Louisiana: Exploring Creole and Cajun Country

Palmetto Island State Park, Abbeville, LA

Our first stop of the day was Natchitoches (pronounced Nack-a-tish) the original French Coloniy in Louisiana. It was established in 1714 and is the heart of the Creole Cane River Country.

We walked around the charming town, did a little window shopping and stopped for a coffee. (Real coffee not the instant we make for breakfast every morning). The boys also tried a meat pie. It was more like an empanada with a pastry exterior.

So what defines being a Creole? Depends on who you ask. It's a mixture of French, Spanish, Native American, African-American, and English/American settlers' culture. One of our guides said it in a way that cracked me up. "It's a culture where you speak French, cook Spanish and are Catholic."

This area has several plantations scattered through out. We opted for the oldest intact plantation that was owned by only one family since 1821 and given to the National Park service in the 1990's.

We arrived in time to take a 12:30 tour of the slave cabins. Our guide was really personable. He knew a lot about the history of the area, this family and the life of a slave on this particular farm.

 

 

We enjoyed that tour so much we decided to take another tour of the main residence. Because it was in the same family since 1821, seeing the original artifacts and how the house evolved over almost 200 years was fascinating! There were pieces of furniture dating back to the original owners, and a 1953 kitchen and bath. One of my favorite things was a gentlemen's outfit coordinator circa 1920's. The picture is the middle one on the left. You dial in what color tie you are wearing and it matches up your shirt and suit. I like to think of this as the original app.

 

Our guide for this tour was even more remarkable. He knew so much detail about the Creole culture, the history of this particular family and did research about some of the slaves on the farm. He wrote a book called "A Blacksmith's Son goes to War: The Story of William Smith." Lucky me, I received a free autographed copy from him!

 

 

It was such a gorgeous day, warm but not too hot with a nice breeze. Perfect for a mid-afternoon picnic lunch!

 

We were so fascinated by this plantation we decided on a quick stop to view the brick slave quarters of the Magnolia Plantation, which was close by.

Again, so fascinating, but to be honest it's a bit emotional to walk the grounds.

I picked up lots of reading material and am looking forward to diving in and learning more about the Creole familes and culture of the Cane River area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What's a road trip without stopping by a farm stand? This one specialized in pecans. Who knew there were so many varieties? And yes, we tasted them all including all kinds of amazing things that you can do with a pecan...coat it in chocolate, cane sugar, cinnamon, etc. Delish!

 

 

 

 

 

Late in the afternoon, early evening we drove thru Cajun country stopping at St. Martinsville to see the monument to Longfellow's Evangeline. Such a beautiful setting.

And then finally off to more Cajun food and dancing! This place was great. A dance hall with live Zydeco music. Linda was in heaven. So cute to see Gary and Linda take a few rounds on the floor. Linda would have stayed til they shut the place down, but I knew we had another hour to go before reaching our campsite for the night. So, at 9:30 we headed to Palmetto Island State Park.

For those inquiring minds dinner was: fried alligator, seafood gumbo, corn and seafood bisque, crawfish etouffee and fried crawfish...shared by all. It was superb.

 

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Louisiana: Buddies, Biking and Bayous

Lake Bistineau State Park, Doyline, LA

We had a leisurely morning at the campsite before we packed up and began rolling into Shreveport. We kept our first day traveling as a posse light with minimal travel and few activities. We wanted Gary and Linda to get settled into their rental RV and work out any kinks.

This pic is of the amazing Lake Bistineau where we are camping this evening.

 

 

 

Shreveport was only about 1.5 hrs away, and an easy drive.

We started a walking tour of the city, but after a few blocks of not being very impressed we said fuhgetaboutit and found a Cajun restaurant.

Here's Ned being our fearless leader and guide on the walking tour.

 

 

This is Linda's first trip to Louisiana so we are having a great time introducing her to the local cuisine. Today's lunch was crawdad etouffe (Ned), crab cakes (Linda), catfish (Gary) and blackened chicken and pecan salad (Debi). Of course we shared everything. So tasty! P.S. Linda says these were the best crab cakes ever!

 

 

Gary, you shouldn't be this happy getting eaten by a gator.

 

 

 

Because they're with us, of course they did a bike ride. We rode the Red River Trail and managed to do over 12 miles.

 

 

 

 

Riding the trail.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a really windy bike ride, but the upside was watching some cool kites.

 

 

Gary has old army buddies everywhere. This is Sam who served with Gary in Vietnam. After doing the bike ride we met up with Gary and Sam at the El Dorado Casino for drinks and reminiscing.

