Our Summer Travels ~ New Orleans Revisited ~ Airboat Ride!!

Thursday, May 26, 2016

We've always wanted to take an airboat ride through the bayou. Today was the day! Ultimate Swamp Tours is a couple of miles from where we're staying...

waiting for our rides; three airboats and a tour boat

our rides. each of the three airboats held from six to nine people

this 'gator hangs around the dock

ear protection on; we're ready to go!

tour boat for those who did not wish to ride on a airboat

one of the airboats heading out

shrimp trawlers. this is the start of shrimp season

another shrimp trawler

we rode past the state park cabins

looks like the ground, right? this is vegetation growing in the bayou. we rode right on
top of this

thankful we didn't get stuck!

the bayou is beautiful

notice the turtle on the log

cypress tree with Spanish moss

weekend camp; most were abandoned after hurricane Katrina

this one is still in use

never rebuilt after hurricane Katrina

the mailbox was left standing

very peaceful

we met up with another group. their guide caught a baby alligator

not to be outdone our guide, Scott, also caught one

Scott taught us quite a bit about the alligators. even though he's a baby, he still
has a lot of  (as well as sharp) teeth

Rons turn to hold him

his colors were beautiful

who knew! 'gators love marshmallows. Scott lured a larger one out for us to see

We had a blast on our airboat ride!!

'til next time...

Ron, Dawn and Cooper

Our Summer Travels ~ New Orleans Revisited

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

We left Kinder at 9:00 am; it was already hot and humid. Sultry comes to mind. Our next stop will be New Orleans. We're still staying off of the freeways. We pass through a lot of small towns such as Opelousas (established in 1720) and are able to see some interesting sights...

rice field

Across the road from this rice field was a craw

fish farm. We saw many craw fish farms. We also saw a "farmer" harvesting his traps.

 Unfortunately, I was unable to get a picture.

fema trailers

sugar cane fields

crossing the Mississippi. 

barges

While in the New Orleans area we're staying at Bayou Segnette State Park, in Westwego.
Westwego is south of New Orleans.

state park office

back side of office

Westwego is  just across the river from Jackson Square and the French Quarter. It's a very nice state park with blacktop pads (albeit not as level as they could be), along with spacious lots with water and electric. They also have free wifi and a laundry room. There are two pools within the park. One is a wave pool which is open to the community. The other pool is for those staying in the campground. The price is very reasonable ~ $28/night. We'll be here for a week or so.

Coop really enjoys the grass

In addition to the campground, the state park also rents cabins...

cabins for rent at the state park

We meet the most interesting people on our travels...

Russell loves his LSU Tigers!!

We met another couple in the park tonight. They are from Hungary and

are spending their summer touring our National Parks. They began in New

York, spent some time in New Orleans and are now headed west to Utah. They

will have a great trip. Nice couple.

We're so looking forward to our time here. Stay tuned!!

Til next time...

Dawn, Ron & Cooper

Our Summer Travels ~ Nacogdoches

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

While staying at Rainbows End Park in Livingston we took a day trip and went to Nacogdoches. Nacogdoches, located north of Livingston, is the oldest town in Texas.

This year the town is celebrating their 300th year...

Our first stop was at the Charles Bright Visitors Center...

The visitors center is located on main street. We found a parking spot right in front of the visitors center; 

after picking up information from the center we walked around the town...

dedicated to those who helped settle Nacogdoches as well as east Texas

streets are bricked

busy and vibrant downtown

The first site we visited was the Shuttle Columbia Debris site. The space shuttle Columbia disintegrated 39 miles above Texas on February 1, 2003, a catastrophe during the ship's landing descent. Debris fell over a long swath of Texas and Louisiana, with over 1,200 pieces landing in and around the town of Nacogdoches. One chunk, the size of a car hood, crashed into a downtown parking lot with such force it was reputed to have blown open the doors of nearby buildings. The parking lot has since been repaved as well as redesigned.

this memorial stands near the location of a large piece of debris from the Columbia

From here we walked to the historic district; home to some beautifully restored homes as well as Oak Grove Cemetery...

Oak Grove Cemetery is filled with the graves of historical figures important to both Nacogdoches County and the State of Texas. The most famous is Thomas Jefferson Rusk, judge, statesman and Sam Houston's Secretary of War. Rusk was also a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence in 1836.

grave of Thomas Jefferson Rusk

This ended our walking tour. After a great lunch at the Olde Town General Store we drove to the Durst-Taylor house. This wood-frame house, circa 1835, was home to many early businessmen, bankers and politicians including Thomas Jefferson Rusk.

Durst-Taylor House

it is now a museum; closed the day we visited

where the garden stood

Our next and last stop of the day was the Nacogdoches Train Depot. Built in 1912 by the Southern Pacific Railroad, the depot has recently been restored. It is now home for the Center for Regional Research and features rotating museum displays.

love the tiled roof

the museum was closed the day we visited

We were so glad the rain held off and we were able to visit Nacogdoches. Nacogdoches is a very cool town with a vibrant downtown area. If you're ever in the neighborhood, stop and visit this great town!

Til next time...

Ron, Dawn & Coop