The Gulf - Mississippi Style

Location: Grayton State Beach, FL

Today was all about playing in the Gulf. I had read that one of the fun things to do on the Mississippi part of the Gulf was take a boat out to Ship Island. It's touted as having great beaches and an historic fort run by the National Park Service. Okay, sign me up coach! We had an early departure from our campsite to make the 9:00 launch time, but it was worth it.

 

We were impressed with how few people were onboard, especially for a holiday weekend, and then...180 students from a New Orleans High School pulled up in busses. So, suddenly the chill factor went out the door, but it was all good. The kids were actually pretty entertaining.

 

Here I am doing my best captain imitation. (Note, we hadn't actually left the dock yet. Mmm, maybe I was pretty entertaining to those kids too).

 

 

Fort Massachusetts has a really interesting history. Following the war of 1812, America was really concerned about protecting its coastal defense. Congress, being the speedy legislative body they are, didn't authorize the construction of a fort until 1847. Construction began in 1859 under the Army Corp of Engineers. In 1861 MIssissippi seceded from the Union and took over the fort. It was soon abandoned and retaken by the Union Army and used as a prisoner of war camp. In 1866 the fort was turned over to a fort keeper until 1903, when it was officially shut down. Here's Ned standing in front of the fort, when we first arrived on the island.

 

 

 

The amount of bricks used in this fort is overwhelming. When the Confederates had the fort the bricks were brought in from Louisiana. When The Union took over, they continued construction and the bricks were shipped from New England, down the East Coast and around the Florida peninsula. After the war ended the bricks were again procured from Louisiana.

There were no official tours of the fort so we had fun poking around and exploring on our own. Hardly anyone was touring the fort. Everyone on the boat headed right for the swimming beach on the opposite side of the island.

This gives you a great perspective on the intricate designs and how many bricks were used.

The middle of the island is pretty much all marsh. You have to take a boardwalk across the island to get to the swimming beach, snack bar and showers. There are no other facilities on this island, you can only do daytrips no camping allowed.

The U.S. National Park Service has an office, but they run everything off a generator.

The cloudy morning and cool temperatures (60's) finally transformed into a warm and sunny day. We spent the rest of the time sunbathing and swimming. We brought our snorkel gear with us, but this was not a good snorkel island. We needed to catch the 2:30 ferry back cuz we still had a long drive to Florida this evening. We were expecting a good 4 hour drive in holiday traffic. Here's Ned waiting for the return ferry.

 

 

Yes, a good time was had by all!

The one thing I really don't get, and if anyone reading this blog can explain it to me, please do! There were a lot of people coming to Ship Island throughout the day, mainly to hang out on the beach. And yet, when you drive along the beautiful pristine sugarwhite sand beaches of the Gulf, they are virtually empty. Why would you pay $25 for a ferry ride to a deserted beach with very little amenities when you can just hang out on the mainland?

P.S. This is us driving along the Gulf on the way to Florida with the Texas Bandido Motorcycle "Club" riding next to us. Note - We made a point of giving them the right of way and avoiding any parking or other disputes.

 

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Cajun Country

Buccaneer State Park, MS

After spending the night at Lake Fausee State Park we came to the conclusion that it hasn't aged well in the seven years since we've been here. To be fair, the harsh tropical climate has taken its toll, but the State Park system hasn't exactly held up its end of the bargain. I think this park is off the radar, the employees don't seem particularly ambitious and they sure turn a blind eye to a lot of sketchy stuff. That being said, having our morning coffee on our campsite dock as we watched the parade of alligators swim by can't be replicated anywhere else. It's just surreal to be communing this close with alligators.

We took as many obscure roads as we could find through Acadian Country. It's really interesting to see all the people living on the bayou. Almost all the homes have the bayou in their backyard, with pirogues tied to a dock and smokers out front. We passed through lots of sugar cane and corn fields. Loved seeing this little stand next to the road. I'm still kicking myself that I didn't try the gator jerky - and just what the heck is bourgeois beef jerky anyway?

As we came closer to Morgan City and then New Orleans we started to encounter the dacquiri drive-throughs. May I suggest a jello shot before you drive-off????

 

 

 

Our destination today was ultimately Mississippi, but as we got closer to New Orleans we started to get a hankering for a muffuletta. Soooo, we decided to brave the French Quarter craziness before a holiday weekend and go for it. Took a bit more time than we anticipated and we finally arrived mid-afternoon. The good thing is we were good and hungry and couldn't wait to partake. Here's Ned being happy we finally made it!

Love, love this Italian Deli - Central Grocery.. So many cool things in here, but of course the jackpot is eating one of these sandwiches. We couldn't wait to dig in. In case you wondered, a muffuletta is served on a round of Sicilian sesame bread and has layers of marinated olives, mortadella, salami, mozzarella, ham and provolone. The whole sandwich will feed 4 people! We opted for a half and split it.

