CAMERON PARK VISITORS CENTER-LAKE ARTHUR

We spent the night in the parking lot of the Cameron Park Wildlife Visitors Center.  Employees coming to work  knocked on the door and told us there was no camping in their parking lot. Jim explained about taking refuge from the storm and told them we would be visiting the center before we hit the road.  There is a boardwalk to an observation platform.

There are no trails to walk here, just one huge wetland very busy with birds and ducks.  The center has  two films,  artifacts and information about wildlife in the area.

We were amazed to see about 40 roseate spoonbills huddling in a copse of trees at some distance from our lens.  Their feathers are all fluffed up in an effort to keep warm. It was still windy and cold in the morning.

Like the egrets they are such majestic birds and obviously hungry.

It was fun watching them eat.

One bird would fly back to the group and another would come out to eat. I tried to get a decent shot of them flying but by the time they lift off and you try to find them in your viewer, they are too far away.

Birds high in the sky made a pretty sight. I thought they were geese, but on closer inspection they have medium long curved bills and I don’t know what they are. If you left click on the photos they enlarge. Do it twice, and they get bigger still.

I caught this fellow just swallowing his food.

Each time I’d turn back and try to isolate a bird from the mob huddled in the trees, the clarity suffers from the distance. Fascinating anyway.

Then as we were driving away, I could see a path behind the copse of trees near the road. Jim turned around for me and I walked behind the birds and got a couple of crisp shots. They were edgy and most of them flushed somewhere out toward the wetlands.

The thick brush made photos difficult, but they are so beautiful, it  was  worth the effort.

We stopped for groceries  in Lake Arthur and got permission to park at the American Legion Post 405. A very friendly group. In fact, when I came out of the grocery store, a gentleman coming into the store offered to help me with my groceries. A very friendly town. No one locks their doors. Very little crime. God’s country.

They wouldn’t let us buy a drink in the place. This is Norman, Joe and Sally. Sally looks much like Loretta Lynn. She loves her music.

Everyone I asked was born and raised right here in Lake Arthur. Norman loves to dance and he informed Jim that everyone there is staunch Catholic and we were living in sin, at which time the whole bar erupted into laughter. We could hardly get away. They’ve asked us to stay for their jambalaya feed on Thursday afternoon. We have another storm warning for Thursday, with a tornado watch, so we have no plans to drive anywhere on Thursday.

SAN XAVIAR MOOSE

Yesterday, we left Sandee’s and drove to Thornydale,  AZ where I was able to buy ink for our printer,  fax paperwork and catch up on some business before reaching a small suburb of Tuscon. I’m learning that Tuscon covers a huge area of influence. Didn’t we just leave Tuscon 80 miles back?

We are staying with the Moose for several days where we met (serious only in the photo) Paul, our seat mate at the bar. Every now and then you meet someone who says, “What’s blogging?”  It is hard to explain to people with no experience with computers. Paul kept shying away from having his picture taken and finally agreed. He was a lot of fun and agreed to sell us some home-made green corn tamales.  We still lust after those we bought in Yuma in 2008. We compare all  to those.

Carleen, the bartender was a hoot and kept telling us how strong she is. Doesn’t do arm wrestling, though.

Some lodges people are friendly as can be and make you feel instantly at ease. We stayed for dinner. Paul touted us on the Tuscon Rodeo and Parade which isn’t until Thursday.

We laughed with this crusty, funny gal.

 

 

I got a recipe from my friend Pam Munn that is quick and easy in an RV. Use a package of Lipton Onion Soup Mix. Add a rind of cheese, two green onions, two stalks of celery, a sprig of parsley or cilantro if you have it.  One  potato cut into chunks. In ten minutes, you have a fast eat. It’s protection against raining cats and dogs.

 

FRANKLIN, LOUISIANA-KINDLY, GENTEEL

Home is busy time, and once again I enjoy looking back at favorite places. The small town of Franklin, Louisiana was one of those. Not only did we find friendly people there, but much that was unique about it. It has moss covered trees with old antibellum mansions, but its more than that. Its modern and up-to-date, yet ageless, with great history…well, lets let the pictures speak.

A fancy building facade from 1892.

A modern clock hangs off the side of a Main St. building.

Decorative curbside lighting allows theater patrons to disembark their cars at night without stumbling on the curb.

Old time wrought iron graces this building.

The tires, the tires! Amazing tires. Not junk. It tells of an agricultural presence.

I wonder who stacked these babies.

Their old jail had windows, with bars on them, but at least a view.

A nifty museum chock full of interesting stuff. I liked the doily and old silver jewelry.

And giant wooden gears from old machinery.

Mardi Gras costumes hide out in every little town in Louisiana.

LeJeune’s is still in operation and is on the National Historic Registry. If the light is on, they still have bread available. We got there in time.

Maybe not a popular thing everywhere, but they kind of revere their Confederate past.

Citizens here knew two wars. I got a kick out of the “friendly behavior.”  I guess a prisoner of war camp in the U.S. was preferred to starving in Germany.