Baton Rouge to Hot Springs – 05-28-25 to 06-05-25
From Baton Rouge, LA, we headed toward Natchez, LA (and if you crossed the Mississippi River, you would be in Nachez, MS). Along the back roads, we saw the largest rice fields and more of them than we had seen on our left (and of course, the levee on the right). Our River View RV Park & Resort was right on the river, over the levee, and we got to watch the barges from WOW’s window. It was a great park!
Nachez, LA is a small town with many plantations. We thought about touring the Longwood Plantation (left) but when we arrived, Tom said it didn’t say “southern plantation” to him. (The picture in the link makes it look lots better than it really did.) It is the largest antebellum octagonal mansion in the U.S., unfinished due to the interruption of the Civil War. We decided instead to go to Frogmore Plantation the next morning. So, we drove around Natchez, through the old American Cemetery (right), the oldest cemetery in the LA Purchase, with graves dating back to colonial times, and then enjoyed the old Gothic houses in town.
Fortunately, we got back to WOW before the thunderstorm and rain started. Though we tried to walk on the wonderful riverwalk that went for miles along the Mississippi River, the gnats won. Once the rain started, we had rain until well after we went to bed. Although we never had to drive in it, this was the fourth day of rain in a row, with lots of flooding in the low-lying areas, including trees down. Though the next day was still overcast, it was the coolest morning and lowest humidity we had had in probably 2 weeks (71 degrees but still humid). Relief.
Frogmore Plantation was 20 miles away and we arrived at 9:00 when they opened. It was underwhelming. We walked the plantation, sinking into the water-saturated lawn. WOW + our Jeep made big divots next to their driveway, for which we apologized (right). We did a self-guided tour that started with a movie followed by audio headsets with well-researched information about the plantation and the effect of the Civil War on it. We saw the various buildings that included the barn, kitchen, slaves’ quarters, church, smokehouse, and plantation office. The current owner lives in the plantation house, and we were not allowed to tour it. We were the only tourists there our entire hour and a half. Though glad we stopped, we still wanted a guided tour of a bigger plantation.
Tom acquiesced to Paula’s desire to drive some of the 444-mile Natchez Trace Parkway (left) even though it took us slightly away from the Great River Road. It was a beautiful drive, a nice 2-lane road with dense forest on each side. 
Paula thought it looked a bit like her home state of NC mountains. We made several of the marked stops and saw the Mount Locust Inn and Plantation, an overnight for “Kaintucks,” boatmen who floated down the Mississippi River to sell their goods at markets in Natchez and NOLA and then walked north on the Natchez Trace to make their way back home. The crude “inn” enabled them to eat a meal of corn mush and milk and allowed them to sleep on the front porch or grounds for two bits. Click here to get an overview of the Natchez Trace Parkway.
We went to Jackson, MS to meet friends Tom and Glenda Smitherman who we met in Demopolis, AL while doing the Great Loop in our boat. Though they lived 4 hours away in AL, they told us they wanted to see us when we came through MS. (Tom V. texted them that he didn’t think we were worth a 4-hour drive, but they insisted. Though we hadn’t spent a lot of time with them, we had really “connected.”) We found a lovely, peaceful site for 2 nights right on the lake at LeFleurs Bluff SP. Unfortunately, the mosquitos found the same site and had a feast on us each time we went out.
Tom and Glenda arrived around 11:15 and we had a great time catching up. Paula had researched restaurants in Jackson and found Mama Hamil’s Southern Soul Food Buffet for only $15. She had been wanting to taste some authentic southern soul food and thought this would have a good variety. We knew when we got to the parking lot, it was a town favorite. And boy was there variety! Click here to see what was on the menu for lunch. Plenty of GF and non-fried choices there! Paula, the adventuresome one, found out turnip greens cooked right have no bitterness (her favorite, to her surprise) and the rutabagas were OK too. Pickled okra…not so much. Glenda and Tom V. relished the fried gizzards.
