We've been in Abita Springs, Louisiana for a week. And I'm just now getting around to updating the blog. It's not as if we've been terribly busy, either. Other than going to church (First Baptist Church at Pearl River) and eating a few great meals, we have been extremely lazy. Tim's done a little fishing, but he's had a terrible earache, so stayed inside more than usual. It got so bad he actually went to a "doc-in-a-box" (walk-in clinic). He seems to be on the mend, now. I hope.
Another factor has been that the humidity here is beyond belief. Every time I step outside my glasses fog over! Southern Louisiana in late summer may not have been the best idea. But Tim and I both just had a really bad feeling about traveling any further northeast, and the recent weather reports confirm our decision.
Anyhow, here's a the last of the Natchez Trace pics. Enjoy!
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| This is what's left of the Elizabeth Female Academy. Founded in 1818 in the town of Washington, it was the first female educational institution in Mississippi. John James Audubon was on the faculty of the Elizabeth Academy. |
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| Kudzu. Want some? |
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| Submarine used to smuggle bootleg whiskey during the Prohibition. Grand Gulf Military State Park, Port Gibson, Mississippi |
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| William Ferguson, and his wife Paulina purchased Mount Locust in 1784 and operated the farm until William’s death in 1801. A short time later Paulina married James Chamberlain, an overseer at Mount Locust, and they continued to build the growing farm. Besides farming, they opened the house as a "stand" on the Natchez Trace, where travelers could get a meal and/or a bed, or at least a place to throw a bedroll. |
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| We took lots of pictures of the furnishings, but my favorites were these toys from the period. |
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| Spinning wheel. |
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| Charlie Chihuahua liked the old brick sidewalks. Slave labor probably made these bricks. Ugh. Seems like there are reminders of slavery everywhere. How could it ever have been an acceptable way of life? Some things I will never understand. |
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| This house on stilts was in a mobile home community near the Mississippi River, near Grand Gulf Military State Park outside Port Gibson, MS. The sign says, "The Smith's The Flood of 2011 Soul Survivors" |
Ferns and moss grow everywhere. So pretty. |
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We had planned to spend some time in Natchez, seeing the sights there, but problems with the fifth wheel's landing gear prompted us to head to the nearest Camping World which was in Hammond, LA. Turned out they couldn't help us, so we just decided to get to Abita a little earlier than planned.
Poor Cowboy has to hand crank the (insert technical term for "thing-a-ma-bob") to get the fiver off of the pickup, then crank some more to get it level on the ground. Then do it all again when we hook back up. Not fun. Especially in the heat and humidity. Not fun at all.
