Swamp Tour

Swamp Tour

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While staying in Lafayette, LA  we went on a swamp tour.  Definitely something on my bucket list!  We chose a small family run business called Champagne Cajun Swamp Tours on historic Lake Martin in Breaux Bridge, LA.  On a rare clear day while we were here, we enjoyed the drive thru the historic area with french creole names on about everything, soggy fields of tall sugar canes and muddy swamp land everywhere. The landscape is so different from the rocky, rugged Texas hill country covered in cactus, oaks and cedar trees we are used to.

Our tour guide was Bryan Champagne. He and his wife have been running the tours for 20 years. When we were chatting before the tour he told me he also manages 600 crawfish cages which he baits, catches and sells to local restaurants, when the price is right! He has guided many documentary and international television crews, etc. thru these swamps and been written up in several travel magazines. Also about the big gator that lives around the dock and how dogs are his food of choice. He says in his lazy cajun accent, “I can jump in do boat repairs no problem but if a dog jumps in he grabs him right away don’t ya know.”  Glad we didn’t see that!

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Pontchartrain Landing

Pontchartrain Landing

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Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Location:  New Orleans, Louisiana
Site Quality:  Gravel roads with gravel pads. There were both pull thru and back in spots.   
Type:  Commercial
Access:  Take exit 239A (Almonaster Blvd E) off I-10 and go to France Rd. Left on France Rd and the park is on the right in about 1.5 miles. France road goes through an industrial area and it was very rough with potholes and puddles.
Staff:  All staff we met were friendly but the office area stayed quite busy.
Amenities:  Full hookups, swimming pool and hot tub, laundry, bath house and restrooms.
Cellular/WiFi:  AT&T and Verizon 2 bars without amplification. Data rates were pretty good on both.
What we liked: Buddy sites. Great restaurant on site with live music on Friday and Saturday nights. Clean showers. Good store with a variety of items. Seemed safe although the security gates in and out of the park remained open throughout our stay.  Shuttle service provided to and from  the French Quarter for a small fee.
What we didn’t like: It rained before and during our stay and there were large puddles and mud everywhere. The park is in an industrial area which wasn’t very pretty. Some night time noise from nearby train tracks and a busy non-commercial airport.

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Escapees Rainbow’s End

Escapees Rainbow’s End

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Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Location:  Livingston, Texas
Site Quality:  Asphalt roads with gravel pads. There are both pull thru and back in spots. More than half are 50A with the remaining being 30A. Each site has a picnic table. 
Type:  Commercial
Access:  From Livingston go South on 146 about 8 miles to the park. The turn on to 146 is a bit tight.
Staff:  All staff we met was friendly and will go out of their way to help.
Amenities:  Full hookups, swimming pool, laundry (2), bath house and restrooms (2). There is also a dump station and dog park on site.
Cellular/WiFi:  AT&T and Verizon 4 bars even without amplification. We got about 6 Mbps on AT&T and Verizon although I was getting 21 Mbps on my cell phone. The data from the Mobley and MiFi was a bit intermittent even when connecting directly to them.
What we liked: This is where our mail service is located so getting mail was convenient. Lots of daily activities including movies. Pull thru sites were long and roomy. Lots of full timers here – some with really nice trucks!
What we didn’t like: Not the prettiest of settings although there are a lot of trees around the edges. For a weekly rate with 50A and a premium site the price was only about $27 per day so that made up for it.

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Cedar Breaks COE

Cedar Breaks COE

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Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Location:  Georgetown, Texas
Site Quality:  Asphalt roads and pads. Each site has a covered picnic table, grill and fire ring. 
Type:  COE
Access:  From Interstate 35 in Georgetown take either Highway 29 or Williams Dr. West to DB Woods Rd. Go South from Williams Dr. or North from Highway 29 to Cedar Breaks Rd. then go West into the park.
Staff:  We had good experience with the park attendants which was a relief since there was an encounter with a park attendant that went viral on Youtube just after we booked the reservation. The person involved is no longer associated with the park.
Amenities:  Water and Electric only, bath house and restrooms.
Cellular/WiFi:  AT&T and Verizon 4 bars even without amplification. We got about 8 Mbps on AT&T and 8.5 Mbps Mbps on Verizon. 
What we liked:  Pretty, well kept park surrounded by lots of cedar trees, with lots of space between most sites which helped with privacy. 
What we didn’t like: No sewer hookups. Cedar trees drop sap in the spring but unlike pine sap cedar sap can be washed off.
Nearby Parks: Jim Hogg COE – A nice alternative to Cedar Breaks if not just a bit farther to Round Rock where our doctors and friends are. Might be a good choice for the April/May visit as we could probably get a site that isn’t below cedar trees that drop sap. Good sites for us: Lower loop (50A sites) – 2, 4, 6, 12, 17, 22, 26, 28, 30, 34, 36, 40, 42, 44, 47; also sites 66 and 76 might be ok. Upper loop (30A sites) – 88, 89, 94, 97, 106, 116, 118, 126, and 142. Sites 105, 127 and 129 also might be ok. The top loop sites should only be selected as a last resort.

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Palestine RV Park

Palestine RV Park

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Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Location:  Palestine, Texas
Site Quality:  Asphalt roads through the park with gravel pads. Each site has a picnic table. 
Type:  Commercial
Access:  Take loop 256 to the South of Palestine then take Crockett Rd. (Hwy 287) South to County Road 147 then go East to the entrance to the park. CO147 is small with some low hanging trees but they were above our rig. Within the park the road was narrow but fine for our 41′ rig with caution.
Staff:  Angela is both the owner and park attendant. She was very helpful and friendly offering to even help us set up. She has put things around the park to make it homey.
Amenities:  Full hookups, bath house, laundry and restrooms.
Cellular/WiFi:  AT&T and Verizon 4 bars even without amplification. We got about 7 Mbps on AT&T and 21 Mbps on Verizon. My phone had lower data rates at about 6 Mbps. The park appeared to have WiFi but it was not advertised and it did not appear to be operational.
What we liked:  Surrounded by lots of trees, very nice area. Good opportunities for walking on the nearby country roads.
What we didn’t like: We did hear train whistles from a track about a mile away but it wasn’t too bad. After that one time we never heard one again. There had been a lot of rain and the sites had a lot of sand that was easily tracked into the rig.

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