Louisiana to Texas & the end of the road

 

 

           

Louisiana...nicknamed the Bayou, Creole, or Pelican State has been an adventure.  Made up of swampland, marshes, bayous, and praries its 3 major rivers...the Calasieu, Atachafalaya, and Mississippi support fishing and navigation.  Bridges upon bridges over marsh and delta with levees to hold back the flood waters of their rivers.  Cement roads that were almost as bumpy as going over corn rows in a field.  Rough as a cob.  So rough they would jar your eye teeth.   J is hoping for smoother roads in TX.

Our trip took us to a parish in the Acadiana or middle section of the state.  Here the Cajuns are descendants of 18th-century exiles from Canada's Maratime Provinces (mainly Nova Scotia), expelled by the British & New Englanders during the French and Indian War.  Not everyone here is Acadian or speaks Cajun French.  Other settlers to this region were German, Asian from Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia bringing their families, cultures, and languages to the area contributing to the fishing industry.  Acadiana is home to several Native American tribes, a large population of Creoles, and other ethnic groups, including Anglo-Americans.

Now time to move on to the big state of Texas nicknamed "The Lonestar State" to signify it as a former independent republic and as a reminder of the state's struggle for independence from Mexico .  The name, Texas, comes from the word, "Tejas", which means 'friends' in the Caddo language. 

One Texas industry that thrived after the Civil War was cattle associating the state with the cowboy.  By the 20th century oil was discovered initiating an economic boom. 

 

 

 

I-10 West took us through miles of rice fields of varied stages of growth...flat fields to flooded fields of rice...into smog filled Houston.  Houston was busy even on a Sunday.  Wild traffic traveling up/over/under and around the maze of bridges to get the confused folk from point A to B.

Oil refineries are numerous and when processed some will be sludge, some heavy oil, some light oil, and some will be gas.  Some goes to vapor and is burned off in the tall stacks to keep from having an explosion.

Sunday night was spent in a Walmart parking lot along with some other travelers near Wharton, TX.  J baked Monday's breakfast....hot biscuits with egg/sausage/cheese topping.  YUM!  Coffee from the Texas Buc-ee's while we waited for the heavy fog to lift.

 

On to Port O'Connor, TX, nicknamed "the end of the road".  More rice fields and rice grain silos.  Tall cement grain silos and silver metal ones.  Fields of the blackest dirt.  There were many birds along the way from vulchers, to hawks, to sandhill cranes, to whooping cranes, to a big truck of rice seen below covered black with birds having a picnic.  There also was a coyote that did not make it across the highway.

 

This wavy road was long, long, long as it led us to our campsite #52 in the NEW Port O'Connor RV Park.  Very nice level hard gravel sites with grass between each one.  Wifi, Cable, in ground pool & hot tub, rally room, complete kitchen, hot showers, FHU, and $1.50 laundry.  Just have to watch out for the fire ant hills.  They bit J. 

 

Our town ride took us to the fishing pier at the end of Rt. 185 east on the Pass Cavallo and the Matagorda jetties where the Matagorda & Lavaca Bays meet.  The pier was vacant as there were white caps and chop from the 15-22mph wind.  This is for people who love fishing, hunting, paddling, bird watching and the great outdoors.  40 miles of unspoiled beaches and surf makes this the best kept secret on the Gulf Coast.  Gas was reasonable at the lone grocery store of this town.  Not much here...but, it's going to be fun, fun, fun.  See you next time...

by the campfire.