On Facebook, I became acquainted with a bunch of solo travelers called “Freeroaders”. They were talking about a week-long gathering in Eunice, Louisiana focused on Mardi Gras done Cajun style. It sounded interesting, so I reserved a site at the Cajun Campground so I could join them.
Unfortunately, I came down with a cold. I felt miserable! That’s what I get for stating flat-out that I had decided that I wasn’t going to get sick any more. I joined up with the group when I felt up to it, though.
The campground was nice. It had lots of trees and all the sites were full hook up, which means electricity, water and sewer. I could get some broadcast television signals and they even even had wifi, so I managed to keep myself entertained.
The first event I joined was the pot luck for the entire campground. This is the Freeroaders group.
Liz was quite a character. I especially liked her hat. I’m not sure if it is a crawfish or a lobster.
Here I am posing with Mary. And yes, that is a wig. I made my hat with plastic bags in the Mardi Gras colors of purple, green and yellow.
These folks weren’t part of the Freeroaders group, but they were from Michigan! It’s always fun to run into people from “home”.
I started feeling kind of wimpy after dinner and I skipped out on the music and dancing.
In fact, I kind of laid low for several days. I did go out and do a grocery run and take care of a few things. I took the beads I got in New Orleans with me and weighed them at Winn Dixie.
I gassed up Bart the Big Assed Red Truck.
I was amazed that they had casinos attached to many of the gas stations. I guess they can’t comp you a room, but maybe they would let you sleep in your car.
As you drive around, you will see these little cylinders just above the water. I stopped in at the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center and I spoke with a ranger about fishing for crayfish. She was from Eunice, and told me of going fishing for them as a child. She used a string net. They would bait it with whatever they had – chicken skin, gizzards, and so on and then set them in some shallow water and wait for the crayfish to take the bait. Then she would pull it up and put the catch in a bucket.
The comercial traps are much more durable and are designed to sit there until they are ready to be harvested.
I never did eat any crayfish. I’m not all broken up about that. People tell me that they are like lobster – but I don’t like lobster. And they tell me that they are like shrimp – but I don’t like those either.
But, I was determined that if the opportunity arose I would at least try one. I joined the group in a big outing to a very popular restaurant. It is so popular that they open up the to take reservations at 4:00 – you just write your name and number in the party on a list. They began seating at 5:00 they had all the tables filled by 5:30. No one in my group got seated.
Along about 6:00, I went in to use the bathroom and scope things out. There was a band playing and some folks were dancing. I stopped at the cashier’s counter and asked if people left after they finished eating. She said that some do, but they probably wouldn’t leave until after the Mardi Gras people went through. That wouldn’t be until after 8:00.
Oh, you all know how much I like crowds. Standing in a crowd for hours for the chance of maybe getting to eat…No, that’s not going to work for me. I decided to head back to the trailer and have some good old soup.
The next day, it was the big day! Mardi Gras! We all got together and headed to downtown Eunice for the parade.
While we were waiting, Liz, who is now wearing a chicken hat, and I untangled the nine pounds of beads I brought with me from New Orleans. Then, we proceeded to hand them out to kids and people who looked like they needed some beads.
We waited and waited and finally the parade started. Well, actually, it’s more accurate to say that they parade finally reached where we were waiting. A guy next to me told me that they registered at 6:30 and their activities started shortly thereafter. He also said that the first thing they did after signing in was to start popping beers.
This was the first krewe in the parade. I liked the chicken on the front and the air cannons on top that they used to fire beads to the people lining the route.
The first rider was the Capitaine, who is the leader of the event. Then followed other riders.
Then there were the floats and the krewes and more beads.
Then there were more riders.
If you look carefully, you can see many of the participants holding beverages. Some of the participants were on foot.
There were people carrying chickens. Tradition has it that they would be finding their way into the gumbo at the end of the parade.
What would a parade be without the quads?
More floats
More marchers
More horses
And finally the end of the parade.
The float with the chicken on the front made one last pass to bring the parade to a close.
The next day, I hitched up and and headed out.
Next stop: TEXAS!