 

 

It's so fun to eat at the counter amongst all the Italian deli stuff - Olive Oil, jams, wine, and pastas of every shape and size.

We did a quick walk-through the French Quarter, mainly to work off our late lunch. New Orleans never disappoints with its ecclectic culture, crazy people and charm.

 

 

 

 

 

I did manage to pick up a cute roadtrip t-shirt before heading out. With all the snorkeling and beach time coming up I figure it'll come in handy.

While I was checking out t-shirts, Ned was interested in other things. That guy.

The thermometer read 92 degrees with 86% humidity. After our little walk-about it was definitely time to head for the cool breeze of the Gulf.

 

 

 

Our final destination tonight is Buccaneer State Park in Waveland, MS. This place was ground zero for Hurricane Katrina. The good news is that the State Park was completely rebuilt so it's really nice. The bad news is that the town still hasn't recovered. The wide sandy beach and warm water is welcoming, but there isn't a touristy feel here like other beach towns. There are very little tourist attractions and hardly any grocery stores, other than the occasional convenience store. Hey, that's okay in my book! We just feel bad for the local people still trying to get on their feet.

 

We spent some time biking along the shore. Yes, we got silly again trying to take selfies with the Gulf behind us.

 

 

 

 

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Louisiana & Revisiting A Couple of Our Faves

Location: Lake Fausse State Park, Louisiana

We love Louisiana, it just might be my favorite State. It has a little bit of everything - great food, potent alcohol that's readily available (as in drive-in Daiquiris stands), ecclectic culture and music, tropical weather, insane wildlife, and the people are fun, bordering on crazy. Where else can you find a drive-thru crawfish restaurant? In Cajun' Country we have a favorite little out of the way place to eat. It's located in New Iberia and called, "Bon Creole". The first time thru this part of Louisiana we couldn't find the place, the second time - after much searching - we found it. It's very nondescript and not advertised. We couldn't wait to revisit the place.

 

Ned holding an alligator head, some of the fine decor inside the restaurant.

By the time we left Texas (finally - dang that's a big state) and traveled through Louisiana we reached Bon Creole late afternoon. Yes ma'am, we were hungry and ready for some Cajun food. Their Po'Boys are huge so we settled on splitting a crawfish Po'Boy with a side of gumbo. YUM!!! I'd write more, but mom always taught me not to talk with my mouth full. Be back in a bit:)....And for the record it was as good as we remembered.

 

We've always rated Lake Fausse State Park as one of our top 3 State Parks in the country. I think the last time we stayed here was about 7 years ago. We were so excited to check her out and see if she was as cool as we remembered. As we drove into the park a baby alligator skurried across the road. We both looked at each other and said, "Oh, yeah, this is going to be good." Lake Fausse sits between a bayou and a lake. At first glance it seems serene and beautiful. Do not be fooled.

 

To give you another flavor of the park, here's the restrooms.

The last time we were here we took a bike ride at dusk. To this day it was the scariest bike ride of my life. Bats were flying overhead, armadillos were running across our path and we were on a really narrow path so close to falling into the swamp. I so wanted to do this ride again, but this time in daylight, just to prove to myself that it wasn't THAT scary. With some trepidation we headed out for the trail.

Because of the recent floods the trail was sloppy muddy and in some places completely submerged. We made it barely a mile in and had to turn around. Actually, I was quite relieved. Even in daylight it's a terrifying ride. Of course, the signs warning about the 200 lb. snapping turtle didn't help. On the trail we met up with a cute kid, Raydon, who was about 13yrs. old. He lives at the park full-time with his mom and 5 siblings in a school bus at the campground. We told him that we were disappointed (NOT) that the trail was washed out and he said he'd give us a personal tour of some of his favorite places. We followed him through grassy fields and muddy trails and he took us to his favorite spot. Some of his stories were over the top.

The wildlife at this park is extreme. Our campsite is on the bayou and comes with a little dock and we thought having a glass of wine on the dock while welcoming the evening would be fun. As I'm writing this several alligators have swam by, within just a few feet of us!

One of them is even having a staring contest with Ned. If I had small children or animals I would not camp here - seriously! The swamp is alive with sound on the point of being ludicrous. Insects, birds, bull-frogs, and I have no idea what else are all competing. One alligator in particular has hung out next to us for about half an hour.

Yeah, this place is definitely still my fave!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Gulf - Texas Style

We've been so lucky with the weather so far this trip. Seems like every place we go the rain or storms had hit the day before. We woke to great weather and after a run on the beach and breakfast at our campsite, we couldn't wait to start exploring.

We did some ferry hopping (luckily they are free cause we kept screwing up and had to take the ride 3 times...don't ask) which was great fun!

