The Gulf Coast

Gulf Shores State Park, Gulf Port, AL

Tropical storm Alberto has landed and is moving north! We finally get to break camp and move east, and this gypsy soul could not be happier.  4 days at one place and I start to get a little too antsy. Thank you Louisiana you’ve been so gracious hosting us, the people more than kind, and the food incredible, but we got new things to discover.  “To Infinity and Beyond!”  Well, the Infinity Space Center in Mississippi anyway, our first stop of the day. 

As far as interactive science/exploratorium type centers go, this one was just so-so.  It was beautifully designed and had a lot of cool props, but the exploring interactive part wasn’t that engaging.  My take was “all hat and no cattle” and Ned felt it was a missed opportunity.  With that being said, we did manage to amuse ourselves for a couple of hours.  The low point was being excited about experiencing the “X-Sphere-ience Theatre!”  We were expecting to be wowed by some big screen movie with special effects.  Not so much, it was a teenage girl (badly) reading a script while an ipad was projected onto a very small movie screen. The presentation was on climate change and geared for elementary age kids. Ned and I were the only ones in the audience.  Awkward....

We did enjoy seeing the Atlas rocket engine.  So impressive to stand next to it and appreciate its massive scale.  I liked seeing the Apollo 4 space command module.  It was launched unmanned into space in November 1967 and was only in flight for 8.5 hours.  Sure did get banged up in that short amount of time! Seeing how astronauts live in space is always fascinating too. 

We drove across Mississippi along the coast and really appreciated the blue skies, sugar white sand beaches and calm flat water.  Across from the beach are miles and miles of huge mansions. I wish we had stopped and played for awhile in the Gulf.   It looked really inviting, but...

we had a ferry to catch.  We took it from Dauphin Island to Fort Morgan on the Alabama coast. We got there with 5 minutes to spare...whew.  I honestly enjoyed the ferry ride as much as the NASA museum.  The coolest part was seeing this odd looking ship called Deep Blue. Turns out it is “the world’s largest purpose-built ultra deep water pipelay and subsea construction vessel.”  

Gulf State Park is our home this evening.  It’s not your typical beach state park. This place is huge and more like a resort. There’s a golf course, tennis courts, pool, and lots of construction going on. They are building what appears to be high rise condos and a conference center. There’s also a 4 lane highway that runs right thru the park. We have a sweet campsite on a lagoon and there are tons of bike trails.  Of course, we did lots of exploring.  There’s an enormous fishing pier that seems to be the major attraction. 

Okay, funny embarrassing story.  When we arrived at the pier we saw some flags flying and recognized them from our stay at Grand Isle, LA. The red flag meant high danger swimming, the purple flag meant dangerous marine animals in water, but what did that white flag with the red x mean?  We were coming up with all these theories. I thought it meant swimming not allowed. Ned was convinced it had something to do with scuba diving. I finally asked someone and she looked at me like I was a complete idiot and said “It’s the Alabama State Flag!”  Oops.  

Hard to believe this area was experiencing tropical storm conditions yesterday. Tonight we were treated to a gorgeous sunset.  Red sky at night a sailors delight.  

Bike rides and Swamp Tours

Fontanbleau State Park, Mandeville, LA

We woke to sunny blue skies.  So weird knowing a tropical storm is happening not too far from here.  We called the state park in Alabama where we hoped to stay tonight. They said the storm was scheduled to land at 1 pm and advised us to stay put.  Okay, time for a bike ride.  We decided to explore the Tammany Trace heading south, managing to ride about 20 miles. This direction didn’t have the sweet little towns, but it was a beautiful  cool ride thru the woods.

The highlight was unexpectingly coming across Bayou Lacombe. It seemed to be a local gathering place to watch the canoes, kayaks and fishing boats float by. Funny story.  As we were chatting wih everyone, one local inquired that since we were from California have we ever had crawfish.  We assured him we had our fill and even caught them in Lake Tahoe when camping.  He then asked,  “Do you know where they came from?” As he tells it, “When the Acadians were sent out of Nova Scotia the lobsters missed them so much that they followed them all the way to Louisiana. But the trip took so long and took so much out of them that’s the reason crawdads are so much smaller than lobsters.” Good one.  

