting point. We made a trip to the Army Corp of Engineer Visitor Center in Grand Encore and spoke with one of the old retired Corp volunteers. Turns out this structure was a mere 3 hour side trip. Pshaw, that is a mere drop in the bucket to us! So, off we were with this volunteer's directions, driving down some pretty obscure roads, and armed with a couple of maps. Our efforts were not wasted. It was incredibly fascinating and so rewarding to see in action something we had been reading about. Even though the Corp has done a valiant effort it does seem as if the Mississippi will eventually win out. We also enjoyed viewing the locks between the Mississippi River and the Atchafalaya River.
We sadly said goodbye to Louisiana and crossed over the mighty Mississippi for the first time this trip. We pulled into Natchez State Park outside of Natchez, MS rather late, but are rewarded with the first fireflies. Looking forward tomorrow to exploring Natchez and beginning our adventure on the Great River Road.
