After 13 days on the road, we finally begin slowing down our pace slightly when we arrive at Lafayette KOA, Stop #6 of Road Trip 2019. We were able to stay three nights in this location, from April 25 to April 28. That way, we could start relaxing a bit after all the whirlwind activity preparing to leave Las Vegas and hitting the road earlier in the month.
Compared to the other KOAs on this trip, and even compared to other campgrounds along our route thus far, this one is a definite keeper! We really loved our stay here and would try to stay here in the future if we could get a premium site like this again.
The campground is right next to I-10 which can be noisy if you’re in the older section of the park. However, we were as far from the freeway as you can get which included this wonderful view. The amenities include a gazebo, patio furniture, bench swing, and a fancy fire pit.
The weather was perfect while we were here, so we never used the fire pit. Well, we did in a way – we used it as a base for our little portable grill!
From time to time, we had a group of ducks wander through our site. And we were delighted to see turtles sunning themselves out in the lake one day. Below you can see only two, but when we started walking toward them to get a closer look, there were actually five turtles. I guess three of them were shy, as they dove off the log as we approached.
We were surprised to learn this campground has 185 sites as it didn’t feel that big as we drove in. Later, as we walked around, we discovered there were several different sections.
The problem with the non-premium sites, in our opinion, is that the concrete is broken up in many places and the sites are extremely tight. Probably designed in earlier times when rigs didn’t have the slideouts and the pads haven’t been maintained in tip-top shape. And in one section, there are way too many trees for our liking. Too much stuff that can drop on top of our roof!
But our section of the park was new, nice, and spacious. There was plenty of space for us to walk the dogs. And we really loved sitting by the lake each evening.
Billy’s Boudin
This part of the country is famous for boudin. And lucky for us, Billy’s Boudin was just outside the campground. We used that opportunity to get some exercise and make some purchases.
We discovered that it’s important to do our shopping here early in the morning. (They open at 6:30 am on the weekdays!) If you don’t time it right, there’s a long line out the door and you can expect to wait at least an hour if that’s the case! There is a drive-through option, but that line can be long as well.
We splurged by getting a variety of items for which Billy’s is known. Crawfish boudin rollups (in the egg rolls). Seasoned cracklins (of which Dean is not a fan, but I am!). Pepperjack roll-up. Fried corn. Neither of us were a fan of the fried corn. It was bland and the texture was off, and well – just not tasty. Cracklins notwithstanding for Dean, we were pretty happy with the rest.
We also had the boudin balls, but I think we prefer the boudin in the rollup form. The balls were just too much for us, but they are very popular. The pepper jack version is better regardless of form (rollup or balls) as the cheesiness adds a nice accent to the overall flavor.
We felt slightly guilty because we don’t normally eat all this fried food. But we did walk a lot here to compensate!
Not only does Billy’s sell boudin in fast-food form, but a variety of meats – boudin-stuffed or not – are for sale as well. Fortunately, we had room in our freezer so that we could indulge. Boudin sausages. Yum! Boudin-stuffed pork chops. Yum! Boudin-stuffed pork tenderloin. You get the idea…!
Vermillionville Living History & Folk Life Park
I love anything history related and what better way to introduce Dean to the history of Louisiana than to go visit a village of recreated Cajun and Creole homes! I lived in New Orleans for a while in the 90s. While I’ll always be an outsider because I wasn’t born and raised here, I do have a fondness for Louisiana in my heart. And now I could start sharing some of that with Dean! Off we went to Vermillionville for a day trip.
Of course, just about everything we do involves food at some point. The restaurant La Cuisine de Maman opened shortly after we arrived, so we decided we should eat before wandering around the park. Sustenance, you know.
The restaurant has a buffet available, but it was full of standard American fare. Nothing that shouts Louisiana to me. And we’re not really buffet people. So we ordered off the menu. I really was trying to refrain from more fried food after Billy’s Boudin shopping extravaganza, but I simply couldn’t resist a shrimp po’boy in Louisiana. It did not disappoint. And the servers were just the friendliest people. Definitely worth stopping in here!
Near the entrance of the park, a building containing several natural history and geology exhibits provides an interesting overview of the local bayou country. From there, you follow a path to get a glimpse of the bayou nearby and then you see various homes that recreate the Cajun and Creole lifestyle from the earliest settlements to the early 20th century. The gardens are lovely, too. And there was a schoolroom with a blackboard covered with the phrase, “I will not speak French.” That was a punishment as late as 1968 intended to eradicate some heritage from the area, sadly.
There are people in costumes throughout the park to demonstrate various activities, such as the blacksmith above. In another part of the park, I got a chuckle watching the donkey play with a door to get into a shed containing something he apparently wanted badly.
As we continued to wander through the park, we encountered a pond area with water lilies and some wildlife. Yikes!
Our last adventure of the day in the park involved a self-guided ride on “le traversier” – a ferry with a guide rope. Dean was a ferryman par excellence. Especially because this ferry ride put distance between us and the alligator!
I’m sure there’s much more to do in Lafayette, but we have other places to be! We’re moving on to Reunion Lake RV Resort in Ponchatoula, Louisiana next.