Did you know “bayuk” was originally a Choctaw word meaning “slow moving water?” The French gave it their own twist and it’s now known as bayou. Things you learn on a morning ride hanging out at the bayou. 

This afternoon we took an eco tour thru the swamp. It was incredible and exceeded all my expectations.  Our guide, Desi, was a retired game warden who was raised on this particular swamp, Honey Bayou.  It got its named because at one time there was a large number of honey bees here.  Desi did an incredible job educating us on the types of flora, animal life and telling us stories of the bayou. We learned what plants were edible and what could be used for medicine.  He navigated us through narrow little back bayous regaling us with his stories. Think of the Disneyland jungle ride, only it was the real thing.  

We also boated past a Cajun village nestled on the water that has been there for generations. They make their living fishing in the bayou and Gulf. Today was opening day for shrimp season. We saw a shrimp boat heading out. 

The wildlife was pretty spectacular too. Of course lots of gators and turtles...

birds such as  the yellow crowned night heron, blue heron and egret. We also heard a beautiful bird doing its mating call. It makes the trek every year from the Yucatán, some 600 miles, to settle in the bayou for the spring.  I wasn’t able to capture a picture of this fast little fellow, but he was a brilliant little yellow canary... 

 and we had a good time watching the raccoons too.  They put on quite the show begging for food.  I think they’ve seen a swamp tour boat or two. 

Right now it’s 10 pm and we’re hanging out at a local pizza place watching the Warriors.  We just got kicked out so we’re taking our pizza and moving this operation to the beach bar.  Be right back...so the bars closed, but they are letting us hang out to watch the game.  What a game!! Good thing we got the code to get back in the campground.  

Benjamin Patterson is my hero

Fountainbleau State Park, Mandeville, LA

We expected today to be pretty mundane with only a bike ride scheduled.  Turns out it was pretty spectacular in a bunch of ways. First of all, overnight Tropical Storm Alberto decided to take a big turn east so now we really are out of its path.  It definitely makes sense to hang out in Louisiana for awhile.  Next great thing is that the Warriors tied up the series and the best thing of all was meeting up with Benjamin Patterson, but more of that later. 

It rained a bit last night so we were delighted to see sunny blue skies this morning.  We got up early and thought a bike ride on the Tammany Trace while the temperature was still cool would be fun.  We rode to Mandeville and started the day out with a local breakfast.  Believe it or not I got the simple/light breakfast which included poached eggs, bacon and the creamiest grits ever. Louisiana definitely knows how to do grits. Ned got an epic omelet. Okay, ready for our ride. 

There’s a reason Tammany Trace is rated one of the best bike trails.  It’s paved and takes you thru a couple of charming little towns. We enjoyed riding around the sweet little town of Abita Springs.  The spring water really does bubble up out of this fountain and, like our Bitney Springs, you can fill up your water bottles at a nearby watering hole. 

Next to the trail is also the Abita Brewing Company.  Our friend, Tom Dalldorf, mentioned we should stop by.  We took a tour, but didn't stop for a beer cause we were filled up from breakfast and it was still a titsch too early.  

We had been riding for about 15 miles or so when uh-oh....while filming our “one second of the day” video, going over a pretty long bridge, my iphone slipped out of Ned’s hands, bounced on the bridge, and landed in the murky swamp down below. A few choice words were uttered, but we did see the phone peaking up out of the swamp.  I was resigned to the fact that the phone was lost, but Ned was determined to retrieve it.  But how?? We were a good 50 yards on the bridge and it was at least 32 feet high. Ned said he was going to ride into the nearest town and buy a pair of rubber boots and try and retrieve it.  UGH and GROSS.  I hung out on the bridge woefully looking downward at my submerged iphone. Lots of people passed by, no one stopped, and then along came Mr. Benjamin Patterson!! 

