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Through the Mists of Time in Plantation Country
It is early morning and a light fog hovers over the fields and streams near St. Francisville or down the shady reaches of the Great River Road. The air is crisp and clean and your feet lead you onward over the dewy grass where Audubon might have walked and sketched wild turkeys and wood ducks for his famous Birds of America. Or they may lead you beside roadways where horse-drawn buggies once carried ladies in rustling silk gowns.

Eagerly, your eyes search the landscape. In the distance it slowly emerges, indistinct and large: a hovering whiteness through the moss-draped oaks. As you draw closer you see the massive columns and experience a rare sense of wonder. You are in Plantation Country, a setting for the recent movie Interview With the Vampire. Is this the present or have you eluded time and logic and somehow slipped back to days gone by?

Bounded on one side by the Atchafalaya Basin and on the other by the countryside stretching north from Lake Maurepas, Plantation Country is a pocket of mystery, elegance and majesty, of historic towns and rural customs, of the rich delta lands and the culture of the people who drew their life and wealth from the alluvial soil. And inevitably, it is about the river that made it possible, the river from which it all grew: the Mississippi. For a little of your time and a portion of your imagination, this region will yield its ageless treasures.

Baton Rouge, the State Capital located on the mighty Mississippi, is the cultural and economic center of Plantation Country, uniting English Louisiana with its heart in East and West Feliciana Parishes and French Creole plantation country situated across the Mississippi in Pointe Coupee Parish, with its majestic Creole plantations down the Great River Road. As a result, you'll find the best of these many worlds in both the food- Creole, Cajun and "Old South" cooking blended to create "River Road Cuisine" and music: blues, zydeco, jazz, country and the lively attention to rock that happens in every college town.

The Port of Greater Baton Rouge serves four parishes (counties) Ascension, Iberville, East and West Baton Rouge. As this country's fifth largest deepwater port, Baton Rouge claims a special share of the Mississippi's energy and life. Restaurants and clubs suit every taste from elegant dining to funky fun, and excellent shopping: Baton Rouge has it all and more. It also boasts a vibrant quality of life rooted in its different heritages and constantly renewed by the presence of Louisiana State and Southern universities as well as state government. This vitality is reflected in the annual festivals and the multi-cultural music for which this city is famous.

Be sure to visit Magnolia Mound Plantation and the Rural Life Museum, both in Baton Rouge, where you will begin to understand how the great plantations operated. Then you may head either north or south. Highway 61 takes you upriver to the charming heart of English Louisiana. Extraordinary stories await you at all the great plantations:

Rosedown (with 85% of its original furnishings), Greenwood (where parts of the acclaimed mini-series "North and South" were filmed), The Myrtles (which boasts ghosts!) and Oakley House (where Audubon began work on his famous Birds of America).

This incredible wealth of Old South architecture is greater still. Take your time in the towns themselves. Many of the buildings in St. Francisville, Jackson and Clinton are on the National Register of Historic Places. Milbank House, The Republic of West Florida Museum and Asphodel Inn in Jackson as well as the East Feliciana Courthouse and Lawyers Row in Clinton provide glimpses into the elegant 19th century area history. St. Francisville's small Museum and Heritage Center houses fascinating handwritten descriptions and memorabilia. The cemetery behind Grace Episcopal Church reflects the poignant realities of 19th century life. Nearby is Port Hudson State Commemorative Area, site of an important campaign of the Civil War in which African-American U.S. Army troops first participated in a major assault. Golfers will find Arnold Palmer's "The Bluffs" on Thompson Creek in this area as well.

Cross the river by ferry and find New Roads, the charming center of French plantation country. Located on False River, one of Louisiana's two trophy bass lakes, this area has excellent fishing, water-skiing, beautiful scenery and abundant history. The writer Ernest Gaines was born and raised near here and this part of Louisiana appears in most of his novels and stories. Visit Parlange Plantation, a National Historic Landmark. Generations of families have lived in New Roads for two centuries. Stay at quaint bed & breakfasts, where these friendly people will eagerly share their unique heritage as well as delicious home-cooked food.

