The Escape/Part 4 Mississippi Gulf Coast/Part 1

 

April the 8th, 2022

Our next undisclosed super secret location is Buccaneer State Park in Waveland, MS. This is our third time here and it ranks highly in the top ten.

With miles and miles of beaches like this, how could you not love this? Do you see any people on the beach? That's how it is in most spots. But I am ahead of myself. 

We left Memphis April 8th. One of the most important dates in history. We were glad to get out of Memphis. I think the truck needs new shocks all the way around. Worst city streets ever. It was a fairly long drive but we made it because there was a light at the end of the tunnel. The Gulf of Mexico and glorious beach time. After our snowy weather we deserved it.

We got to the campground and quickly got set up. We were in for a big treat. It was my birthday and we were going to a beach bar called Shaggy's in Pass Christian for dinner. Every time we are in the area we have to go to Shaggy's. Here I am enjoying a birthday beer.

Amazing how I don't look a day over 58 there. Then the food came. This is the shrimping capital of the world so how could we not have shrimp? Lisa and I had the same thing. Grilled shrimp with jalapeno hush puppies and seasoned house fries. We had an appetizer called Beach Balls. Deep fried mashed potato balls  with bacon bits and cheese inside. It's the only time Lisa didn't ask if a defibrillator comes with it. LOL.

Since we have been so busy and this day was a travel day, Lisa was not able to bake me a cake. Or get me a card or even a present or flowers or balloons, clowns and a pony.  Oh well. It's not like I noticed. The new gun I get when I get home will surely make up for it. We did go to Wallyworld to buy an angel food cake which she frosted with here very own little hands. We didn't have a candle so I just used a lighter for that effect. It was a great birthday.

The next day we just planned on some beach time. Slow down and relax. It was a little cool that day but it was sunny. We found a nice lonely spot on the beach so that Lisa could sit and soak up the sun. I had treasure to find. 

I went up and down the beach for 2 hours. It's amazing what you find buried in the sand. That first day I did not find any buried treasure but I did find all kinds of other things.

I know it looks like a lot of junk and it is. As is with many types of hunting, the hunt is half the fun. I set my metal detector to find all kinds of metal, not just coins. If I had just set it for coins I would have been frustrated because I did that for 2 hours and the only coin I found was a penny. It's more of a service I am providing. Removing garbage from the beach. There's still a lot of nails and bolts left over from Katrina in 2005. So it was a good day. The reason I think there is not a lot of money in the sand is because the beaches are huge and not a lot of people so finding something is going to be rare. That's okay with me.

The next day we slept in and then went to a beach bar for lunch. We saw this one as we were driving by yesterday. Danny B's. Lisa had shrimp tacos and I had of course the shrimp platter.

We were sitting outside enjoying the sun and eating. Lisa noticed behind me there were these water filled tanks and something was splashing around in them. At first we thought it was lobsters but did not see those on the menu. On closer examination they turned out to be live crayfish. That's how fresh the food was. Lisa was intrigued now. She started to google how to eat them because she wanted to try them some time.

After lunch we went to the beach again. we found another vacant spot. Lisa read and I treasure hunted.

It was a warmer day today. The sun was shining and the breeze was coming off of the water. After our second day on the beach, we started to get sun burnt. The start of a good base. My treasure was just as interesting as the first.

I got those screws off of the beach hopefully before someone stepped on them barefoot. I found a little hotwheels car that the grandkids will love. No cash this time but I hope to get out a few more times on this trip. That's it for day 2.

Day 3 promised to be cloudy and rainy so we decided to drive up the coast to check things out. We drove from Waveland all the way to Biloxi. The road goes along the coast so it really is a nice drive. I think it was 40 to 50 miles and it went farther than that. We stopped at Sharkheads for a little souvenir shopping.

It was a nice beach store with everything you could ever need for a day at the beach. The real big news of the day was that Lisa finally got to order her crayfish. We went to another beach bar called The Blind Tiger in Biloxi.

Here is Lisa with 3 pounds of crayfish. She must have been hungry. She was trying to eat them according to the way google had told her and she was struggling. When the waitress came by she asked her how it was done. The waitress grabbed one and went step by step through the procedure. Armed with the new knowledge she attacked those little critters with a vengeance. Here's a video of how to eat them.

The dead head bucket.

Lisa almost finished it. The reason why you get so many crayfish is that there is not a lot of meat in those tails. I think there is more meat in a shrimp tail than crayfish. I give her credit for doing that. Lisa peeled me one to try so I did have one. It was not bad but you have to get over the look of them. Bucket list item crossed off. 

Our fourth and final day in Waveland was also cloudy. We ran to Wallyworld to get a few things and also to fill up with diesel. On our way back to the camp ground we found a seafood market. Lisa picked up a couple of pounds of crayfish to bring home so that everyone can have some. Now we just have to get some gulf shrimp.

"Gladys! Quit playing with those crayfish and lets roll!"