He inquired as to why I was just standing on this bridge and wanted to make sure I was okay.  I explained to him my phone woes and he said he was mighty worried about Ned going down into the swamp.  He assured me there were no gators, but it was filled with snakes, poison ivy and God knows what other creatures in all the dank bushes.  He took a big sigh, said “I was a marine, I can do this!” Benjamin let out a rousing “oorah!” and went for it.  About the same time another guy stopped by and decided to help out too.  He was Benjamin’s wing man and would call out to Benjamin where best for him to maneuver. It was so dramatic, epic and my heart stopped a couple of times as Benjamin kept his balance over downed logs. Yep, Mr. Benjamin Patterson saved the day by successfully retrieving my iphone!  And know what else?  The iphone not only still worked, but continued to film the entire submerged adventure for 53 minutes!  I have a film of what goes on in the swamp if anyone is interested.  Thank you so much Benjamin for not only being kind to stop and make sure I was okay, but really going out of your way to help.  Ned arrived after an hour, riding all over town looking for a pair of boots.  Ned found some and offered them to Benjamin, but he declined.  (We did compensate him for a new pair of shoes). 

Well...after that little adventure the Abita Brewing Company suddenly seemed like a much better idea.  It was now mid-afternoon, hot, sunny and humid.  A beer or flight never tasted so good! (Also, shout out to Josh. He always takes my incoherent texts or phone calls with complete calm as I’m talking too fast and making no sense. Thanks for putting up with your kinda over enthusiastic mom). 

Our little bike ride turned into 32 miles. We made another stop on the way to get something cold to enjoy. (Ned rode a lot more than me trying to trace down those boots!).  Here’s Ned enjoying a snowcone and looking a bit tuckered. 

One of the bottles of rum we bought yesterday was Gingeroo, a rum Moscow Mule drink.  Upon finally making it back to the campsite we decided to pop it open and enjoy our good fortune.  

It was still blazing hot and sunny in the late afternoon (and a tropical storm no where in sight) so a good float in Lake Pontchartrain sounded great.  We could care less that the water was about 90 degrees and never got over 3 ft.  Where’s Debi?  Oh yeah, she’s making the victory sign in the far distance.  

New Orleans Redux

Fountainbleau State Park, Mandeville, LA

We had so much fun in New Orleans yesterday we decided to drive across the bridge and be tourists again. Word is there’s a tropical storm headed this way so we figured we might as well get as many outside activities in before we batten down the hatches. It must truly be the calm before the storm because we enjoyed blue skies almost all day.  I think we walked about 10 miles just taking it all in.  We walked along the Mississippi River, thru various districts, wards and neighborhoods.  NOLA is one of the best places for people watching and appreciating the quirky. 

There’s a saying in New Orleans, “If you don’t eat a beignet then you’ll never come back.”  Well that must explain why we seem to always be coming back!  Delish I might add. 

One of our stops was visiting Old New Orleans Rum Distillery, the oldest rum distillery in the U.S. What a great tour.  If you’re ever in New Orleans, I would definitely add this to your list of fun things to do.  It takes a couple of hours, but well worth it.  When you enter the distillery you are greeted with a rum drink.  We had an ice tea spiked with Cajun Spiced Rum. Bob, our tour guide, started out by playing a trivia game about all things rum.  Every person who gets a correct answer gets to take a shot of rum.  Ned and I both got several correct answers and were on our way to having even more fun.  

We learned what’s in rum, how to make it, how it’s aged and stored.  After the tour you are brought back to the tasting room and get to sample 5 different rums.  We only ended up buying 3 bottles - hey we hear this storm is gonna be a doozy so we might as well be prepared. 

We also visited the jazz museum, housed in the old mint building.  I wasn’t that impressed.  My recommendation, forego the jazz museum and instead just wander the streets and take in the live brass bands.  Nothing beats the real thing.  The one thing in the museum I did enjoy was the Black masking as Indians exhibit,  also known as Mardi Gras Indians.  These suits made of feathers and beads were so intricate, colorful and stunning. 

