We left Vicksburg after filling up with propane. We've been burning a little bit of it the last several days. Weezy is equipped with heat pumps, but they don't work well below 30 degrees. There's been a few nights where I've had to switch over to the propane furnace. I know you people up north don't really care, but this polar vortex crap has to stop. I want to get my shorts back out and worry about my sunburn! Anyway....we left the Riverfront RV Park and headed south on Hwy 61 toward Natchez. Before leaving, we had a nice visit with Annette, the manager of the Riverfront RV Park. She's only been on the job 4 days! Seems like her and her husband just took over the park, and she's been spending a considerable amount of time cleaning up the office. She said when she arrived there was a lot of the office covered in crap and junk. It looks quite a bit nicer now. It's a nice park, close to Vicksburg, and I would have no trouble recommending it to anyone. Annette gave us a nice lead on an RV Park near San Antonio. Her ex operates the Coushatte Recreational Ranch in Bellville, Tx. Maybe we'll check it out on our way by??
Driving south on Hwy 61, we soon saw signs directing us to visit the Grand Gulf Military Monument in Grand Gulf, Ms. We traveled down a 2 lane county road a few miles, and soon came upon the gates of the Military Monument. But I wasn't sure where I would be able to park Weezy. She's pretty maneuverable, but I have to be a little careful. We soon met the caretaker of the museum who directed me across the street to park in front of the stop sign. "Don't worry about a lot of traffic." he said. So we parked and headed over to the museum. The grounds are run by the State of Mississippi, and the employees could not have been nicer. Debbie and I asked a few questions, and soon they were describing the entire history of the 2 forts associated with the museum, Fort Wade and Fort Cobun.
. Both forts were vital Confederate strongholds defending Vicksburg to the north. In April 1863, Grant arrived at Grand Gulf with 7 iron clad gunboats and laid siege to the fort. After 5 hours and 3000 artillery rounds, the fort was silenced. After successfully taking Grand Gulf, Grant was able to land 24,000 troops and move on Vicksburg. It remained the largest amphibious assault ever carried out until Normandy in WW II.
The museum boasts an actual ambulance used during the Civil War, along with multiple cannons and rifles. One rife in particular was recently given to the museum by a local family. It had been in the family since the war. It originally belonged to a wounded Union soldier who showed up at the family's doorstep. He later died, and the family just put it away, forgetting about it until recently. The curator said he worked the action of the rifle and it still works perfectly. I think the rifle on the top row was used to shoot around corners??? It's a great museum and the grounds looked wonderful. We'll definitely take a closer look the next time through.
Next we headed across the street after learning that the mighty Mississippi was rolling by about 100 yards away. We drove down and parked next to the river, and was amazed by the power of the current we were witnessing. The museum curator spoke of the floods that have wrecked this area, but we couldn't imagine the height of the water until we went down and checked out the high water mark from 2011. The first picture is a close up showing the depth of the water as it passed over the land. Picture #2 shows Debbie standing next to the pole.
After viewing the river for a while, we continued south on Hwy 61 till we came upon a restaurant called The Old Country Store, in Lorman, Ms. We walked in the front door of a building that looked like an old store, and were greeted by Mr D, the owner of the restaurant. He made us feel completely at ease and welcome. He directed us to the buffet line and told us if we leave hungry, it's our own fault. We sat down enjoying what Mr. D described as the best fried chicken in the world. We think he was right. Soon Mr D was back over to our table serenading Debbie with his version of Sugar Pie/Honey Bunch. It was amazing. We were soon encouraged to save room for dessert, and we're glad we did. Debbie ordered some blackberry cobbler, and she described it as the best she had ever had in her life.
Ends up, Mr. D's been showcased by the Food Network, and Southern Cooking Magazine. If you check the restaurant on google, you'll find pages of reviews there. He is quite a character, and before we left we got 1 more song out of Mr. D. If anyone comes south through Mississippi, you have to stop by. Be careful, it's easy to miss it.
A short time later we passed through Natchez, Ms across the mighty Mississippi, and are settled down for a few days on the bank of the river at the River View RV Park and Resort. It's a Passport America park which cut our expenses in half for 1 night. Can't understand why more people don't belong to Passport America. We enjoy a 50% discount at their associated parks. We've stayed at a couple already and our savings have more than payed for the yearly subscription. Tonight we're watching tugs pushing barges up the river. They are quite impressive. Tomorrow we'll be visiting Natchez and visiting a few antebellum homes. We've been looking forward to this for a while now. Next stop will be San Antonio.
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