Highlights:
the beauty of the Louisiana landscape
the harsh reality of the hurricanes
The Louisiana Gulf Coast
Nov. 10 - 11, 2008
Two months after Hurricanes Gustav & Ike
Bob & Jenny's Cross Country Adventure
Day 84 - 86
Welcome to
Fields of cotton
Wetlands
To get to New Orleans, you've gotta cross a lot of water!
Shrimping: Boats with large nets looking like wings when they fish for shrimp.
Steen's sugar cane syrup plant in Abbeville, LA
The sweet aroma of sugar being cooked to a syrup fills the air in this town.
A truckload of sugar cane on the way to be processed.
Fields of sugar cane ready for cutting.
The effects of Hurricane Gustav and Ike
Debri from buildings and fallen trees sits in huge piles. Piles such as this line most roads and beaches.
The foundation is the only evidence that there once was a house or building on many lots.
The devastation and mess left us wondering if there is a way to volunteer to help in the cleanup here.
A lot of the homes along the Gulf coast were pre-fab homes, which didn't hold up very well. The siding gave way on all of them and they tipped forward off their foundation.
A car sits in the ditch with a pile of debris.
These homes have been repaired/rebuilt.
We were surprised when the highway ended and a ferry was the only way to continue on.
An oil rig in the wetlands. We can expect a lot more of this in the Louisiana swamps. Our swamp boat guide, a geologist has been working with the oil companies for several years in this venture.
Fortunately, our 2-ton Nelly fit aboard, and it was free!
This is the Colorado River close to it's end at the Gulf of Mexico in Texas. Surprisingly, there is some water making it this far.
Another casualty along the Louisiana coast.
This building is just south of New Orleans and was hit by Katrina. The local news showcased a group that tears down one blighted building per week pro bono with the goal of stimulating interest and desire to return and rebuild the hard hit areas of the city.
