We'll start in Battle Creek. Not known in most RV circles as a camping mecca but we did find a spot as a result of the kindness of Sharon's cousin Marsha and her husband John. They allowed us to stay overnight in the parking lot of their first class auto repair facility. Pretty nice treatment I'd say. Now if we could only get them to add cable TV service, picnic tables, WIFI, and a hot tub they might get a steady stream of campers. Anyway it was very thoughtful of them and if any of you are ever in the Battle Creek area and need a little work on that toad you're dragging behind that coach, stop in at Double E Auto Service ... they're very friendly and really know what they are doing.
Our next stop was near Effingham Illinois at Camp Lakewood located off I55/70 on Lake Pauline. (www.camplakewoodcampground.com) Now this is one nice campground. You can fit any legal size rig and whatever it is towing, with room to spare. Located on a wooded hillside next to the lake it is very well maintained and professionally operated by hosts Brian and Vanessa Caton. Level, clean gravel lots offer full hook-up, a solid WIFI signal at our site, and a small convenience shop. We even had a pizza (one of the best we've had) from Joe's Pizza and Pasta delivered to our site. Be sure to stop by this park if you're in the area.
Moving southward our next stop along the way was in Caruthersville Missouri. Why Caruthersville you might ask? Well it was only about 250 miles from Effingham so we'd reached my endurance level for driving. Oh ... did I forget? There was a casino there. The LadyLuck Casino (www.ladyluckcaruthersville.com). We got off the freeway and meandered into the small town. Not exactly designed for about 65 feet of motor coach and tow car but none-the-less we squeezed through to find the brightly lit (surprise) casino. A new building all adorned with neon. As it turned out that fancy new building was really not the casino but led to the casino located on the Mississippi river. The RV park was located inside the flood wall (oops) so if we had to leave in a hurry we'd need to get out before they closed the gate.
The park was new with concrete pads, paved streets and full hook-ups. But NO WIFI and the sites were very tight. Some of these parks still just don't get it. Internet to many of us is as important as a sewer or water hook-up. Anyway it was only going to be a one nighter and some of that time would be spent in the casino ... so we got over it.
Now getting to the casino was not for the weak hearted. Leaving that fancy little neon lit building you walked some 400 feet down this steep inclined, covered ramp to the floating casino barge. Not very clean and not very anything. Maybe 15 others gamblers were in there with us and that didn't make us feel all that comfortable either. Best part was be got out without losing much. It would have been nice however if they had oxygen available on the way up. We did get a good night sleep though ... so not all was bad.
Our next stop was going to be special as we were going to meet up with our Iowa friends Jim and Carol. Not surprisingly, for those who know us, we were meeting in the mid-south's gambling mecca of Tunica Mississippi. With 8 or 9 of those money grabbing establishment within only a mile or two radius, it has grown into quite a destination for those who like to place a bet or two, or three, or four, or .......
We booked in at the Mid-South RV Park located on Harrahs Casino property (www.harrahstunica.com). Nice big lots, paved, with full -hook-ups. Shuttle service to and from the casinos and priced very reasonably at around $18/night. But what really torqued me off was what they offered as WIFI service. Yes it might be available at your lot if you were close enough (we weren't) to the clubhouse or if you really wanted a good signal you could come into the clubhouse, if someone was there, and get a great signal. Wherever you got the signal the price was the same. $12 DOLLARS A DAY. Unbelievable! Yes I know they would rather have you gambling than hanging out on the internet but this is simple case of price gouging and not having a clue what the needs of the RV community are. Enough ranting ... we had a good time seeing our friends and did get some solace as Sharon did win a little.
Here's Jim and Carol Winnebago next to our rig. Notice how much room we had.
Our next leg of the trip took us to New Orleans. Our second trip there (the first just prior to Katrina) and Jim and Carols first visit. After traversing some of the worst (bone jarring) interstate highways on planet earth, we arrived at the French Quarter RV Resort (www.fqrv.com). Not the cheapest place to park but very , very nice and close to downtown. If there was a major shortcoming it would be the noise. We were situated in an area near the highway (I10) and there was a steady drone of trucks, police sirens, and diesels with their Jake-brakes on all night. Our remedy was to turn on the air conditioning and that pretty much drowned out the racket.
We stayed two nights in the Crescent City and took in some of the sights. Our first night out we stopped at Landry's Seafood House (www.landrysseafood.com). We all had good meals then headed off for a drive around town in my TrailBlazer. The French Quarter is not exactly the best, or easiest place to drive in at night but interesting anyway. We even looked up Emerils restaurant (www.emerils.com), though it took a little extra GPS work to find the place.
We kind of goofed off in the morning and really didn't get a early start but did manage to book an afternoon tour of the sights of New Orleans on a small tour bus. A great trip through the city. Everything from the Garden District, to the French Quarter to the lower 9th Ward where much of the Katrina damage occurred. I wouldn't want to live here (too hot, too humid) but a great place to visit.
Here's our park at night.
Bourbon Street
Now this following image was taken at Mr B's resturant in the French Quarter (www.mrbsbistro.com). Our final night out on the town needed to be special so the four of us went to this nice place in the heart of the Quarter. After being seated I noticed a small plaque over Sharon's shoulder. Apparently our seat had a former president as a guest a couple of times in the past. Pretty neat eh?
After our meal our waiter suggested dessert. 'Oh we shouldn't', we all said. Then ordered. Sharon and I chose to share something (unusual) ... which turned out to be outstanding (see below). Jim and Carol picked the same thing. As it turned out it was something that I can neither pronounce or spell but I know we all liked it (Actually it was 'Profiteroles with Chocolate Sauce'; A cream puff filled with rich vanilla bean ice cream; topped with chocolate sauce). Good stuff.
We waddled out of the place and took a short walk around the area to hasten the digestive process. There was a slight chill in the air so we hailed a cab and headed back to the park for a good night rest prior to the last leg of our trip to Bella Terra RV Resort (www.bellaterrarvresort.com).
So now you're sort of caught up. We're settled in and enjoying the great weather and meeting up with friends at the park. Thanks for tagging along.
Still livin' the dream in Alabama.
Phil
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