Poverty Point to Shreveport, Louisiana

Cabin leaving Deerlick Creek Park

When I first saw the name Poverty Point, it was more because it was in the area I wanted to stop driving for the day. Plus it was a great name. I entertained myself thinking it would be exactly the opposite of Poverty Point, instead a Louisiana lagniappe. But beside the fact that it is a World Heritage Site, which should make it exciting - and to a digger of history it no doubt is quite exciting - it does have an impoverished feel to it. The water of the reservoir doesn't even seem to beckon wildlife, except for a few cormorants on a dead tree. The grass is stiff and dry and the paths seem to be badly laid out...sort of not where you want to go but rather, where someone decided walkers should go. Which is basically sort of nowhere. 

How amazing that I got to see some of the eclipse! 

How pontoons get around on land

I was afraid to stop here

Maybe it started with the woman in the booth. No eye contact, no smile, no welcome in any way. Trust me, at the park campgrounds, that is not the norm. Joking, welcoming, informative people working really hard for crap pay usually start out any camp time with a grin. Not this sour faced woman. Maybe she was having a bad day, or a bad life. Hey lady, it's not my fault!

There was a man in there, another ranger, who was friendlier. He explained that if you have a pass of any kind (disability, annual park, etc.) and happen to be from Florida, they can't honor it. Because Florida won't honor Louisiana's. So if you have a pass with i.d. from many places I do not have i.d. from, good for you. This is a political tit for tat that is ridiculous as well as one I'm sure the average person has no idea about. Which is why I'm tattle telling on them here. Florida politicians, that is.

Bye bye, Alabama!

Driving across Mississippi yesterday (yes, a whole state! from Alabama to Louisiana, woohooooo!) on the interstate was...interesting. Truck drivers beat out bad people by my own personal rating system that says 97.3 percent of people are good people. We just notice the rest a whole lot more. With truck drivers I'd say 98.7 percent are excellent, careful, considerate drivers. That means that they pull out to pass me from not right up my exhaust pipe and pull back in far enough ahead that I don't get caught in the weeble wobble slipstream. Of course, sometimes they have to do that. Those statistics don't count. 

I took this at a rest stop where they advise rv's to park with trucks,
something I thought was very badass like (in the good way).
So I took a photo. Obviously I do NOT see me and the Turtle
in anyway close to reality.
I am a truck like a sparkler is a bomb.

Crossing into Louisiana there is the bridge you drive on, very nice and the other bridge, that almost made me drive slightly off the road. In the middle of the driving bridge is the Louisiana state line sign. Not a good time to take a photo. So I'm stealing this one. I don't know who took it but I'm guessing it was someone on foot. 

Such a gorgeous bridge!

On one side is Vicksburg, for you Civil War history buffs, which I am not. ""Vicksburg is the nail head that holds the South's two halves together...Vicksburg is the key" You can read all about it here. 

In the park, I...parked. There weren't many people here as the season has slowed down with summer's end. 

There! The Turtle is normal sized again.

What a surprise. Sure, I'd love to walk this trail.

From what I gather, bears are rarely seen. So rarely in fact that they ask you to report any bear sightings. I had nothing to report.

This is why Poverty Point is a World Heritage Site

There is a joke in my family about places that exist that we can't go. Sometimes it's because of expense. Sometimes it is because something else is happening. Sometimes it is just closed. That seemed to be happening here. All the places I wanted to go were closed. Including the road to the actual mounds at the Site. Ah well, those natives aren't going anywhere anytime soon, maybe I'll check them out another time. Or you can, and tell me all about it.

Like that

I yelled at him not to jump, things get better!

These were some of the cabins. But a sign said I couldn't go there. 

I'm pretty sure this strange one showed up for Teresa on her birthday.

Sunset last night

In the park literature, they say these are bear proof trashcans. No way.

When I went to do laundry, this was the reading material
WHAT is the deal with bears!

Now I'm in the Shreveport library...or a branch of it, debating what comes next. The interstate is an air bubble of speed and monotony, but it is fast - well, fast for me. Because it was raining most of the morning I stayed on it, knowing I'd be concentrating too hard on blue roads to see much for stopping. But now there is blue in the sky. Maybe it's time to find some oysters!

Have a time traveling Tuesday. Do something trueheartedly.