Rainy Days – Wandering Dawgs

Wandering Around America One State at a Time – Indiana

February 17, 2017February 17, 2017Posted in Indiana, Rainy Days, RVing, Wandering around AmericaTagged Elkhart, RV repairs, thunderstorm15 Comments

State 12:

Welcome to the next post in my series highlighting states we have visited throughout the years. I hope you will enjoy coming along for the ride!

I will be featuring the states alphabetically. The next state is

Indiana

Indiana became the 19th state on December 11, 1816 and the capital is Indianapolis.

On our one and only trip to Indiana we spent a night in Elkhart, Indiana to get some work done on our refrigerator and to do some sightseeing. Right after we got set up at the campsite the sky turned black and the rain started coming down in buckets. We ran inside the RV and turned on the tv to discover we were under a severe thunderstorm watch. Luckily, the storm only lasted a short while but by the time it was over it was too late to do anything except eat dinner. The next morning we had to continue on our way after getting the refrigerator repaired.

The storm and refrigerator repairs prevented us from visiting the RV Museum in Elkart or going to South Bend to visit the campus of the University of Notre Dame. Even though we couldn’t spend much time in Indiana I enjoyed seeing the country side as we traveled across the state.

To read previous posts about the states featured in this series just click on the state name: Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois

Good Eats, Hot Sauce, and rain in Cajun Country

March 13, 2015November 23, 2015Posted in Birds, Louisiana, Parks, Rainy Days, Restaurants, Road Trip, RV Parks, RVing, Tourist AttractionsTagged Andouille, Avery Island, Breaux Bridge, Cormorants, crawfish etoufee, Great Blue Heron, gumbo, Poche, Poches Fish N Camp, Snowy Egret, Tabasco11 Comments

After a rough ride traveling west in Louisiana on the worst section of I-10 in the United States we arrived at Poche’s Fish N Camp in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana for a couple of days. The campsites are arranged around a large fishing pond lined with Cypres trees. Most of the sites have a paved pad, full hookups, and WiFi. There are several ponds for fishing, a clubhouse, swimming pool, and laundry. The staff was great. Many thanks to them for recommending Fun in the Sun RV Repair to repair our heater and many thanks to the repairman who came out in the rain the same day we called him and got it fixed.

It rained off and on the whole time we were there so we couldn’t do too much exploring in the area. I had to do my bird watching at the campground. A Snowy Egret walked along the pond right behind our campsite in the afternoons and Cormorants and ducks were in the water every day. A Great Blue Heron even made an appearance.

Office at Poche’s Fish N Camp

Clubhouse at Poche’s Fish N Camp

Our site from across the pond

Campground at Poche’s Fish N Camp

Ducks on the pond

Picture taken through our back window of Snowy Egret behind the camper

Great Blue Heron

The rain couldn’t stop us from enjoying some amazing Cajun feasts! Crawfish etoufee, rice dressing (dirty rice), slaw, fried catfish, fried shrimp, chicken and sausage gumbo, Boudin, Andouille sausage and more! We ate several delicious meals at Poche’s Market and Restaurant. Their market has a large selection of sausages, meats and seasonings so I filled the freezer with Andouille sausage and Boudin to take with us and now my pantry has some of their seasoning mix and File powder.

It’s so good we had three meals here!

Poche’s Cajun Cuisine

Our meal at Poche’s – Crawfish Etoufee, Dirty Rice and Slaw – Sooooo good!

A visit to the Tabasco Factory on Avery Island was a must see on this trip. Henry is a hot sauce aficionado and Tabasco is a staple on our table along with the salt and pepper. We visited the factory 30 years ago when our kids were young and we both have memories of walking into the aging room with the aroma of the sauce so strong that most of the other people in the tour got out of there as fast as they could. Not Henry! He loved it! Unfortunately, they no longer take the tours through that room.

The sauce is aged in barrels that were first used to age Jack Daniels Whiskey. We watched a short video and then watched original Tabasco sauce being bottled and labeled before browsing in the museum. We had our first taste of Boudin sausage (yummy and spicy) from a food truck and spent a few dollars in the gift shop before heading back to Breaux Bridge. A stop at Walmart for some necessities and we were back at camp in time to watch the rain come down the rest of the day.

Avery Island, Louisiana

Visitor’s Center at the Tabasco Factory

Can we take this bottle home?

The world’s best known hot sauce

Even Queen Elizabeth uses Tabasco Sauce

Waiting for the tour to begin

The sauce is aged in barrels that were used to make Jack Daniels Whiskey

Original Tabasco sauce going down the assembly line

The peppers are made into a mash

Lunch was delicious Boudin from the Tabasco food truck

Rainy days in South Carolina

April 21, 2014June 17, 2015Posted in Rainy Days, Road Trip, RVing, South Carolina, State ParksTagged Lake Wateree State Park4 Comments

On our way back to Georgia we ventured down 10 miles of country roads to Lake Wateree State Park near Winnsboro, South Carolina. Despite being rained on most of the time we enjoyed our stay. The campground was almost full with many families and boaters. All of the campsites had large paved pads and many of the campsites were large enough for an RV, vehicle, and boat. A nice place to kick back and relax before returning home.

Lake Wateree

Dock next to the boat ramp at Lake Wateree

Lake Wateree

Looking at the picnic area from the dock

Along the edges of Lake Wateree behind our campsite

Day 56: Rainy Day in Denali

July 13, 2013August 22, 2016Posted in Alaska, National Parks, Rainy Days, WildflowersTagged Denali National Park, Teklanika River

Day 56: Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Our plan for the day was to ride the bus up to the Polychrome Overlook and take a hike. When we awoke to a steady rain we decided to wait to see if it would clear up. The rain continued all day so we took a couple of short hikes around the campground instead.

My favorite place in the campground was this peaceful clearing by a stream

We took a walk out to the Teklanika River in the rain

The stream runs along the edge of the campground

Wildflowers growing in the middle of the riverbed

The rain finally let up a little later in the afternoon so we spent the rest of the day relaxing by the campfire.

Henry and Blondie enjoying the fire

Now this is the kind of view I like out our back window

Day 14: Rainy Day Driving in Montana

May 31, 2013August 22, 2016Posted in Montana, Parks, Rainy Days, RV Parks, WildflowersTagged Cardwell, Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, Rocky Mountains4 Comments

Day 14: May 29, 2013. Sheridan, Wyoming to Cardwell, Montana. Cardwell Store and Campground. Site 32. 314 miles traveled.

Today we knew we were truly in the mountains. Henry negotiated steep 6% grades on I-90 in the rain. Off in the distance, between rain showers, we could see the Rocky Mountains. The rain was coming down so hard we couldn’t see them at times. We eventually crossed into the high plains and the Big Sky Country.

We crossed the Little Bighorn River not far from the Little Bighorn National Monument which memorializes the Battle of Little Bighorn where Custer’s Last Stand took place. We also passed a few Lewis and Clark Historical Sites.

The rain finally stopped as we pulled into a small RV park/gas station/store/casino in Cardwell, Montana. We were surrounded by mountains and enjoyed watching magpies and blue birds flying all around. Several rabbits hopped through the campground. We watched a Great Blue Heron flying right over our heads and a Bald Eagle soaring high above the trees.