After Tom & Glenda left, we decided to explore Jackson. Things to do in Jackson included museums and government buildings (again, the state capitol) and we had had our fill of those. But there was a special traveling exhibit on Hurricane Katrina at a museum to celebrate the 20-year anniversary. While we did not experience Katrina personally, it was significant to us. LifesTra
Vails, our 44’ DeFever on which we did the Great Loop, was washed ashore in that storm. It was found after the storm on dry ground leaning against a tree. The exhibit also had pictures of boats that had been washed ashore. The photography by Melody Golding wonderfully captured the devastation of Katrina but also the heart of the people to recover.
Because we arrived at 4:00, both the Museum of MS History and the MS Civil Rights Museums were also free for us. We only had time to do the MS Civil Rights Museum but found it excellent and once again, thanked God for our freedom and were sorry for the struggle for those of color to achieve it. If you go to this MS Civil Rights Museum link, you can see a good summary of some of that wonderful museum (with excellent videos).
The next morning, we passed through Vicksburg, MS. We saw the Vicksburg National Military Park, the Vicksburg Murals that told the history of Vicksburg in paintings (above), and walked the 1-block street fair with Whisper. Then we toured the free Lower MS River Museum and Interpretive Center, including the Mississipi River Commission’s towboat (Motor Vessel MS IV) that held a crew of 38 and a couple of really big engines! For your next trivia night, Vicksburg was also the location of the first bottled Coca-Cola.
Then it was on to Lakeport Plantation (left) for a guided tour. It is the only remaining AR antebellum plantation home on the Mississippi River. Much of the house has been restored by Arkansas State University to which it was donated in 2001. We were glad to hear Lycurgus Johnson was a respectable master and hired many of his former slaves after the Civil War was over and the Emancipation Proclamation freed them. We enjoyed the tour.
Click here
for a bit of history on the owners of Lakeport.
Then it was on to our next NP. The Hot Springs campground was full, so we stayed at a Corps of Engineers campground about 20 miles away for just $13/night with 50A power. It was right on Lake Ouachita, a very large lake that reflected beautiful sunsets. We got the scooter down and cruised around the area and took walks along the lake. The only downside was the road into the campsite. It was a bit sketchy…very narrow and winding.
Hot Springs NP is unique in being entirely within an urban area. (The Gateway Arch NP in St. Louis, MO, is the only NP in the US that is completely located within a city). Established before the concept of a NP existed, it was the first time land had been set aside by the federal government to preserve its use as an area for recreation and was designated a federal reservation in 1832 to protect the hot springs. There are 47 springs (lacking the sulfur odor of most hot springs), and two places in the park have spigots from which you can fill your water bottle directly with spring water. It was the first to receive its own US quarter in April 2010 as part of the America the Beautiful Quarters coin series and the park ranger gave Paula one!
The park includes portions of downtown Hot Springs, originally known as “spa town,” making it one of the most accessible NPs. The entire Bathhouse Row area is designated as a National Historic Landmark District; it contains the grandest collection of bathhouses of its kind in North America (originally 8, built between 1892 and 1923), including many outstanding examples of Gilded Age architecture. The park’s visitor center is actually the original Fordyce Bathhouse and operates a 4-story museum showing the original opulent bathhouse (pictures below). There was an examination that had to be taken by the attendants to work there. Could you pass the test?
We walked the half-mile Grand Promenade on the hill above the bathhouses (right), included as the National Historic Landmark, while listening to a free audio description. (Dial 501-545-2084 if you want to hear it.) After lunch at Superior Bathhouse Brewery (which makes beer and root beer from the hot spring water), we hiked multiple trails through the woods in the NP. Though it was 89 degrees (hotter than Phoenix that day!), there was a light breeze. The next day, we went back into the park with Whisper (as it is one of the few NPs that allow dogs on trails) and hiked the Goat Trail. We enjoyed Hot Springs NP.
Next major destination – Memphis. We spent one night enroute at Willow Beach in Scott, AR and were inundated with Mayflies all over WOW the next morning. As soon as we got away from the lake, they were gone. The ranger told us they only live 24 hours.
Stay tuned for blog #4 as we travel farther north on the Great River Road.
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