 

 

 

Tonight we are camped on a bayou. When we arrived the sun was shining directly on the water highlighting the cypress trees and Spanish moss. It was almost surreal. There is a dock coming from our campsite and we all took a moment just soaking in the beauty.

 

 

Had to include this pic cause it's our 13th anniversary. Love you sweetie.

 

 

 

 

 

Camground meals are the best! Tomorrow we head further south through Cajun country.

 

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Texas: Lions & Tigers and Flowers, oh my.

Tyler State Park, Tyler, TX

Last night was one of the most intense thunder and lightening storms we've ever experienced. We were woken up at about 1:15 am with absolutely deafening thunder and lightening striking all around us. It went on for about 20 minutes. It was quite a show and left me quaking. See that magenta area? That was us.

Then when all was absolute quiet a very chatty whippoorwill decided to let out his signature "whip-poor-will" every 2 seconds til dawn. If you haven't read the James Thurber short story "Whipporwill" let's just say it didn't end well - I completely understand.

We were in Dallas at the auto shop, Lord of the Rings, by 7 am. Great shop, awesome owner and best news Winnie is recharged with fresh Freon. The not so good news, she does have an unspecified Freon leak somewhere so who knows how long we'll have A/C for. Time to keep rolling.

 

We were out of the shop before 9 so we decided to take advantage of being in Dallas by visiting the Arboreteum and Botanical Gardens.

 

 

 

Even tho rain was threatening we took our chances. We arrived just when the Gardens opened and had the place to ourselves for awhile. The flowers were simply breathtaking as were the different gardens and waterfalls scattered throughout the grounds.

 

 

 

 

We also came across several sculptures scattered here and there. I enjoyed them almost more than the flowers! We learned that this was part of a sculpture exhibit from Zimbabwe. There were over 100 sculptures beautifully placed among the landscape. I loved that you'd walk round a bend and there would be this art piece. The skies did open up for about 15 minutes, then we were treated to sunshine. So interesting to see the juxtaposition of the Botanical Gardens during both the rain and sun.

 

 

 

 

After spending almost 3 hours at the Gardens we decided that a bike ride around White Rock Lake would be fun. We had just gone a couple of miles when Linda and Gary asked if we wanted to meet up at the Tiger Sanctuary. Heck yeah!! A quick u-turn and off we went towards Tyler, Texas.

First, it was great meeting up with Gary and Linda our travel buddies for the next several weeks. And second...those tigers! There were pumas, servals, bengals, and lions. We spent an hour or so walking around with a guide learning about each of the cats when the skies opened up again. Fortunately, we were at the end of the walking tour so getting drenched wasn't too bad.

Note: Ned and I looking like Safari hotties.

 

Went for BBQ again tonight at a local place called Bodacious. It was the usual meat and 2 sides. You know the drill.

We were joined by Gary and Linda and Butch and Gail. Gary attended flight school with Butch 42 years ago. Butch is a real character and a great story teller. He kept us in stitches telling stories about growing up in Texas. He's also an amazing artist and woodworker.

Tomorrow we travel as a posse and the adventure continues. Louisiana are you ready?

 

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Texas: Bikes, BBQ and Bridges

Hickory Creek Campground, Lewisville Lake, TX

 

This was our final destination tonight. Not a bad spot on the shores of Lewisville Lake on the outskirts of Dallas. Lots of bunnies, birds and fish jumping in the lake.

We've officially left the dry western desert and have entered into the land of the humid. How do I know? My hair has gone from straight to very curly in just one time zone. From past experience most likely this will be the last time our towels will be dry for the next several weeks. Ah humidity, bring on the sweet tea.

 

The journey today took us mainly thru small towns that were boarded up or barely surviving. So sad to see town after town with vacated brick buildings. You could tell these were once thriving communities. Where did everybody go?

We've never been to Wichita Falls and thought a good way to experience it would be on a bike path that took you past the falls and through several parks. Only one small problem. Most of the paths were flooded out and the falls were not running. We did ride about 10 miles next to the Wichita River and over several rickety bridges. I don't see us swimming in this red, muddy water anytime soon. Oh South Yuba River you've made us swimming snobs. Wichita Falls, although expansive, also has seen better days.

 

 

While in Texas we had to make sure and sample some local "que." Yelp is helpful, but the true test in Texas is how many local pick-up trucks are parked in front of the restaurant at lunch time. Bingo on the Branding Iron. Unassuming restaurant, no windows, but sure had the pick-ups.

