Day 38 - Oberlin to Chicot State Park, LA

When we arrive in camp or at a motel, we're hot and thirsty. So it's nice to down a cold brew or soft drink. Bob Plant is shown with a Texas beer called "Third Shift". It's most appropriate since Bob worked the third shift for years at a cheese processing plant in Marathon, WI.
Last night Andre and Jerry did the impossible and made salmon for dinner over Coleman stoves. Well done! Chilling after dinner are (clockwise from right) Julianne, Bob Pedersen, Mitch, Terry, Rhodri, Bob Plant, Linda, Bob G, Carol, Flynn, Andre and Ken. (Jerry is out of the photo.
Today was another short ride, 46 miles of flat country. Temps were warm all day with a moderate headwind.
The French influence is everywhere in names of locations and people's' names. An example is Evangeline Parish (see photo of Jerry with sign). Louisiana used church parishes to define what would be counties in other states.
We frequently cross streams and small rivers. They are muddy brown from rain, have sandy bottoms and heavy overgrowth. See photo of Castor Creek.
This area is flat as a table top. Fields have small dykes and grow rice July - December. From January - June they are crayfish farms. Andre, Ken and Linda spoke with a man who had just pulled his boat out of a flooded field (see photos). He gets $1 a pound for the crayfish he caught in traps. Each bag holds 33-35 pounds.
After 30 miles we reached Mamou, where we stopped for coffee and donuts at the Donut Queen. Bob G was hungry and got the largest pastry (see photo). The owner was exceptionally friendly, and gave Ken a camouflage hat with the store's logo. See photo of Ken and Linda outside the store.
Another 12 miles got us to Ville Platte. Note the photo of a graveyard with above-ground burial chambers, due to high water table in ground - just like New Orleans.
Ten more miles got us to Chicot State Park. We'll spend two nights here.
Tonight Carol and I cooked a dinner of garlic-lime chicken, Spanish rice, green salad, and German chocolate cake with strawberries. Nobody died.
After dinner, eight of us piled in the van and drove an hour to Lafayette to hear a cajun music jam. When we arrived at the Blue Moon Saloon, five musicians had just started playing (see photos). When we left two hours later, more than twenty were playing. It was wonderful, like a neighborhood house party: very laid-back, all acoustic. It was hard to hear the lyrics; some songs were French or Cajun. The fiddle and Cajun accordion are the stars. We were proud of Flynn, who jammed at one point. I briefly played washtub bass with a bluegrass band, so traded pointers with an old-timer using a drum head instead of a metal washtub.
We bailed at 10:30 pm and retraced our route. Rhodri was excited to see (live) possum and a wild boar by the road. It was a great road trip; many thanks to Julianne for finding the Cajun music jam!
Bruce