 

We took another amazing bike ride this time through the Aransas Bird Sanctuary. The bike path goes for miles and miles and is made up of boardwalk, concrete and decomposed granite. It takes you over tide water and next to the wetlands past numerous birds including egrets, terns, plovers and even pink flamigos!

At one point a huge oil tanker came by in the distance. From our perspective it looked like it was floating through the marsh.

 

 

 

It was 92 degrees and 86% humidity (according to our temperature gauge) when we did the ride. This girl was a bit "dewey". Of course it didn't help that we rode in the middle of the day. Fortunately the birds and the flowers along the way made up for the heat.

For lunch, how could we possibly pass up a shrimp & crab boil in the Gulf? We found the perfect beach shack called the Castaway. Delish!!! My brother Gary keeps teasing me that if we keep eating our way through the South poor Winnie will be driving home with the back axles up in the air! He's got that right. And the best part is we have lots more Southern cookin' still in our future!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ned enjoying a well earned cold beer.

We headed towards Eastern Texas for Brazos Bend State Park. This feels more like Louisiana than Texas with the alligators and moss growing on the trees. We've never been to this campground before, but it has quickly been added to our favorite's list. Beautiful park, lots of lakes and tons of wildlife. We've seen gators, deer, bunnies, and we think some kind of bobcat that ran across the road while we were biking.

This park is huge! We rode close to 10 miles and barely saw much of the park. The highlight was definitely riding aroud one of the many lakes at dusk.

 

And yes, an alligator showed up on cue!

This is defiinitely a biker's park and not a swimming park!

Tonight was our first time on the trip seeing fireflies! So magical.

 

 

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Riverwalks: Wild and Domestic

Location: Mustang Island State Park, Gulf of Mexico, Texas

After a very noisy night in the desert (who knew birds chatted it up all night?) we went for an early morning bike ride on the Rio Grande Trail. After our experience yesterday, we had very low expectations. Wow! Were we wrong. The trail was a rough dirt and gravel road that took us through the desert. It was incredibly humid this morning, but the ride was so worth the destination.

 

 

It was overflowing with really colorful wildflowers including large swatches of black eyed susans, daisies, and numerous other flowering plants that I have no idea what they were. A trail sign warned us about snakes, but all we saw were lots of jack rabbits and bunnies crossing our paths.

We finally came out to the most amazing steep canyon overlooking both the Seminole Canyon and the Rio Grande. (Hello Mexico!). This was the view we kept expecting yesterday. Who knew we'd find it at this remote State Park campground. Here's Ned standing over the junction where both these rivers meet. This bike ride and view were definitely one of the highlights of our trip.

 

 

There was also a really cool pictograph found in one of the caves. We could see the cave across the canyon, but the only access to it was by boat and then a hike up some steps. Patty Clark I kept thinking about how much you'd love this! They think the nine foot long pictogaph named The Panther, was created by the Desert Archaic Culture 8900 - 1300 years ago.

After our wild nature ride we cleaned up and headed across Texas for San Antonio. We went through our second US Border Patrol inspection. Kinda nerve-racking. There are about 20 cameras on you and your car as you approach the inspection. Several border patrol officers with flak jackets and guns ask your country of citizenship. While this is going on, an officer with a dog is circling our van and sniffing all the wheel wells. Same procedure both times. No, I do not have a picture to document this. I was trying to stay under the radar so to speak. It was also interesting to watch the Border patrol pull three tires behind them on a dirt surface road paralleling our road. We saw this on multiple occasions. I think it's done to erase old footprints so they can see if any new activity has occurred. Such is life next to the Rio Grande. (See pic of Mexico across the way in lieu of scary para-military guys).

Once in San Antonio we did what any self-respecting tourista would do, we took in the Riverwalk. It's the complete antithesis of our river experience this morning. Feels more like we're in Disneyland with boat after boat of folks riding by as people eat on the banks of the river. It actually felt like the Pirates of the Caribbean restaurant experience as the boats puttered past.

Nevertheless, we had an amusing time strolling the Riverwalk and taking in all the people watching.

 

Yes, we had BBQ - hey it's Texas!

We did a stroll by the Alamo and I'm glad we had an opportunity to see it on a previous trip. Then everything was lowkey and it felt like a more authentic experience. Today, many of the surrounding streets were shut down, police were everywhere and there was a production-tech crew for the history channel setting up for a "Texas Rising" event to be broadcast on Memorial Day Weekend. What a zoo. Time to leave town and head for the Gulf!

We're camped at Mustang Island State Park in the Gulf of Mexico. You can tell they've had torrential rain here because half the campground is flooded out. We're parked in a long line of RV's on an ashphalt parking lot. The good news is we got the last campsite of the night and we're at the end of the line.

The first thing we did upon arrival was hop on our bikes and explore. The water is incredibly warm and it's so cool that the sand is packed reaaly hard so you can ride your bike right on the beach! Love this place!! Can't wait to run on the beach early tomorrow morning.

 

 

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