Waltzing From Louisiana Through Texas

There is some beautiful scenery in Northern Louisiana. Unfortunately, there is also a lot of poverty. The “homes” that some people live in can best be described as derelict. The pride in home ownership too often accompanies the lack of financial well being. We avoid interstate highways whenever time and routing makes it possible. This allows us to drive through the small towns that make up rural America. These roads cut through the towns like a knife through marble cake and reveal both the wealthy and poor sections. In Louisiana the contrast was greater than any we have seen elsewhere. To be fair, I have seen an occasional front yard in Maine littered with more junk than one could believe possible. But, the frequency with which we saw such homesteads surprised me as we drove through Louisiana. We weren't surprised that one town proclaimed itself to be the cleanest town in Louisiana.

Claiborne State Park was our home for just one night. The park is situated on a good size lake that is popular with fishermen this time of year. The park offers special rates for fishermen spending extended periods during this season. The brochure called it yo-yo fishing season. That is a term I have never heard. Luckily, we weren't long at the campsite before I found out what yo-yo fishing is. We had barely got the trailer leveled, the electric and water connected and set about starting a campfire when Skipper, from a campsite just down the lane, arrived and offered some extra firewood he didn't need. Skipper is about 70 years old, tall, face wrinkled more than typical for a man of his years due to the lack of dentition. He wore farmer winter coveralls and a bright red knitted cap. We exchanged the usual pleasantries such as where we were from, how he handled the extreme weather of the previous night, etc. When asked, he said he was not a fisherman and was not here for the yo-yo fishing, but he could tell me what it is. With such a term, I had imagined all sorts of interesting possibilities. However, yo-yo fishing is a method whereby, a baited line is lowered into the water from a spring loaded reel that is wound like a YO-YO. The line and reel is hung from the branch of a tree. When a fish strikes, the yo-yo allows line to play out until the fish tires. Then it reels the fish back in. Many lakes and bayous have dead trees standing in the water from which these can be attached. In Louisiana a fisherman can have up to 30 of them deployed at one time. They can be left overnight and checked in the morning. Catfish seem to be the preferred catch. It is an ingenious system, but I was a little disappointed that it wasn't something more exotic.

In Louisiana, Claiborne State Park was our home for just one night. The park is situated on a good size lake that is popular with fishermen this time of year. The park offers special rates for fishermen spending extended periods during this season. The brochure called it yo-yo fishing season. That is a term I have never heard. Luckily, it wasn't long at the campsite before I found out what yo-yo fishing is. We had barely got the trailer leveled, the electric and water connected and set about starting a campfire when Skipper, from a campsite just down the lane, arrived and offered some extra firewood he didn't need. Skipper is about 70 years old, tall, face wrinkled more than typical a man of his years due to the lack of dentition. He wore farmer winter coveralls and a bright red knitted cap. We exchanged the usual pleasantries such as where we were from, how he handled the extreme weather of the previous night, etc. When asked, he said he was not a fisherman and was not here for the yo-yo fishing, but he could tell me what it is. With such a term, I had imagined all sorts of interesting possibilities. However, yo-yo fishing is a method whereby, a baited line is lowered into the water from a spring loaded reel that is wound like a YO-YO. The line and reel is hung from the branch of a tree. When a fish strikes, the yo-yo allows line to play out until the fish tires. Then it reels the fish back in. Many lakes and bayous have dead trees standing in the water from which these can be attached. In Louisiana a fisherman can have up to 30 of them deployed ad one time. They can be left overnight and checked in the morning. Catfish seem to be the preferred catch. It is an ingenious system, but I was a little disappointed that it was not as exotic as I expected. Here is a Youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSAhgsmUUv4

Leaving Louisiana we faced crossing the big state of Texas. Graciously, the Lone Star State provides many state parks along the popular highways. We had a number to choose from and had no trouble finding one that was one day's driving distance to suit our liking. That park was Fort Richardson State Park in Jacksonboro, TX. Built in 1867, Fort Richardson was used as base to prosecute the war against Native Americans. It appeared that the government spared no expense in building this outpost. The sandstone buildings, still standing and in excellent condition, are not only functional, but beautiful. As usual when trying to make distance, we arrived late in the afternoon. So, the buildings were closed. But, on the positive side, the light of the lowering sun accentuated the golden hues of the brown sandstone.

The Hospital

The Bakery in the distance, where better than 200 loaves of bread were baked a day. Records tell that one person died of heat exhaustion there.

The officer's quarters

Enlisted men's quarters. Officers never entered because of the stench.

The following photos were taken on Rt. 180 as we passed through Albany, Texas.

I remember when gas stations looked like this

We got som pretty good cupcakes at this classic Airstream

No doubt about it, this is Longhorn country. And they like things big.

Sarah and I are very happy that we made the decision to push on to Carlsbad. Sarah visited the caves when

she was about 5 – 7 years old. Re-visiting the caverns brought back lots of memories, but she believes more paths have been added. Whether that's true or not, we both were fascinated with both the enormity of the 'rooms' but also the quantity and variety of 'decorations' they contained. Everywhere one looks are marvelous forms of stalactites, stalagmites, ribbons, flows, columns and 'popcorn'. The Big Room is nearly a quarter mile from end to end. The winding path requires nearly an hour to walk the perimeter. In all, we spent nearly three hours exploring this majestic work of nature.

We're not sure where our next stop will be except for Lucy's here in Carlsbad, New Mexico to watch the Super Bowl. But, stay tuned.