This place was the real deal - a plate and 2 sides. Ned opted for the BBQ pork loin and I got the BBQ pork shoulder. Of course it comes with Texas Toast. We opted for the coleslaw and beans. It was delish! The pork shoulder just melted in your mouth. We washed it down with tea. Ned went with "sweet tea" to fully embrace the experience.

 

We were going to stay at Lake Arrowhead tonight. Unfortunately our air conditioning went out again...Sigh. We found someone in Dallas who works on VWs (his shop is Lord of the Rings) who will take a look at 7 am tomorrow.

We found this sweet Corp of Engineer campground, close to Dallas, that has tons of bike trails, so that was a plus. We spent most of the afternoon exploring the place on bike. Seems to be our day of riding across bridges. So fun!

We snagged a great spot right on the lake. We're really enjoying the peace and quiet on a Monday night. We're resting up for New Orleans over Memorial Weekend. That should be insane.

Tomorrow we meet up with Gary and Linda at Tyler State Park. Here's hoping for a quick fix on the A/C. Luckily, the van is running top notch in all other categories. Worst case scenario we ride with the windows down and the wind in our hair...

 

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Texas: Making a run for the border

Cap Rock State Park, Quitaque, TX

First stop of the day was Billy the Kid Museum in New Mexico. We thought it would just be a quick walk thru, but we ended up spending a couple of hours here.

Yes, there's definitely the memorabilia for true Billy the Kid aficionados, like Billy's real rifle (!), the curtain that hung on the door where he was killed, and the door - with bullet holes - where he was shot. Of course, there was a disclaimer that said the bullet holes were put there years AFTER he was shot, but nonetheless...the real door!!

We really enjoyed the PBS film about Billy the Kid and learned so much. I'm just waiting for someone to ask me something, anything about Billy.

This museum went on and on. It also had just about everything you can imagine. Collections of typewriters, saddles, pottery, dishes, farm equipment, cars, rifles, sheriff badges...

There was also the replica of Billy the Kid's grave. The real grave is about 3 miles away. We were going to go there, but then read that they weren't sure that Billy the Kid was actually buried there. Between vandals and torrential rain storms that have washed it away it can't be verified. So, we decided to just be satisfied with the replica.

Yeah,we got the obligatory shot of Ned in jail.

 

 

 

We had planned on staying at a state park in New Mexico tonight, but while stocking up for supplies we discovered that New Mexico doesn't sell beer (or any alcohol) on Sundays. WTF?! We made a run for the Texas border and pushed on...

A great decision. We're staying at Cap Rock State Park that is a sanctuary for Bison. We had a great time watching the herd of Bison as we pulled into the campground.

 

We took a bike ride thru the park and also discovered Prairie dog town. OMG - we had so much fun just watching these little guys scurrying around, chattering away and ducking in and out of their holes.

Love the picture of Ned capturing video of the prairie dogs. You can't help but crack up watching these guys scamper around.

If you're ever driving thru the Panhandle of Texas for sure check this out.

 

 

The views here are also spectacular. We're camped on a bluff overlooking this red rock mountain range.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The wind has really kicked up so it made the bike riding a bit of a challenge.

Here's our home for the evening. Howdy y'all.

 

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New Mexico: Land of Fire & Ice

Monzano State Park, Monzano, NM

 

There are two things I was really appreciative of this morning when it was 33 degrees. 1 - my husband figured out how to turn on the heater without us getting out of bed and 2 - the jacket my son bought me for Christmas.

Our big outing of the day was visiting the Land of Fire & Ice. A rather cheesy roadside attraction that nevertheless drew us in.

The Fire portion was taking a hike up to a blown out volcano. The views were great and the hole was about 1400 ft deep and 1000 feet wide. You could see 15 other volcanos in the distance.

The ice portion was hiking down to a collapsed lava tube with ice perpetually captured in it that is 20 ft. thick.

 

We also stopped by El Moro National Monument. This was the only place within 30 miles that had a water supply. It was located at the base of a sandstone butte. Travelers used this landmark for thousands of years to locate a source of drinking water while on their journey.

Along the way many of them left their mark on the sandstone walls. We saw petroglyphs dating back to 1200 and signatures from the Spanish explorers and the first American pioneers.

What amazed me was the source of water was not from a spring, but rain water running off the mountain. We were not very impressed with the quality of the "oasis" we saw. You'd have to be pretty dang thirsty to want to drink that water!

Man does not live by historic monumnets and schmaltzy tourist attractions alone. We heard about Mary & Tito's Restaurant in Albuquerque. It was given a James Beard Award and noted for their very authentic adovada dish. Sounds like a good reason to stop.

This place is very unassuming. It's located in a semi industrial neighborhood and the decor hasn't changed for decades. Perfect.

