G&T's Excellent Adventure

MON., JAN 29 thru THUR., FEB 1, 2024

We traveled 155 miles west from Vicksburg to Farmers Branch RV Park in Minden, Louisiana, on Monday, Jan. 29th, (2024) and arrived about 15 minutes before the Hannafords. However, their site, which was next to ours, was still occupied!! Not good. I called the campground owner, who wasn’t in the park, and he said “I told them they had to be out of there by noon.” I banged on the camper’s door. They were in the middle of eating breakfast (?). The wife looked like she was still in pjs, and she said “but he said we could stay till one.” The owner, still on the phone in my other ear, is saying “I never said that.” Oy. Ultimately the family was nice, and got outta there lickity split! They left just as the Hannafords were pulling into the campground. You do what you gotta do for your friends! 

This campground is rustic. They take cash only, that tells you something. But there is plenty of greenery and there were lots of cardinals flying around our first morning here. There’s also a train that goes by regularly that almost shakes the RV. lol.

We headed into Shreveport on Tuesday, Jan. 30th, (2024) for some exploring. First was a tour of the Water Works Museum. It’s the last intact surviving example of a steam powered pumping station. Opened in 1887, it added filtration in 1890, quite unusual technology for the time, and in 1911 was one of the first-in-the-nation to use chlorine in the treatment process. Shreveport was considered to have some of the best drinking water in the country. The plant wasn’t fully retired until 1980. The antique equipment was cool to see. Our guide explained the operation of the equipment which was WAY over my head, although Gary enjoyed the details.  

Next we visited the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum. What a find! Opened in 1939 as one of the New Deal’s Public Works projects, this circular building is an architectural jewel built in the ultra-modern style of the time. It’s on the National Register of Historic Places. The exhibits are outstanding, and we learned a lot about the state of Louisiana! One of the best free museums we’ve visited. There was a massive Bald Cypress Log Boat on display that was 31 ft long from the Caddo Culture, dated A.D. 1035. Wow. 

A standout are the dioramas which are exceptionally well done! By definition a diorama is 3-D artwork that combines sculpture and painting with construction, lighting and design. The museum has 22 dioramas. Two are life-sized of birds and animals, and the remainder show miniature scenes of 1/8 scale (1.5 inches  = 1 foot). They showcase life in Louisiana in the 1940s focusing on agriculture, industry, art and history. Just incredible! Through the dioramas, we learned:

• Louisiana’s climate allows for harvests of at least two or more crops per year. 
• No other state has more salt reserves than Louisiana. Their rock salt has a high commercial value because most of it is over 98 percent pure and is found in large, easily mined deposits.
• Louisiana is the second largest producer in the US of sulphur. Fifty miles below New Orleans, out in the swamp land of the Gulf of Mexico, is Grand Ecaille, one of America’s richest sulphur deposits.

The museum also has rotating exhibits. The one on display when we visited was by Pat Seawall, an 83-year-old practicing psychiatrist who does whimsical paintings and sculptures. Beautiful work!

Lastly we visited the Red River District. The heart of Shreveport’s waterfront. It’s called that because the Red River runs alongside the area. The river gets its name from the reddish color of the water caused by the red soil carried in it, particularly during flood periods. It was and interesting area to walk around but not a must do. We did see the Riverwalk’s Walk of Fame with plaques of hand prints and footprints of various stars, the picturesque Texas Street Bridge built in 1934, and a Purple Martin home… but we were a few weeks too early to see any Purple Martins. We also passed by several casinos but did not partake. 

Then it was time to head back to our tiny homes. The next couple of days we caught up on grocery shopping, phone calls, and video chats, before moving onward to our “home state” of Texas.