Thursday - Paddling down Bourbon Street

Well we didn't actually paddle on Bourbon St, but we did finally get the boats wet. Yesterday morning we awoke to the dulcet tones of a bulldozer, soil compactor and a pile driver as crews continued work on the levee surrounding Bayou Segnette's campground.

Since we had an early start, we decided to capitalize on the day and head for the Jean Lafitte National Historic Park & Preserve just south of New Orleans. We settled on the Barataria Preserve section for a quick walk around one of the trails and then paddled the twin canals area. What a great location for a first paddle of the season! The canals are surrounded with natural vegetation and there were plenty of birds and alligators to watch. We saw Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Tri-colored Herons, White Ibis and Little Blue Herons all within a few yards of each other. The winds were quite strong and blowing straight down one of the canals so the trip upwind was a challenge, but the ride back was great!

On the water - Barataria Preserve 

Ferocious gator - this one was almost 2 feet long!

We returned to the campsite late afternoon for a shower and a Whalen. Refreshed and not smelling so bad, we hopped into the Geezermobile for the short ride to the ferry landing that would give us a ride to the French Quarter. We found the best restaurant, the Crescent City Brewhouse where we dined on oysters, a phenomenal seafood cheesecake and salads with grilled shrimp - PLUS they brew their own beer!

Oysters and seafood cheesecake - Ymmm!

Since the cathedrals and art museums were closed, after dinner, we wandered up to Bourbon Street for some music and libation. What incredible sights and sounds! Every kind of music you can imagine pouring from each doorway - all of it free and VERY good! Of course, the bead tossing drunks lining the balconies ensured that the sights were free and VERY good, also!

Bead Magnet on Bourbon Street

We caught the last ferry across the mighty Mississippi and got back to the campground in time to beat a thunderstorm that rocked our world for a couple of hours.

New Orleans skyline from the ferry

Thank you for riding the Geezer Express - please remain seated till the ride comes to a complete stop - (In about 5 weeks!)