Hampton Inn Natchitoches

... keeps slipping off my old metal needles which are also too long.  I gave up after I had started 3 times.  We have an iTouch with speakers, and can listen to music from that in the camper and in the truck.  We have hit 2 campsites where you can do internet inside your camper.  But not usually.  And often no cell phone service either.   I write blogs in text and then send them out when we have service.   Somehow we always manage not to get to the campsite until 7 or so.  By the time we ...

... and we drove around to see most of the locations where Steel Magnolias was filmed. It's such a great movie. Natchitoches attracts over one million visitors annually. The city has 11 national chain hotels and nearly 50 bed and breakfast inns, including the Steel Magnolia House. The city's tourism center is the downtown river walk. This includes Front Street, which overlooks the ...

I am still setting up my motorcycle for the trip. I still havent gotten luggage, a new gas tank, an quite a few other things that I need. Thankfully, I have gotten a lot of the comfort needs out of the way. I did install a windshield and bar risers. I scored a Corbin saddle off of ebay for pretty cheap. I noticed a huge difference in comfort this passed weekend on a 400 mile dual sport ...

... waited 2 hours from the appointment time to see the dentist with Michelle (we think the NHS is bad but how d'ja fancy paying the chap huge sums directly only to have him keep you waiting?). He's going to take Michelle's wisdom teeth out tomorrow - so Kathy has to return which she wasn't expecting. Neither of could get to sleep - we reckon it must be that we actually got some good coffee here as opposed to the thin, pale stuff we normally get in hotels.

Lazy morning watching loads of boats wizz by up and down the river. Huck and MJ went down to fill up the party boat (a pontoon boat like we went on in Steamboat). There is a boat launch at Keiths a few plots down and about 2pm we were on the boat which is very luxurious - we steamed towards the town for about 45 minutes looking at the houses on the banks. The weather was reasonably sunny and we felt like millionaires. At one point we met the son of ...

Garry woke us at 8.30am and we set off for their Church where a one hour Sunday school in which we discussed Adam and early chapters of Genesis was followed by a Church service. Everyone was very friendly towards us and we were introduced to more people than we could ever remember. Afterwards we had a sandwich sub before returning to the house to meet up with Miss Helen who was coming with us to the Melrose plantation. This was a plantation owned by a Creole family from a ...

... Desiree - he is kinda large and larger than life. They are both lawyers in town. Dan explained how he'd picked up a 2 bedroom house on three acres with a timber wood for $50k at an auction yesterday - he seems to think it might be worth $125k. Nice work if you can get it. But either way it seems like a bargain. Apparently he already has 4 other houses. Breakfast of bacon and eggs was followed by the arrival of Michelle (Kathy's daughter ...

... by the huge median's between the highway which appear to need mowing - it must use a ton of petrol and seems entirely gratuitous. Not really much to report - just a day in the car but when we got the Huck's place....well it is an estate. He must have originally owned 90 acres along the Cane River Lake which is a wide as the Thames around Reading - it is dammed at each end but has a small current flowing along it. He's sold some plots off but there is a mile dirt ...

... have changed -All We have to do is Find a New Place to Sleep for One Night -The Hikers Return - Happier and Wiser -A Bear Sighting -Pie or Ranger Talk ....Hmmmmm -Ranger Talk on The International Peace Hike between Waterton, Canada and Goat Haunt, USA -Perfect Ending of a Perfect Day DETAIL It Was All Going Just a Little Too Perfectly .../listens for the gods to cackle Pitter pat pat pat... pitter patter pitter patter. "It's ...

... by the US. It fed our minds, senses and souls to an extent we had not expected. We saw rampant consumerism, racism alive and bigotry dressed up. We saw compassion. We saw wonders of men's minds and invention. We experienced warmth and hospitality. We gloried in a changing, magnificent, tranquil landscape. We were impressed, distressed and challenged by its society and thrilled by it's beauty. We will definitely be back.