Travel southeast on LA 1 to Port Allen where you can visit the West Baton Rouge Museum, Aillet House, the Port Allen Locks and Poplar Grove Plantation. Further south discover more antebellum magnificence.

The Great River Road winds along both sides of the Mississippi, linking bright jewels like Nottoway, Oak Alley, Houmas House, Tezcuco, San Francisco, Destrehan and Ormond. Each of these plantations will intrigue you with its history and please you with authentic period furnishings.

Some of them offer bed & breakfast the ultimate in romantic rendezvous at any time of year, but especially at Christmas, when many plantations greet the yuletide season decorated in 19th century holiday finery. Candlelight tours and elegant dinners complete the experience.

Back in Baton Rouge, rediscover the present in the many attractions. Louisiana's Art Deco style State Capitol is the tallest in the nation and there's nothing quite like seeing the Mississippi from the Capitol's 27th floor observation deck. Stop in at the Old State Capitol's newly opened Center for Political and Governmental History, the two locations of the Louisiana Arts and Science Center, the Greater Baton Rouge Zoo and at the U.S.S. Kidd, a WWII destroyer docked on the Mississippi River and ready to welcome visitors.

Although Baton Rouge is a bustling city, it is graced by the hospitality that comes so naturally to Louisianians. You'll experience it in shops and restaurants, hotels and attractions because this city delights in keeping the small-town, friendly character so typical of Plantation Country. The rewards you will reap in this region are many, wonderful and one-of-a-kind. They are rewards that will be part of your best memories.

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Two-Steppin' Across Cajun Country
Who are the Cajuns?
All great pleasures are great because of their originality and uniqueness, their lasting ability to please and engage. Such is the mystic charm of Cajun Country, a land of towering sugar cane, winding bayous, Acadian cottages and crawfish ponds. If you have any preconceptions, you had best set them aside before you explore these historic towns and cities with vibrant folklife, colorful carefree traditions and their own way of speaking that will make you wonder if you really are in the U.S. This region freely even joyfully! breaks many of the rules by which other destinations define themselves.

Traveling west to Crowley, "Louisiana's Rice Capital"; Rayne, "the city of murals," famous for its annual frog festival; and Church Point, with its "Buggy Festival." In Lafayette, the Acadian Village, Vermilionville and the Acadian Cultural Center will acquaint you with some of the region's history and customs.

To the southwest of Lafayette, situated on the Vermilion Bayou, the quaint city of Abbeville has two charming town squares, the scene for many festivals such as the "Louisiana Cattle Festival". In addition, Vermilion parish was named "the most Cajun Place on Earth" by the 1990 census. Visit Shadows-on-the-Teche in New Iberia; the picturesque town square and the Longfellow-Evangeline State Commemorative Area in St. Martinville; the charming Le Beau Petit Musee in Jeanerette, deep in sugar cane country. Stop in Franklin, with its elegant Historic District including Arlington Plantation and Oaklawn Manor; and Morgan City, site of the "Shrimp and Petroleum Festival," the oldest chartered festival in the state. In Henderson, Patterson and Houma numerous swamp tours will show you the wonders of the Atchafalaya Swamp. Houma's Southdown Plantation / Terrebonne Museum is on the National Register of Historic Places. In Thibodaux, stop to see the Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center. Don't pass through Cajun Country without noticing the churches an inevitable architectural treat in this predominantly Catholic area.

But to really understand the people, you must turn to the food that has brought them so much fame and to the restaurants where it is served. If elegant dining is your choice, there are many excellent, authentic Cajun/Creole restaurants. No doubt you will want to take advantage of these wonderful cuisines, the finest in the world. But you will also want to stop at the down-home restaurants, places where rough wooden floors, unadorned table tops and tableware wrapped in paper napkins greet the eye, where the dance floor and the band are the center of attention, for here is the very essence of the Cajun experience.

Resourceful and energetic, these descendants of the Acadians settled the swamps and bayous towards the end of the 18th century. Year round they display an exuberance that fuels the region-wide festivals and "Mardi Gras" celebration. If you have been looking for a place where your children will feel right at home, this is your destination.

