It was another complicated ride plan involving many miles, a must-catch ferry (see pic of hand drawn map) and iffy weather. After four straight days of riding, we decided to stay on the boat. We went to the peace and quiet of the empty Engine Room Bar (see pic) to work on the blog. After lunch, Joe took a nap while I hung out on the deck as the boat moved to the final docking location of the day. Except there’s no dock! It was—like most other stops except for Memphis and New Orleans—just this huge 5-story steamboat sidling up to what was literally a small boat ramp for people to launch their rowboats or canoes or kayaks. The paddle wheel would stop, the side thrusters would fire up and we just snuggled right up to the shore where the gangplank was swung out by hand with just rope and pulleys. It was carefully placed on a country road or ramp so bikes could roll off or on. Then the crew would find an anchoring cable on shore, or in this case, under water (see pic of the guy in hip boots searching in the much and muck). So finally the boat gets tied up just below a levee in front of The Houmas House Plantation and Gardens in Burnside, Louisiana. As a crawfish boil and Cajun band get set up, we climb the levee and walk to the beautiful grounds of the plantation house for our pre-arranged mint julep and tour. The bar was the entryway for one of several out buildings. This one was one of two octagonal structures (at least the beginning of it), called “garconierres,” where, the plaque told us, young men of a certain class were brought to learn the “vices” of a gentleman. The smell of tobacco in the bar was so strong I could swear the walls were papered with it. As we moved further into the structure, it opened into a long hall way which in turn opened into an elegantly furnished dining room with a long table that could seat 30 or more young gentlemen and guests. Yet another room beyond that was the card/chess room with large horned hunting trophies all over the walls. The plaque also said that there was a bed chamber upstairs, but we did not see that.
Back outside, we decided not to wait for the next tour of the big house, as we could hear the Cajun music over the levee and did not want to miss the crawfish or the music. It was around 6 PM, and bikes were still riding up and down the steep levee to the boat after their day-long ride. Our leader Bill was playing washboard with the band as Jan greeted returning riders and telling them about the crawfish appetizer before dinner on the boat. We boarded and just hung out on the deck for awhile, enjoying the music and the people dancing and enjoying the evening. Such a fun and lovely memory.
After dinner and a long and confusing talk by Bill about the disembarkation process in New Orleans, the show was “The New Orleans Jazz All Stars.” These are older men who have played all their lives in and around New Orleans. Think Preservation Hall bands. They were great!
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