Southern Louisiana

Location: Red Shoes RV Park (Coushatta Indian Casino) (el. 60 ft); Kinder, Louisiana

I hitched up yesterday in grandpa gear slo-motion to try to make sure I didn't forget a step and drop Liberty on the ground or even worse, drop her on Freedom. Everything went smooth and I connected on the first attempt and heard that sweet "click" that only "fifth wheelers" can truly appreciate. It reminded me of a verse from an old song and I sang it to myself, "Well, hello there. My, it's been a long, long time." (extra points to those who recognize the song)

Wheels were rolling by 11:00 a.m. with a 3 hour tow ahead of me. It was mostly interstate so it was easy going with hardly any traffic. I kept the music off and just  listened as Freedom and Liberty got to know each other again. It was a good sound and it felt like they both were happy to be back on the road. Me too. Ok, here is where ya'll think I may be crazy or as some southerns say it, "touched". It never has been real clear to me as to who or what is doing the touching. Anyway, crazy or not, the three of us got to know each other again and it was good. 

I arrived at Red Shoes RV Park which is part of the Coushatta Indian Casino in Kinder, Louisiana. I'm here for two reasons. The first, I did today, which was to visit my sister, niece and nephew in Lafayette which is about 70 miles away. It was a nice visit and will have to last until I get back sometime around Thanksgiving. The second reason is to attend and be the best man in my oldest sons wedding. The rehearsal is tomorrow (Friday) followed by a crawfish boil. The wedding will be Saturday evening. I'll head back to Mansfield for a final doctor appointment on Monday before hitting the road in a western direction bright and early on Tuesday morning. 

I thought I was going to enjoy a nice buffet dinner at the casino but when the hostess said $40.00 dollars I passed on it. I don't think I could eat $40.00 dollars worth of food even if it was Taco Bell. I found a Burger King and enjoyed a Texas Double Meal for less than $10.00. My refrigerator and freezer is almost empty because I'm planning to defrost it sometime Sunday and hopefully re-stock it before leaving. We will see if it happens or not. 

Some sights from Southern Louisiana. 

Red Shoes Campground. About 20% full, but should increase over the weekend.

I thought some of my Yankee friends might want to see what a crawfish pond looks like. The little red things are crawfish traps. They are baited with either fish or processed pellets and checked daily. 

The ponds are very shallow so a special boat is needed to check the traps. This boat is propelled by the big wheel in the back that "walks" on the bottom of the pond and pushes the boat. Notice the one crawfish trap on the side of the boat. That one is the last trap emptied from the day before. It is needed to replace the first trap on today's run. As he picks up one trap and empties it on the table, the boat is still moving towards the next trap. As he arrives at the next trap, he has the empty trap rebaited and drops it next to the next trap before picking up the next full trap. It is all a continuous movement. The table in front of the chair is used to sort out the crawfish by size and throw back the smaller ones. It is an interesting operation to see. 

This is the final product. A table full of boiled crawfish. It's not just crawfish. You can put just about anything in the pot including potatoes, corn on the cob, sausage, etc. It is up to the cook. It's good eating, so if you're coming through Louisiana, stop and "pass a good time" with some boiled crawfish. (I did not take this picture, it was borrowed from the internet)

Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.