Bossier - Shreveport, LA and Jefferson, TX

I-20 has a flashing warning sign for bear crossings for the next 13 miles .... different from the usual deer crossing signs.

They had the pretty wild flowers along the road like they did in Texas last Springs. Nice.

Crossing the Mississippi River Bridge into Louisiana

I'm "camped" at the Diamond Jack's Casino for 5 nights.  I went into the casino to check out the buffets (way too expensive), lost $5.00 to the Video Poker machines and left.  I have never cared for gambling or casinos .... but it is a convenient place to stay while in the area.

My first stop, although I knew it would be closed (only open on Saturday and I won't be here on a Saturday), was the Krewe of Gemini Mardi Gras Museum - The Ark-La-Tex Museum collects and displays all things Mardi Gras, including floats, costumes, and other accoutrements of the event.  I was hoping for some pictures ...

and then I spent some time at the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum - The museum displays dioramas of Louisiana products and natural resources, as well as dioramas highlighting the history and culture of the state. The museum also has fine collections of American Indian artifacts and works by Louisiana artists.  It's interesting, and important on this journey, to learn about each of the states as I explore.  For instance, I didn't realize Louisiana was such a large producer of sweet potatoes, eggs, rice and strawberries.

Since it was such a lovely day, I wanted to walk a bit so I went to The Louisiana Boardwalk - It is mostly an outlet shopping "mall", but you can take a nice walk along the river, enjoy a spin on the carousel, ride the trolley, or watch the dancing fountain. The Boardwalk also offers a child's play area, a bowling alley, and a movie theater ... and dozens of restaurants.

I was in time to watch the dancing fountain - music and lights (which I imagine are beautiful at night) ... it was nice.




Interesting, the bridge I crossed over the river on also crossed over the Boardwalk, so I got to see it from every angle ....

Shreveport has the first Carl's Jr. (not a Hardee's but a genuine Carl's) I've seen since I left the West coast a year ago.


And what does one do after spending a day in Louisiana?  They drive to Texas .... ha

Jefferson, TX is closer to Shreveport that to Dallas (my next stop), so it was a better time to explore that town.  It was the state's largest and most significant river port; founded in 1836 and named after the President, Thomas Jefferson, it is the 5th oldest town in Texas.

In the 1840s steamboat captain William Perry moved to Jefferson from New England and saw potential in Big Cypress Creek, a tributary of the Red River.  The captain oversaw its dredging and soon steamboats from Shreveport and New Orleans were transporting cotton downstream and returning with manufactured goods.  By the 1870s the inland port's volume of commerce was second only to that of Galveston.

I stopped at the Jefferson Historical Museum to get a sense of the history of the town ...

The Museum building used to be the Courthouse (on the second floor) and the window etchings for the various rooms are still there ...

I took a different route back to Shreveport and saw a couple of interesting things ...

When I got back to the campground the man parked next to me had just finished washing the bugs off the front of his coach.  We talked for awhile and then I mentioned ... if he had the time and pointed to mine .... he asked me if it was going to snow tomorrow.  ha.  I've seen several out there washing the front of their rigs .... I used to be so good about doing it; it was part of my "set up" when I pulled into a new campground.  I've gotten so lazy ....