The food is tasty, zesty and hearty: ettoufes, gumbos, plentiful seafood cooked with panache. The music you will hear in these rustic restaurants is a unique blend of many different traditions, including French folk tunes. The accordion and the fiddle are the mainstays of Cajun music and the washboard is added into the mix for "zydeco", which is African-American/Cajun music. Chances are that before very long your feet will lead you to a dance floor where grandparents and great grandparents "two-step" circles around younger generations and fathers waltz with babies in their arms. Let yourself go and you will experience a delight you probably have not felt in years.

You will hear this same music at the region's many fairs and festivals. Church Point's "Courir de Mardi Gras" in February, Lafayette's "Festivals Acadiens" in September, Breaux Bridge's "Crawfish Festival" and Lake Charles' "Contraband Days", both in May, and Plaisance's "Southwest Louisiana Zydeco Music Festival" in August are some of the largest.

Snowy egrets in graceful flight, blue herons tall and still against a blazing sky, nutria cutting through the water and the swift silent slice of the alligator hunting lunch: these are the magnificent sights and sounds of the Atchafalaya Basin, the country's largest undeveloped wetlands and the vast swamp of Louisiana lore and legend. A swamp tour is a rite of passage and a living link to the past. Until you have taken one from Henderson, Houma, Morgan City or Kraemer, you cannot really say you have been to Cajun Country, for this is its soul.

You'll see fishermen taking advantage of the same bounty that sustained their ancestors. The fish are plentiful in the bayous as well as in the Gulf of Mexico and are important resources for the economy of this region. Much of the crawfish, a basic ingredient of many delicious Cajun dishes, is taken from the Atchafalaya Basin.

But farmers, particularly rice farmers, often flood a portion of their land and set wire traps for the crawfish harvest.

Along the Gulf Coast, you'll find boating, fishing, swimming and birding at beautiful Grand Isle. Charter a fishing boat from marinas in Cocodrie or Chauvin. Go camping at Port Fourchon or Grand Isle State Park. Go crabbing in the briny marshlands that are home to abundant wildlife and waterfowl. Not surprisingly, this area is dotted with hunting "camps". The Creole Nature Trail Scenic Byway, beginning near Lake Charles and Sulphur, allows you to drive 105 miles through this rare wilderness area. The area's state parks offer excellent fishing, boating, camping and more.

Having said all that, there's still more to see and do. Theater in Abbeville, antiquing in Washington, the historic beauty at the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau, the only U.S. site of a miracle recognized by the Catholic Church. You could easily fill two or three weeks in this remarkable part of the state and still come back for more.

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On the Move in Sportsman's Paradise
Old South elegance and gleaming glass skyscrapers nestle comfortably amid the natural splendors of Sportsman's Paradise, bearing rich testimony to Louisiana's amazing diversity. Named for the rolling, wooded hills and the plentiful lakes, rivers and bayous that have yielded their bounty to eager hunters and fishermen since prehistoric times, Sportsman's Paradise is home to sophisticated cities, historic towns and abundant entertainment.

Here, in Monroe/West Monroe, Ruston and Shreveport/Bossier City you can enjoy any level of comfort, savor a delightful range of cuisines Southern, Cajun, Texan, Mexican and International and discover innumerable fine attractions. These range from Monroe's Masur Museum and Shreveport's R.W. Norton Art Gallery featuring American and European masterpieces and a private collection of Remingtons, to Monroe's lovely Louisiana Purchase Gardens and Zoo, Ruston's Louisiana Passion Play and Shreveport's Water Town, U.S.A., Hamel's Amusement Park and Sci-Port Discovery Center, a new hands-on children's museum.

Do you enjoy Broadway and ballet? Be sure to get tickets to the beautifully restored Strand Theater in Shreveport. Is antiquing your interest? West Monroe's Antique Alley is waiting to tempt you, as is Ruston's Odell Pottery. Do you like flowers and gardens? Stop at the American Rose Center in Shreveport or Elsong Gardens in Monroe. Professional sports include the Shreveport Captains, a AA baseball team; the Shreveport Crawdads, of the Continental Basketball Association; and the Shreveport Pirates, of the Canadian Football League. Shreveport/Bossier City's recent introduction of three dockside riverboat casinos adds yet another exciting dimension to your visit. Be sure to stop in at the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum to its 22 miniature dioramas and say hello to "Charlie Bob" and "Samantha", the resident alligators who inhabit the museum's central pond.