I had the traditional adovada dish and Ned had the adovada enchiladas. It blew our heads off. They make this spicy chili sauce from scratch and it's very earthy and hot. It's served over a seasoned roasted pork. It ain't your traditional California-Mexican chili red sauce that's for sure. As I'm typing this, I'm still trying to recover, thus my glass of red wine...

 

We're really enjoying our campground tonight. There are only about 12 sites (yes, I did book this one ahead of time). It's located in the mountains at an elevation of about 7200ft. We're enjoying the sun knowing that we'll probably have another cold night ahead.

Tonight's plans include taking a hike on the nature trail and a rousing game of Skip-Bo.

 

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Sedona: Ancient ruins, swirling vortex and bicycle alchemy

Fool Hollow Lake Recreation Area, Show Low, AZ

This is our second time thru Sedona. Everyone has always raved about how cool Sedona is, and after our first visit I didn't get it. (That time we stuck mainly to the town of Sedona). This time I got it. The rocks, geology, ancient ruins, vortex, and one awesome guy changed that.

 

 

 

 

Because wine got the better of us last night we decided to take another crack at the bike ride this morning. Good choice. We were really able to appreciate the early morning light and the warming rays of the sun.

I'm still getting used to my new bike. Unlike my ol Gary Fisher, this one doesn't do single track very well. Let's just say I found that out the hard way.

That big smile on my face is because I eventually found the flat, wide packed down surface that my old age has come to love...while riding in flip flops.

 

Our first outing of the day was visiting Tuzigoot National Montument. So interesting to tour the dwellings of the Southern Sinagua circa 1300.

Kudos to the them for building this settlement on the top of a hill. The view was spectacular. We also enjoyed that you're able to just walk, climb and explore on your own. It made it for a very intimate experience.

The little museum and visitor center also had some awesome pottery pieces. (Patti Clark you were along this expedition with me. I just kept thinking how much you'd love this!)

 

Next we were in search of a vortex. (Bucket list item for me). Ned was a little worried that my energy field and the vortex energy field might cause a warp in the universe. Nevertheless she persisted...

We chose the Boynton Vortex because a) it was supposed to be a beautiful hike and b) it was free. I didn't want to pay for the vortex experience, it had to be organic.

On our way up a hiker coming down gave Ned and I some heart shaped rocks. He said, "This is a gift from Mother Earth it will retain all the good energy gathered here." Apparently, we were in the right place.

That's me standing at the center of the vortex. It was incredibly windy at the top of the mountain and I was holding on. I put out to the universe all my good energy. Let's see how this works out.

 

Having lunch in downtown Sedona where we made the best decision of the day. Looks like that good energy thing was working for me.

We were in search of a bike shop where Ned could pick up a spoke wrench to keep working on my bike. It was still a little wobbly and needed more fine tuning.

By sheer luck we walked into The Fat Tire bike shop and met Dave. We spent the next hour or so chatting while he worked on my bike. What an awesome guy! We talked about Apple and IBM (both of our former professions), marketing, bikes, and best of all chocolate. He's a true foodie and has an amazing palate. Just so happened we had some Cello Chocolate with us and ended up doing a tasting with him. We ended up trading him chocolate for his services. He also gave us an amazing beer from Quebec. (Marc we're holding onto this until we connect with you in Missouri).

 

We actually liked old town Cottonwood more than the town of Sedona. It's much more laid back, very tiny and not so full of itself.

We stopped at the Hippie Emporium and Ned found this cool VW straw hat. He dons it well.

 

 

 

 

Leaving Sedona we decided to explore another ancient ruin, Montezuma Castle. It's built into the side of a cliff and unlike the one this morning, you're not able to actually climb into it.

When early settlers first discovered this they assumed it was built by the Aztec, hence the name Montezuma's Castle.

The picture in the upper left corner is a diorama of what daily life in the dwelling might have been like. To get a perspective on the picture on the right side, the dwelling is 100 ft. above the valley and contains about 20 rooms. The lower picture is a close up of the dwelling. Really cool!

 

We had an early evening drive across Arizona on highway 260. It's one of the most gorgeous scenic routes we've experienced in Arizona. Lots of mountains and trees that go on forever. It felt like the Sierras. What a change from the last few days of desert.

We pulled into the campground at around 7. It's completely full. Oops. We talked to the campground host and she said that this is Arizona's 5 Star premier campground and sites book a year in advance. Guess the event planner on this trip missed that one. Mmm. They took pity on us and are allowing us to camp in the overflow parking lot for the night. $15 and glad to take it! Hot showers in the morning to boot. Life is good.

 

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