While Night RV Park provided the required “any port in a storm” we did not want to fill our fresh water tank from their hookup so we were glad to be able to move on.
Our first stop was Walmart to replenish our supplies. We’re having trouble getting some of our basics so are shopping more often than we’d like. When we pulled into this one in Denham Springs, Louisiana, the very full parking lot reminded us it is Saturday. It is easy to loose track of the days when one looks much like another.
That afternoon we pulled into Fontainbleau State Park looking for a spot for the night. This park is on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain, the lake just north of New Orleans. We were somewhat concerned that it might be full on the weekend. That turned out to be the wrong concern. What we should have been concerned about was all the rain they’ve had lately. They assigned us a spot with two alternates to choose from should the first one be too wet. It was very unlevel with a tree branch that kept us from getting to the most level spot in it. The one across the road looked better so we tried it then called the office to see if we could have it instead. Nope, the people who reserved it prepaid in full so they couldn’t release it to us in case the people came tonight even though they didn’t last night. So, we checked out a third spot, this being one of the alternates they gave us. It was level and the electrical post was not sitting in a puddle so we started unpacking. But the EMS didn’t like the electricity–102 volts is below it’s minimum. Since there was a 50 amp outlet as well as the 30 amp we needed, Dave plugged our adapter into that–104 volts–the minimum required to keep our EMS from cutting us off but not enough to run some of our gear. We discussed the implications of that: no A/C–not a problem; it’s too cold to need A/C. No microwave–OK I can skip bacon for breakfast or we can cook it in a skillet on the gas stove. Everything else we were like to use should be OK on low voltage or use the 12 volt battery system. So we decided to stay. Then a neighbor came over and told us low voltage had caused $300 worth of damage to his TV/VCR system. So, we unplugged and stayed anyway. We boondocked with paid hookups at our door. We did fill our water tank the next morning before departure, though. And we’d used a discount card to pay half-price for the camping. It was expensive water but we slept long and well and that counts for a lot.
Today we crossed the Pearl River which is the border into the state of Mississippi. We had left US 190 to take I-10 across so we could get a state highway map. They are harder to come by on the US highways than they are on the Interstates. That turned out to have a bonus. The turn to the Welcome Center was also the turn we needed to make to get back on our preferred route. So now, map in hand, we headed south to US 90 and took it into Bay St Louis where we turned again to go to the Alice Mosely Folk Art and Antique Museum. The street we turned onto was a major through street with a stop light on US 90 but it was just barely two lanes wide. In Minneapolis, it would be an alley not a street. We also had to dodge low hanging tree branches so we were all over that road. I sure am glad Sunday is a quiet traffic day. I was not so glad to learn the museum is no longer open on Sundays. If you want to be entertained by Alice Mosely’s art and the captions chosen for them, please, go here:
http://www.alicemoseley.com/page/page/1632926.htm
Then we took the bridge across the bay itself which looked to me a lot like crossing the Mississippi.
We stopped at KFC for lunch. Their buffet had corn bread as well as chicken & noodles which reminded me of my Grandma. She made really great corn bread and ever greater noodles. Down home food down south. Could life be any better?
The we continued east on US 90. When Dave checked this morning they said they were still clearing sand from the highway from the recent storm but it was only causing minor traffic slow downs. Those slow downs were done by the time we got there but there was plenty of sand in the gutters. It wasn’t surprising considering how close the road is to the beach. Here’s the view from my passenger side window as Dave drove through Pass Christian.
I wish I could have taken pictures out Dave’s side as well. The view there was mixed. Some old houses that survived the hurricanes. Some new ones just being built. Some that may have been new but built of materials to make them look old. Some empty foundations. Some empty lots for sale. One house where all the walls are there but the doors and windows were missing. One with an RV parked next to the owner’s swimming pool indicating where the house used to be. It was a sobering sight.
Then we turned north on US 49 in Gulfport, Mississippi, headed for the Desoto National Forest where we are now camped in their Big Biloxi campground. We plan to stay here long enough to order our mail to be ready for us further down the road in Summerdale, Alabama. There’s an Escapees’s park there called Rainbow Plantation we have been hearing good things about so we want to check it out. After seeing some sights between here and there, of course.
TTYL,
Linda