So off we went in hopes of an adventure. What we got was a downpour. The interesting little place was a dud, but we saw lots of rice fields, several rice mills, and a couple of towns that we would visit again.
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| Mermentau River |
Not much larger than Evergreen, Mermentau is a little town on the Mermentau River. The river looks wide here, and it is, but it spills into Lake Arthur where it becomes much bigger as it travels into Grand Lake and eventually the Gulf of Mexico.
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| One of many rice fields between Mermentau and Crowley |
The area between Mermentau and Crowley is part of the Grand Chenier prairie, rich soil perfect for growing rice, crawfish, and sugar cane. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service notes, "The Chenier Plain is a popular destination for nature watchers, anglers and hunters, who come from around the world....With its location at the terminus of the Central and Mississippi Flyways, coastal wetlands in this focal area are extremely important for waterfowl and...up to 5.8 million ducks. The area also has productive estuaries, nearby forests and grasslands, and expansive tidal wetland systems. The coastal waters...contribute substantially to the nation’s commercial fishery landings, particularly for shrimp, blue crab, oysters and Gulf menhaden operations."
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| Top: Riviana rice mill; Bottom: Supreme Rice Mill in operation (note the train cars waiting to be loaded) |
From Crowley we moseyed east to Rayne along Hwy. 90 for the original reason of the trip: The Eucharistic Miracles of the World exhibit. It was set up to explain each miracle independently. Placards give an overview, details, and photos of monstrances and tabernacles, artwork, churches and saints.
And that rounds up our little jaunt. There were other interesting finds along the way, but this post is plenty long already.
Thanks for stopping by.
Thanks for stopping by.
2 comments:
I found this very interesting, Mary. It gives me more of a sense of your part of the world and I like the photos of those rice mills a lot. Have you thought of making a rice mill quilt?
Can you read my mind from over there? Yes, I've been collecting pictures of agricultural buildings, from barns to cotton and rice mills to grain elevators, for a couple of years. I'm starting to feel that I've got a sense of how these places work. I'd really love to ramble around in one. I need to understand the basic architecture and inner workings so that I can make informed decisions. I guess it's part of my process...I have a long incubation period. (Or maybe need time to work up the nerve.)
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