Today would be one of the bigger days we have had in the last several days. 85 miles from Kountze to DeRidder, our home for the night.

We all left at 8:00am, it was already 73 degrees, you could cut the humidity with a knife and it was VERY overcast . . .

. . . but DIRT WAS CHEAP!!!!!

We’ve been seeing more lumber mills the further east we travel in TX . . . the raw product . . .

. . . the finished product. Heading to a Menard’s or Home Depot near you.

. . . but NO bodies in the trunk!!!!!

Here is a new species of critter we can add to our roadside menu . . . course it may have been just ‘playing possum’!!!

No time to visit . . . but must be a beautiful place!!!!

Not sure what happened to Sambo Gary, but I bet he was a nice guy!!!!

mmmmmmmmm . . . lost in translation????

This was a sad moment we all shared as we rolled across this bridge and saw a puppy lying on the shoulder. I went back to check him out, saw no blood, but didn’t get too close in case he might have snapped at me. Had a VERY sad look on his face. By the time I got to the end of the bridge, Linda had called 911 to report the pup. Denver Tom was a mile or two back and by the time he crossed the bridge, there was no pup. He either had been picked up, had not been hit and headed back to the pickup we had seen at the boat landing on the left, or had been rescued!!!

This guy didn’t make it across the road . . . and had been ‘mummified’ (nice teeth though) !!!!!

‘Johnny Yuma was a Rebel . . . he roamed through the west’!!!!

We road through the village of Thicket today. Right outside of Thicket was, ‘The Shire’, a new sub division . . . somebody’s dream that didn’t work out so good!!!

We stopped for a break in Buna . . . missed the Redbud Festival  . . . by that much!!!!

. . . but if you need a prison uniform . . . Buna is your place!!!

Say this three times fast . . . it’s fun!!!!

This ‘Dead End’ road ended up being VERYYYYYYYYYYYYY  short!!!

We’ve seen LOTS of thistle, the last week or so, just getting ready to flower. This guy was actually growing it as a crop!!!

Here is our FAVORITE sag driver, Karen. Always there with a smile, water and a tray of GOODIES!!!!

Great words . . . the Pentecostal’s and Baptist’s take the cake for clever sayings on their signboards!!!

WE HAVE FINALLY FLED TX!!!!!! We’ve been traveling the state since March 16 and NEVER thought we would get through it. It’s like it’s own country. When we entered, back in El Paso, we never saw a ‘Welcome to Texas’ sign, so I’ll use the one at the end of the state . . .

. . . Connie says goodbye to the great state of Texas . . .

The Sabine River . . . Texas on the right . . . Louisiana on the left.

However, LA is not too welcoming to visitors . . . this is the only thing that looked like a ‘Welcome to Louisiana’ sign we could find. Not sure what it means. Wonder if they are ‘Open for Business’ like WI????

I met Robin and Sharone, from New York, who needed a little break from their jobs and decided to bike the Southern Tier from CA to FL. I met them as they were traveling, west, back to Maryville.  Sharone’s knee was bothering him and he didn’t think he could make it to DeRidder for the night. Chances are we will see them down the road. The Michigan Boy’s are still one day ahead of us. We’ve lost track of Mark and Julie . . . where are you two????

Only two more miles down the road I met Stephen, from Virginia. Working as a butcher, he decided he needed a little break too, had saved enough money for a trip, so started biking west from New Orleans. He gave me some tips for our visit to New Orleans and I reinforced some of the info the Michigan Boy’s had given him about what he had to look forward to as we traveled west. Safe travels Stephen!!!

We might already be in the land of the ‘Southern Good Old Boy’ network . . . would love to meet Biscuit!!!

Now where was one impressive driveway . . . wonder what was at the other end . . .

After 85 miles we rolled into DeRidder, LA our home for the night. Gina and the girls headed for the bar . . . I had my mind on her other favorite stop of the trip, Dairy Queens. DeRidder, population 6,000, had EVERY KIND of fast food, junk food store one could think of, and at at one time a DQ, but it was no more. Wasn’t meant to be today . . . I’ll have an extra glass of vino!!!