We ended up the day in Treme, 7th Ward under an overpass rocking out to live bands and street food.  We both settled on some homemade fried chicken, collard greens and red beans & rice. Everyone was dancing and singing.  No one can party like New Orleans. 

P.S. Looks like we might have another day of good weather tomorrow before we have to make some decisions on where to go next.  The state parks in Alabama and Florida that we were booked to stay next week have called us.  They are under a mandatory evacuation so we won’t be staying there.  Mmmm, time to have some rum and think on it. 

New Orleans & Mardi Gras

Fountainbleau State Park, Mandeville, LA

We left Grand Isle and headed for New Orleans.  We’ve been here several times before and wanted to experience something a little different. We decided on a behind the scenes tour on the making of the Mardi Gras floats.  It was amazing!! After a really great movie our guide took us through a huge warehouse to see the process in action.

We learned how the floats were designed and saw real artists in the process of sculpting, applying the paper mache and painting. 

It was overwhelming and a bit surreal to walk among these giant creations.  

Did you know that Mardi Gras lasts for 2 weeks and there are 54 parades, each sponsored by a different krewe?  A krewe is a non-profit social club that is responsible for their floats, swag they throw out, and all finances for the parade. It’s a year long endeavor.  As soon as Mardi Gras season is over, they begin the planning for next year.  Some of the krewes date as far back as the 1700 & 1800’s wow! Talk about tradition.  

Mardi Gras World has several warehouses.  We only toured two.  One of the warehouses was a event place with an interesting history.  It was originally a staging area for the gambling boats circa 1980’s.  The owners screwed up and didn’t get a gambling license.  This warehouse sat vacant for 30 years! Someone just bought it and one can now rent it out for events. It looked exactly like Disneyland at night or Pirates of the Caribbean.  I asked, it cost $10,000 to rent out for the night. Mmmm, guess my next party is just going to have to be in our backyard. 

We had planned on riding our bikes from Mardi Gras world to the French Quarter, but the rains came.  What a great excuse to head to Central Grocery and get my favorite all time meal - a muffuletta.  Seriously, best thing ever. Funny story.  We bought the muffuletta and then decided to walk around while eating it.  We were standing under a balcony watching the people go by when a very irate man comes flying out of a restaurant and yells at us. “Don’t you be eating that Central Grocery muffuletta\ in front of our place.  Ours are better and the original!!”  And he shoed us off. Okay, for the record the Central Grocery muffuletta is the original and the BEST.  However, you wouldn’t know it by the competing signs. 

We didnt’ let the rains stop us and decided to have a very romantic stroll through the French Quarter, drinking coffee, and avoiding the puddles. 

Our home for the next 3 days is Fountainbleau State Park in Mandeville.  It’s across Lake Pontchartrain. We took the world’s largest bridge (almost 24 miles) to another world.  Once we got settled into our campsite we decided to explore the park on bikes.  Fortunately, the sun was shining on this side of the lake.  Fountainbleau State Park is gorgeous! It borders Lake Pontchartrain and is dotted with huge oak trees dripping in Spanish Moss.  It houses an old sugar mill and has lots of incredible bike trails.  

One of the reasons we chose this park for Memorial Day weekend was that the Tammany Trace rail trail runs right through it.  This was named the 2017  #1 bike trail.  It is 27.5 miles long and goes through woods, wetlands and villages.  We rode over to the village of Mandeville.  I am in love with this town!  It’s reminds me of Charleston with the elegant mansions looking out at the seawall. There are lots of beautiful tree lined streets and cute little stores, pubs and breweries.  Why do our bike rides always end up at drinking places?  We found a cute beachside hide-away and passed the time with a mojito and pina colada.  

On our drive up from Grand Isle we drove by several local fruit and fish stands.  We stopped, sampled and decided on...alligator sausage.  Guess what is on the menu tonight? 