There's an energy in these cities, too. An innovative spirit, a "let's get it done and soon" attitude that underlies the warmth and hospitality. A pride of place that permeates the excellence of service. This is a legacy of the area's European ancestry, pioneers from the Carolina Piedmonts who traveled and settled this western land. For indeed, before America acquired the Texas territories and beyond, Louisiana was considered "the West". You can explore this heritage in the many historic towns that dot the region, any number of which feature museums and heritage centers like Vivian, Jonesboro, Arcadia, Bastrop and Rayville.

But the pioneers were relative latecomers. By 1500 BC., Louisiana was home to a great Indian trading center where raw materials and products from the Upper Mississippi Valley, the Great Lakes and the Ouachita, Ozark and Appalachian Mountains were imported and distributed to Indian groups. Their trade center was Poverty Point, one of the country's major archaeological sites and a State Commemorative Area.

Travel and discovery are at the very heart of your Sportsman's Paradise adventure. Climb onto the broad back of Interstate 20 or feel free to follow highways and byways.

Along the way you're likely to find people serving as volunteer guides at interpretive history centers like the Alberry Wasson Homeplace near Homer, the Bernice Depot Museum in Bernice or the Pioneer Heritage Center at LSU-Shreveport. Or they may be busy polishing up old public buildings and antebellum farm houses in postcard perfect villages like Keatchie, Rocky Mount, Unionville, St. Joseph, Fisher and Mount Lebanon. Country music enthusiasts will want to visit the Dixie Jamboree in Ruston.

Of course, if fishing is your hobby, this region gives you plenty of opportunities. Bass fishing at the 180,000-acre Toledo Bend Reservoir is some of the best in the country. Near the Sabine River, discover heritage more western than Cajun and Creole. Here, old-fashioned country fairs still operate and you are apt to find a private rodeo arena next to a farmhouse. This is the home of tradition-preserving communities like Leesville and Many, site of the renowned Hodges Gardens. It is also the home of Fort Polk, with its interesting military museum. Fort Polk has played a major role in every American conflict since before the Civil War.

If you're a Civil War enthusiast, you'll enjoy Civil War reenactments at Mansfield State Commemorative Area and Pleasant Hill. Or you can trace the First and Second Campaigns of the Red River up Bayou Boeuf and the Red River to Natchitoches. Eastward are military sites dating from 1863, when General Grant sent troops to the area of Louisiana opposite Vicksburg. Just north of Tallulah is the site of the "Skirmish of Milikens Bend" the second documented battle of African-American soldiers.

Wherever you go, you'll meet people happy to acquaint you with colorful tales about local folk heroes like Captain Henry Miller Shreve, who cleared a 180-mile log jam, opening the Red River to the future site of Shreveport. And about villains like the "land pirate" Murrell and, yes, that infamous pair, Bonnie and Clyde, who had their last and fateful encounter with the law near Arcadia.

This is horse country, too. The lavish and modern Louisiana Downs thoroughbred race track in Bossier City is a monument to this love. You'll see others in the countryside where dozens of expansive horse ranches share the landscape with moss-draped swamps, the cotton plantations of the Red and Ouachita river valleys, huge recreation lakes, densely forested hills and the table-flat Mississippi River Delta, with its unbroken miles of cotton and soybean fields.

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Festivals Around Louisiana

Can't think of anything to do this weekend? Maybe we can help. At Cracker Barrel, we know there is a lot to do in the state of Louisiana. Even better, you can generally find a festival or destination within a couple hours drive. We decided to put together a list of Louisiana festivals to give you a place to start.

Just remember, Cracker Barrel Convenience Stores are on the road where you need us.

  • Gonzales Jambalaya Festival, usually in May, Gonzales, Jambalaya Capitol of the World
    Music, food, Jambalaya Cooking contest, crafts, and more       www.jambalayafestival.org

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