The Escape/Part 3 Memphis

April 5th, 2022 

The next leg of our incredible journey takes us to Memphis, TN. The big draw being Graceland until we found out the ticket prices. $76 American dollars per person to walk the hallowed grounds where Elvis walked. Not including parking fees, lunch and souvenirs. I'm sorry but I have a problem with giving that much money to millionaires. That's why you will hardly ever see me at concerts or pro sporting events. They really don't need my money. Plus, we don't like crowds.

Our next undisclosed location is the T. O. Fuller State Park near Memphis. I did not get a picture of our campsite but I did get a picture of my first mosquito bite of the year.

This park is okay except for the mosquito's and the smell. In the reviews which we like to read after we get to a place said it had an awful smell. Like sewage or manure. It only happens when the wind is right. Being that we planned on not being around the campground much, we decided to live with it. We planned on 3 nights here with lots of sightseeing since we have never been here before.

On our first day we went to check out the Memphis Zoo. We heard that it was pretty good and it was. They are one of only 4 zoos in America that have Chinese Pandas. The literature online says to allow 3-5 hours for the zoo and they were right.

The entrance was fancy. 

This was one of the animal enclosures. A good zoo will have large enclosures for the animals for their benefit. Being the off season there were hardly any people there. We loved it.

Monkey baby.

The zoo itself is quite large with many different themed areas for viewing the animals. We walked for what seemed like a death march but I am happy to say I survived. I wasn't sure a couple of times. I even told Lisa to feed me to the lions if I don't make it. We missed one area of the zoo and Lisa wanted to check it out. We were at the front so I said that I would wait for her there while she walked back. 

"How will I find you?" 

I said, "Just look for the buzzards."

While I was googling "Can a 100 pound woman fireman carry a 200 pound man", I felt like I was being watched. I looked up and saw this couple just staring at me.

I yelled "Hey! I am not part of the exhibits!" That did not deter them at all. About ready to get up and hobble over there, Lisa showed up and made friends with them.

It was a fun outing at the zoo. It really is one of the better ones we have been to. One more thing to add about the zoo. They have a small herd of Pere David's deer. These deer are nearly extinct and they are only found in captivity now. I have never heard of them before and for some reason we did not get a picture of them so I had to barrow one from the internet.

Not the cutest looking deer and not as big as Whitetails either. There is a sign at the entrance to leave all of your guns outside. So I am afraid Jim, you will not be able to add one of those to your wall.

On our way back to the campground we stopped at a state historical sight near the campground. It was called Chucalissa. This is where a group of Native Americans lived for hundreds of years. From 1600AD to around 500AD. Then they disappeared. They were mound builders and the central hut of the community was built atop a large mound.

The concrete wasn't there when they built it. That is so the mound wouldn't erode away. 

The village was very large and according to historians there were up to 1000 people living here. Very interesting the things we find on our journeys.

The next day we planned on going down to Beale Street in downtown Memphis. We have heard several things from different people that said you just have to go there before you die. On my behalf, I'm not sure if that is good or bad. We scheduled an informative bus tour and we got down there midwesternly early. So we walked the district on our own for awhile.

The district is about 4 to 5 blocks long with lots and lots of bars and jazz clubs. Being that the sun was nowhere near being over the mizzen mast we did not partake in any adult libations. So we just looked around at all of the jazz history that really didn't mean all that much to us. Sorry folks. I will add that Beale Street is the birthplace of jazz, soul and rock and roll. Big whoop! The thing that will stick out in our minds the most is the crazy person walking back and forth arguing and yelling at himself. That made me duck behind Lisa as we walked by. I noticed she was protecting her thigh.

Finally it was time for our bus tour. I will add again that we are not big music fans. It was a good tour with lots of information. I can't speak for Lisa but all I heard was stuff like this. "Someone did something there and someone else did something else over there." On and on for 90 minutes as we drove all over the city. The tour guide also sang as we drove.

The things I do remember from the tour was this.

This amphitheater is where Elvis made his very first public appearance. He only sang 2 songs because he and his band were new to each other. The crowd went wild and for an encore, he ended up singing the same 2 songs over again. Still the crowd went wild.

This is a statue of Johnny Cash. It stands out side of a church because that is where he got his start. The tour talked about others like B.B. King, Carl Perkins and Machine gun Kelly. (The gangster, not the rapper.) I'm sure they talked about others but I was busy trying to hang myself with the seat belt.

After our tour we drove over to the Bass Pro Shop pyramid. We were told that it was a must see so off we went.

This place is huge. There is a hotel there. There is a Wahlburgers inside and also a restaurant at the top of the pyramid along with an observation deck.

They also have animal mounts and fish tanks. Quite amazing.

Lisa and her classic mermaid pose. If you want to go to the observation deck it will cost you 8 bucks to ride the elevator up. Lisa and I flipped a coin and I won. It is a 300 foot free standing elevator. Once at the top you get a great view of the Memphis skyline.

It was dinner time and we really wanted some Memphis BBQ. What a fiasco that turned out to be. We googled the best of Memphis. The first one looked like it was in a sketchy part of town and there was no way we were getting out of the truck let alone eat in there. So we went to the next one. When we got there it was pick up only. Their website failed to mention that. So that was it for Memphis BBQ.

