On The Road Again

It’s been awhile but we’re finally back on the road again. Winter is here and we’re chasing the warm weather and sunshine in Freebird again. Our general plan is to head south first to get away from the cold temps as quickly as possible and then make our way west. As with most of our plans, things are always subject to change. Let’s see where we ended up.

Ft. Toulouse – Ft. Jackson

The temperatures finally became tolerable around Montgomery, Alabama so we looked for a place to spend a few days. Ft. Toulouse – Ft. Jackson State Park sits at the forks of the Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers and the campgrounds are first come first serve. We called ahead and the ranger told us we would have no problem getting one of the 39 sites. In fact, other than the camp hosts, we were the only ones there. Score!

Fort Toulouse served as the eastern-most outpost of the French colony of Louisiana in the early 1700s. The French secured the friendship of the Native American population while keeping the British out. After their defeat in the French and Indian War in 1763, France ceded the area to Britain and Spain. There is a recreation of the 1751 version of Ft. Toulouse here along with some Creek Indian houses.

Also at the park is the partially restored Fort Jackson. In 1814, American forces led by Andrew Jackson built a fort over the old site of Fort Toulouse during the War of 1812. After the war, the Treaty of Fort Jackson signed over 15 million acres of Creek lands to the U.S. government, leading to Alabama becoming the 22nd state.

There’s a 1,000-year-old Indian mound near the remnants of Ft. Jackson. The mound, built on the edge of the village, was the center of the Indian civilization. The chief’s house stood on a platform on top. When the chief died, villagers tore down his house and covered it with a layer of earth. A new chief built his house on top of that. Over time, the mound grew with each new layer. If there wasn’t a sign pointing it out, I would’ve missed it.

All in all, this was an interesting stop and a great place to hang out for a few days.

Back on The Road to Mississippi

After a stop at Gulf State Park in Alabama to visit friends in the area, we headed to the Davis Bayou Campground at the Gulf Islands National Seashore near Ocean Springs and Biloxi in Mississippi. The park has beautiful emerald coast waters, magnificent white beaches, fertile marshes and historical landscapes, and spans two states (Florida and Mississippi). The Florida area has two civil war forts and beautiful beaches. We spent time there when we stayed in the Pensacola/Perdido Key area. This is our first time in the Mississippi part of the park. The Mississippi areas are home of a historic fort and supposedly the most beautiful barrier islands in the United States. We didn’t go out to any of them to verify this claim.

The park features a campground, visitor center, boat launch, trails, and several boardwalks where visitors can overlook the bayous and glimpse wildlife. There was an alligator at one lookout in the same spot every day. Not sure if it was real or if the park ranger just moved him around every now and again.

The boat launch was within walking distance of our camp site. It’s a great spot to view the area birds and wildlife. This gave Cathy a great opportunity to practice with her new camera.

On to Bolivar Flats

Our last attempt here ended up with us leaving early due to bad weather and rising tides. Hopefully, we won’t have that same issue. We had a nice couple days and then, guess what? A storm and rising tides chased us off the beach again. I’m sensing a pattern here. It’s a very nice spot to camp when the weather and tide cooperates.

There were several shorebirds we haven’t seen before with the bird sanctuary right there. If you plan on camping here, keep an eye on the tide charts and put boards under your camper tires to keep it from sinking in the sand. And prepare to get annihilated by mosquitos.

Drive down Rettilon Rd. to access the beach camping. Rettilon is ‘no litter’ spelled backwards. Unfortunately, some people didn’t get the memo. Come on, folks!! Be better!!

Galveston

Instead of leaving the area like we did last time, we booked a few days in the nearby Margaritaville RV Park. Took the free ferry over to Galveston for a day. We never realized what a busy port Galveston was. There is a seemingly endless line of ships waiting to get in.

There’s plenty of things to do in Galveston. One is Pleasure Pier. It’s very similar to Navy Pier in Chicago except it cost $11 just to walk out on. Plus extra for any rides you wanted to go on. We really wanted to go on the Ferris wheel but weren’t willing to pay the $30 to do it. Maybe next time I won’t be so cheap.

Nearby is the Grand Galvez Hotel which was built in 1911 to the tune of $1 million. It has recently been restored to it’s former grandeur. Any time we come across a hotel like this, we always walk in like we have a room to look around. This is quite a nice place and it’s not a pricey as you might think.

After cruising through the hotel, we walked around the historic district. There are quite a few nice looking homes. Some houses had plaques proudly proclaiming that they survived the hurricane of 1900.

And, like any tourist town, there are plenty of places to eat and shop. Then there’s the beach to hang out at. We need to make a return trip to complete all there is to do here.

Back on the Road Heading West

It’s time to keep heading west in search of the warm weather and sunshine Our next destination is at Kartchner Caverns near Benson, AZ. I’ll let you know how that goes. Until then. . . .