Our second time through Louisiana kept us south of I-10 in the land of huge live oaks, gators, bayous, Tabasco sauce and rainforest-like humidity that actually created droplets on our A/C vents…Let’s geaux!

Abbeville, LA

We stayed in Palmetto Island State Park near Abbeville, a quaint town in southern Louisiana. While the roads to the park are a bit narrow and curvy, the park is well worth the trip! The ranger at the gate told us not to leave our sewer hose attached, because the bears have been known to steal them! (ooh, creepy)

The park has a really nice splash pad (you can’t swim in the natural water due to alligators), walking trails, a laundry room and beautiful campsites. A funny memory of this park is when we were flagged down by a fairly large group of women in the middle of the road to take their group photo. They are part of a club that camps together several times per year. They were kind and made us laugh. We stayed and chatted for almost an hour!

The town of Abbeville has a few happening spots with live music at night and a beautiful town square. We met some locals on our downtown walk who were very friendly and eager to share information about the area with us.

It turns out that Abbeville is close to Avery Island (more of a mound that looks like an island), home to the Tabasco factory and an expansive arboretum and wildlife refuge called Jungle Gardens. I love hot sauce!! We learned that the McIlhenny family has a history of protecting and developing local flora and fauna. They were even instrumental in saving the Snowy Egret from extinction by establishing a rookery named Bird City.

We were also surprised to learn that part of the process of making Tabasco sauce involves storing mashed peppers in oak barrels for three years before it becomes the famous sauce. We tried nearly all the samples in the gift shop including Scorpion Tabasco which lives up to its name!

Springfield, LA

In our quest to avoid towing our house through New Orleans proper, we decided to do a repeat stay at Tickfaw State Park as we approached Mississippi. The first time we stayed there was in November 2023, and there were armadillos everywhere! This time of year none were to be found. (Maybe they moved to Canada.) We did see alligators, lizards, a snake, prothonotary warblers and other cool birds in the park. Like Palmetto Island, they also have a splash pad and great laundry facilities. I think those are awesome features for state parks, especially the laundry.

About 30 minutes away from Tickfaw is Fontainebleau State Park located on the north side of Lake Pontchartrain. It was a (surprise) plantation at one time with a sugar mill onsite. We sat in the rocking chairs outside the visitor center, but no one brought us sweet tea. How rude!

“Chat”-Io Corner

We are starting to understand why the catio has been off limits so much lately. We have tried to enjoy it a few times and found it to be too hot for cats of our pedigree and status. Although, the dragonflies have been fun to watch. We overheard some Cajun cats. What does miaou mean?