Travelling the Creole Nature Trail, Louisiana

We had a great day today, spending time with friends. A year ago, when we spent the winter in Costa Rica, we befriended a couple who lived across the street from us. For about two months, almost every day we spent some time together, getting to know each other and sharing wine, food, walks, outings, and stories. We sincerely hoped that we'd see them again, and today that happened.

Sharon and Bill, Costa Rica, 2014

Sharon and Bill have lived in a motor home for 13 years, travelling the United States and Mexico. They are currently volunteering at the Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge near Lake Charles, Louisiana, so we visited them there.

They took us on a tour of the area. We first took a short loop of one of the driving trails where we saw lots of birds (don't ask me to remember the names!), as well as many alligators. The photo is not very clear, but that dark patch on the bank is an alligator.

Look for the open mouth of the alligator, left side of photo

We then drove for a couple of hours on a section of the Creole Nature Trail. We passed through the community of Holly Beach, again on the Gulf coast, and spent some time on the beach itself.

Greg's finally at the Gulf coast!

This area had been devastated by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina in 2005, but many public buildings have since been reconstructed with the help of the government agency, FEMA. Today we also saw evidence of newly constructed private homes and rental properties.

Our tour also included walking a lengthy boardwalk over a bayou, and stopping for a small snake to cross our path. Yuck! We then took a short ferry ride and continued our journey. This big loop saw us eventually land at Steamboat Bill's for authentic Cajun food. This was our second day of eating Cajun food, and both times we needed a "translation" of the menu, as much of it was new to us.

Look for the exterior elevator at the right side of this home

What a great way to spend a day; in the company of good friends we enjoy. Hopefully our paths will cross again sometime.