Our personal opinion of Memphis is this and it does not represent anyone else's. We found Memphis to be a filthy city. Garbage is a big problem there as they mention it in the news casts. They just dump it along the road ways or abandoned houses. Even Beale Street had graffiti every where. 

Now we can say we did it. One and done.  Where will we pop up next?

"Gladys! Get the guns, we are leaving."

The Escape/Part 2 Missouri

 April 3, 2022

Somewhere in Missouri

Our next super secret undisclosed location is not only super secret but also off the grid. We did not know that until we got there. No cell service at all. It was a long travel day for us.  7-8 hours. So in that time I invented a new travel game that I will share with you. Feel free to play it, along with the other popular travel games, such as slug bug, which is always a winner. Also the antelope game but that only works out west. 

My new travel game is called "Name that Dead Critter".  It goes like this. As you are driving along, the first one to name correctly the dead critter wins the point. You can play to how many points you want. Sometimes it can be very hard to identify a critter so it becomes challenging. We played up to 11 because Lisa started feeling sick from looking at all of the dead animals in different levels of decomposition. So I ended up winning!

Our next super secret undisclosed location is Mark Twain State Park outside of Florida, Missouri.

I can tell you our locations now because by the time the paparazzi reads this, we will be long gone. Now if you are at the bar playing trivia, this question may just come up and you will know the answer because I am going to tell you. "What famous american author was born in Florida, Missouri?" The answer is Mark Twain. Or Samuel Clemens. I kind of gave it away in my first sentence. I guess beer and blogging really don't mix.

So anyways, we were at Mark Twain State Park. They have three camp ground loops and we had one loop entirely to ourselves. Maybe 3 other campers in the whole park. Love the off season.

My travel agent Lisa has really been doing her homework on this trip. I thought there would be no way to top Sioux City but she did it. My socks are officially knocked off. 

Our first stop was the visitor center where they had Mark Twain's house that he was born in, inside it. It was on a Monday and I guess that is the day they are not open. Wah! Wah! Next we drove to Florida. The village, not the sunny warm state. There we saw the spot where the cabin once stood. At least we saw a picture of the cabin. Just as good.

There is not much left to the village. A few houses. It's not a place to really go out of your way to find unless you really want to. So we left Florida and headed to Hannibal, Missouri.

That is what Mark Twain fans are going to be familiar with. The old downtown is nice. A little touristy. They have Tom Sawyer's house, Huckleberry Finn's house and Becky Thatcher's. At least the houses that were featured in the books. Mark Twain had quite the life. He was quite the american adventurer.

We paid our fee to go into the museum which is two museums and 5 houses. They offer a military discount that brought our grand total to zero dollars. So we gave them a monetary donations as a thank you. We started in the first museum. There was a lot of reading there. You learn all about Mark Twain and his books. I could hear Lisa's eyes rolling in her head so we moved on. First house you go into is Huckleberry Finns house. A two room shack.

It did not look that nice back in the day. The next house was Tom Sawyers. Actually Mark Twain's. No really it was Samuel Clemons. They all three lived there.

That is the white fence he conned his friends into whitewashing for him. Everything has been restored. The tour takes you through the house.

Complete with the ghost of Mark Twain sitting at the table. However he did not live here as an adult, only a child growing up.

Another room with another ghost. Lisa and I were talking about the Tom Sawyer books and I had to admit that I only remember some of the high points since I only read these as a kid. Lisa hadn't read them at all. Across the street was Becky Thatcher's house. His girlfriend in the books.

The last 2 buildings of the tour are the law office where Mark Twain's father worked and the corner pharmacy where Mark Twain and his family lived for a short time. After that we walked the two blocks to the second museum that is included in your ticket price. There they have more history and the exhibits are more interactive and interesting for kids. Lisa loved it.

Three floors of stuff to look at. There is a replica of a riverboat wheel house. So it was my turn to play captain.

We worked up a mighty hankering for vittles so we began to mosey on down to the Mark Twain Dinette. They have been serving good food since the 50's. With our bellies satisfied and our noggins overflowing with new information, it was time to leave Hannibal. Mainly because we started talking with a southern accent. One more thing to do. We had to walk down to the river. There was a river boat moored up there that gives tours and dinner cruises. Too chilly for us to be out on the water.

On our way back to the campground, Lisa had one more secret up her sleeve. She said there was a covered bridge near the small town of Paris. To Paris then! Sure enough, there it was. 

Completely restored. It was amazing. Idiots have not been out there and vandalized it or anything. Vehicles don't use it any more. They reroute the vehicle traffic through the river. Really? Why was there a need for the bridge at all then?

Not knowing the depth, we stayed on this side.

That is it for this leg of the trip. We have been to Florida, to Paris and everything in between. Time to move on to our next soon to be disclosed undisclosed location.

"Throw the cats in the truck Gladys, lets go!"