A Day of Celebrations

Grand Isle State Park, LA

Today is a joyous day of celebrations.  My dad celebrates his 85th birthday! He looks 65, acts 25 and has an incredible joie de vivre. Happy Birthday Popy.  My great-niece, Isabel, also celebrates her birthday today.  I just love this picture of my dad and Isabel celebrating together. Thanks Scott for passing this on.  And...it’s also Ned and my 14th anniversary!  So lucky to share so much love, joy and good times with this guy.  And so blessed to be part of such a great family. 

Louisiana is one of our favorite states and we travel through Cajun Country whenever we get the chance.  We’ve meant to tour the Konriko Rice Plant, (American’s oldest operating rice mill), but have always managed to time it when it was closed.  Not today!  Before the tour began we hung out in the Company Store.  We tasted hot sauces, different rices, perused thru cookbooks and chatted with the local ladies while waiting for the tour to start.  What a fun start to the day. 

Oh My Goodness, this tour.  I don’t quite know where to start.  The ladies who gave it were very sweet, but it was as if we stepped back in time to the early 1960’s, in the old south.  First we viewed the slide show, which was given in the back stockroom of the store.  We sat on church pews, surrounded by boxes of store product, while a very blurry and outdated slide show was played. (There were references to “Negroes and Orientals.”)  The slide show was actually very informative about the history of Acadia and Cajuns, just with references and language that I don’t hear in my day to day. After the slide show we learned about how rice is grown by pointing to faded pictures on the wall.  “Did you know the average American eats 35 pounds of rice a year, but a Cajun eats 50 pounds and an Oriental eats 100?”  

Next up was a tour of the actual 1912 rice plant.  Nothing, and I mean nothing has been updated since then.  I got a thrill out of seeing the original machinery used to bag up the rice and the industrial sewing machine next to it that sews it shut.  We were given a demonstration on how rice is processed with a scale model diorama. Rice is still being processed here today.  I don’t think Ned was listening as intently as me because he was horrified by all the OSHA and food safety violations.  Oh, the problems with taking a Food Science Major and prior Quality Manager of Ghirardelli to a 106 year old food processing plant.  I mentioned, “there sure are a lot of cats in here,” and Ned responded with, “Don’t you know that’s their rodent control program?”  Oh dear...

One of our favorite restaurants in the U.S. is Bon Creole in New Iberia.  The first trip thru here we couldn’t even find it. This is our 3rd time eating here and they’ve finally added a restaurant sign and painted a mural on their gray cinderblock wall.  We always get the same thing.  We split a large shrimp po’boy and a bowl of chicken and sausage gumbo.  Freshest shrimp ever and the gumbo to die for.  We told them it was our anniversary meal and someone was sweet enough to snap this pic. Honey, don’t we have good times!  Best of all I didn’t have to get all dolled up for this lunch.  (If you look closely you can see the lady who took our picture in the mirror.). 

The drive down to Grand Isle, one of the most southern regions of Louisiana, was so fascinating.  We drove along the Bayou Lafourche for about 45 miles.  It was dotted with about a hundred shrimp, fishing and who knows what other kind of boats.  The other side of the road was small towns and Cajun homes. So picturesque. Getting here we drove thru one of the most intense rain storms. It looked like we were entering a thick fog bank, the wipers could not go fast enough and the road was flooding.  We got thru it, made a right turn south and now sunny skies.  The weather in this part of the world is just so unpredictable and weird. 

Dang, should have held out for some of these fixins’ instead of the shrimp po’boy and gumbo! 

The bayou turned into the delta. Some really interesting engineering feats making a roadway over all this marshland.  I thought we were just going to drive direclty into the Gulf.  Instead we came upon the tiny village of Grand Isle. 

Feels like we are a million miles away from the rest of the  U.S. 

Home sweet home for the night.  I was already to go swimming, but for 3 tiny little things holding me back: Red flag warning for swimming, thunder heard in the distance and sting-rays being in the water.  Plan B - Having a glass of wine and taking these under advisement.  Ned and I are discussing the “may prevent” you part of this statement.  We opted for a bike ride into town.  Ended up at a dive bar. Pretty fun anniversary day!