After the funeral on Monday, I spent Tuesday and Wednesday driving around Southwest Louisiana's Cajun Country taking pictures. Here are a few that I hope you will enjoy. This is also a good way for my family that was unable to attend, to see family members that I was able to spend time with.
Dad and I started driving south from Hackberry, Louisiana to Wildlife preserve. We were looking for alligators but never saw any.
Spending some time looking for alligators and turtles we continued our journey to Holly Beach.
In September 2005 Hurricane Rita completely leveled the small beach town. Almost nothing was left but ruins and the water tower. This was the second time Holly Beach was devastated by a hurricane; in 1957 Hurricane Audrey smashed ashore with a 12 foot storm surge.
A year after the devastation of Hurricane Rita, Holly Beach was slowly coming back to life, with some residents living in mobile homes set up on-site. Many former residents believe the government officials are implementing such stringent building codes that it's now nearly impossible to rebuild. Many of these dwellings are parked under canopy type structures for shade. The new telephone poles are set up carrying electricity, but are lined up ominously in the familiar rows, revealing the numerous empty lots. The current residents must sign a waiver which allows them to dwell there, despite the lack of a functioning sewer system which is a concern to the state’s department of health
A Ferry boat is the only means of crossing the Calcasieu ship canal from Holly Beach to Cameron.
I was amused by watching this black bird while waiting on the ferry to get to our side.
Cameron is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the parish seat of Cameron Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,965 at the 2000 census. After sustaining extreme damage from Hurricane Rita in 2005 and Hurricane Ike in 2008, the 2010 Census showed a population of just 406.
In 1957, Cameron was nearly destroyed by Hurricane Audrey. A storm surge of 12 feet (3.6 m) and 150 mile per hour (240 km/h) winds caused the death of more than 300 residents of the town.
Nearly fifty years later, in late September 2005, Hurricane Rita hit the town. This time, however, virtually everyone evacuated, and only one man was reported killed in the town. He is said to have been sick and decided to stay in town for the storm. His body was found in Lake Charles, LA.
On September 14, 2008, Hurricane Ike again leveled Cameron with a 22-foot (6.7 m) storm surge just as it was recovering from Rita in 2005. Ike destroyed over 90 percent of the homes in the parish seat and caused catastrophic flooding in every part of the entire parish. Damage due to storm surge and winds was far worse than what was seen with Hurricane Rita. A 2010 report on the damage sustained from the effects of Rita and Ike states that few people returned to the town after the hurricanes, due to stricter building codes and high insurance costs that increased the cost of living dramatically. None of the stores have been rebuilt - only a gas station, bank, post office, and a restaurant remain (the latter two of which are still housed in trailers) and most of the residents still live in mobile homes. The First Baptist Church in the city wasn't rebuilt until 2010.
The Battle of Calcasieu Pass was a minor skirmish fought on May 6, 1864, at the mouth of the Calcasieu River in southwestern Louisiana, during the American Civil War. It resulted in a Confederate victory.
The engagement was between the forces of Confederate Col. W. H. Griffin and Union Lieutenants Benjamin Loring and C. W. Lamson. In the battle, Confederates fought and captured two Union gunboats (Wave and Granite City) and later converted them into blockade runners.
This monument stands in front of the courthouse to mark the Battle of Calcasieu Pass.
This is a memorial set up in front of the Cameron Parrish Courthouse in Cameron for the victims of Hurricane Rita.
This is what is left of the old "Welcome to Cameron" sign that greeted visitors for years as they got off the ferry boat
This is the new sign that was erected to greet visitors.
Shrimp boat working in Cameron. Shrimping and fishing is a major industry in Southwest Louisiana. We spent some time in Cameron and then drove on to Grand Chernier to visit the cemetery were family members are buried.
We were always able to find the cemetery by the black rod-iron fence and the Catholic Church. This is what is left from the Catholic Church.
Because of the flooding and the hurricanes, most people are buried like this. It was getting close to lunchtime so we decided to stop in Creole, Louisiana for a bite to eat at T-boys Cajun Grill. I recommend the shrimp po-boy sandwich.
This is what is left of Boudoin Bros. service station in Creole. This is one of the few structures left in this small Cajun town. The my Cousin Gerald and his wife Jennifer invited dad and I for a crab boil.
Four dozen of live crabs were requested but I think there was like five or six dozen delivered. This is Gerald showing off how big these crabs were.
Jennifer Miller with her bag of fixin's (corn-on-the-cob, onions, potatoes, mushrooms, home-made sausage) to cook with the crabs.
All ready to be lowered into the boiling seasoned water.
So what is next? Well, like Jennifer Miller you wait for the pot to cook.
Like Michael Fewell you wait for the pot to cook.
Like Dad (John Miller Jr) you play with Heidi Brooke Fewell.
Even the deer hand around and wait.
Some wait too long.
Even the dog lays n waits.
Now comes the time for some good eatin!!!
Here you have the perfect serving from a crab boil
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Amanda Fewell is enjoying her boiled crabs.
Even Heidi Fewell enjoys the crab boil.
Steven Miller even got full....
Now it's time to head back to the house and remember what good times we had with family and friends. Even when life gives us bad news of the passing of a loved one, we can still create enjoyable memories with those that are still with us....
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