Our adventure takes us into Louisiana and Texas. I wanted to avoid the popular touristy places in Louisiana as I suspected that Big Foot might not want to hang around crowds. I successfully avoided tourists and interesting places to visit. Perhaps too successfully. I was in the Lake Charles area and near a city named Sulphur. That should provided the vibe. It also rained for 5 of the 7 days I was in Louisiana including a nice storm that didn't cause any tornados where I was thankfully.
I was in a state park that had just reopened up this year after suffering extensive hurricane damage. The upside of that was that every site was paved and level with full hook ups. In addition, the bath house was clean and modern and there was even laundry facilities which is unheard of in a state park. I even ran into a guy that I had seen at the county park in Mississippi. He was from eastern Oregon and was traveling around the south to avoid the winter.
The park had swamp areas and a river that ran through it so there were a lot of opportunities to go for a walk. During these walks the dogs had a lot of opportunity to sniff out for Big Foot but were unable to find the creature in the park. We also failed to spot an alligator despite plenty of signs warning us.
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| Ozzy pees in the face of danger. |
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| Lucy was tired this day as it was 80 degrees outside. Being a vagabond is tough! |
I decided to diversify my searches and went to a rum distillery in the area. Naturally I forgot to take any photos but to make up for that I did buy a lot of rum. Bayou Rum is made from local sugarcane for an authentic taste. They had several flavors of rum and I decided a sampling was in order. The satsuma rum was rather interesting and the person said it went well with lemonade. The coffee rum was also good and would go nicely in a cup of coffee and would also have made our morning meetings so much better. After spending time touring the facility and having a few samples, I realized that Big Foot was not there so I went and had a cajun meal. I couldn't quite understand the lady so I ended up ordering a pork chop which was huge. The seasoning was fantastic. The green beans were unfortunate. Much like the mushy green beans I have detested all my life these were a shade of green that only comes from excessive cooking, canning, cooking, and being exposed to too much water and air. The boudin balls were also interesting and reminded me a bit of haggis, without the oats. I suppose a truck stop was not the best place to sample the cuisine but I thought since it was very popular and the locals all loved it there must be something to it.
My next stop was back to a brewery. There was one within 45 miles of the campground so that was the one I went to. The beer at Crying Eagle was very good along with the shrimp tacos. A Christmas party was ending as I got there so the place was full of children and a faux santa walking about. It was nice to see people enjoying themselves and it reminded me of the Runaway in Burlington where there would be family friendly events to keep the children entertained while the parents could actually have a decent beer. The only drawback of the place was that there was no seating at the bar. That meant that I was forced to sit alone off to the side but it did let me keep an eye out for Big Foot. Alas, no sightings this day.
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| I found the split second where there were no people waiting in line. |
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| You can see the tree damage from the hurricane and the water starting to fill up the ground. It was far worse in other places but the rain was coming down pretty hard so I went back inside. |
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| The sky was a touch dark for 10 am but not much could be done. Unfortunately this was the direction I had to drive that day. |
I was unable to locate Big Foot in Louisiana but I think that it would be worthwhile to revisit the state. Perhaps trying an area that had more to offer would make sense. One could argue that this was all my fault as I do very little planning or research when picking a place but that would be useless to argue as I don't care.
I made it safely to Texas and stayed at a Harvest Host. In case you forgot, these are businesses that allow you to park in their lot. While not required it is expected that you visit their business and buy something. In the end, a campground would be cheaper as one has a tendency to enjoy oneself when one doesn't need to drive. Brazos Valley Brewing was a great place with great beer. I tried several of their offerings from a hazy IPA, to a coffee ale and a stout. The food truck outside had some good options and their brussels sprouts were excellent. I was able to sit at the bar which I love but there was another Harvest Host guest that came in and so I talked to a lovely couple from Minnesota for a few hours. It is always nice to meet people on the road and they were no exception. After a fun night just hanging out, I bought several cans to go and the dogs and I settled in for a noisy night's sleep.
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| Plenty of brews on tap |
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| #DrinkTexas doesn't have the same feel as #Drink Wisconsinbly but I appreciate the sentiment |
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| Some road wary traveler I found in the bar. |
I have now settled into my location for the next month in the hill country west of Austin. There are plenty of strange creatures around here so I will be extra diligent in my search for Big Foot. I am also meeting up with S&S who we last saw in the Dakotas. I have joined a few more online groups with the intention of meeting more people on the road. The nomadic life on the road can get a bit lonely and while Ozzy and Lucy are fantastic company they lack a certain humanness that one does need. I will continue to hit breweries, restaurants, distilleries, but I may need to widen my search criteria in my hunt for Big Foot.
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