Natchez State Park
Natchez State Park was the first stop of our first long trip in our teardrop camper. Our longest prior trip was seven days and we expect this trip to last about four weeks. We don’t really know what to expect as we have never spent so much continuous time in our tiny camper and have not driven in most of the areas. Lastly, although we will be south of most of the country, we will be traveling in the winter. Exciting—but scary!
One of the trip goals was to limit driving hours to 3-5 hours each day. Natchez was a five hour drive and on the long end of our goal, but it gets us well on our path. The post regarding how we planned this trip follows.
It was our first time to camp in Mississippi. We reserved site 46 through Reserve America. It was pretty inexpensive, only $16.05 for the night. The campground was nice with typical state park facilities. Fishing and hunting are big activities in the area and it is my understanding that the fishing is especially good at the lake in the campground.
Rain was expected that night, so we did not really set up camp. Therefore, we just moved items that were in our camper to a picnic table and plugged in the electric cord. We had a couple of places to visit and were having dinner out, so it would be dark when we returned.
Long wood
Natchez is a city with a very interesting past. I was surprised to learn that before the Civil War, more than half the millionaires in the entire country lived in Natchez. Consequently, there are an abundance of very elegant mansions that still exist from that time.
Longwood, an Oriental Villa, is the largest octagonal house in the United States, designed by famous Philadelphia architect, Samuel Sloan. Construction began in 1860 and it was to provide 30,000 square feet of living space. It had been under construction for about eighteen months when it was halted in 1861 as tensions rose regarding the Civil War. The owners, Haller and Julia Nutt, had the basement area completed early and were living in it while the remaining construction was occurring. The owners never completed the remaining interior levels.
Longwood’s wealthy owner became sick and died while in his 40’s, but his wife and their children lived in it for many decades in this unfinished status. Longwood was often referred to over the years as Nutt’s Folly. The Pilgrimage Garden Club acquired Longwood in 1970. It was designated a historic landmark in 1971.
The estate has many beautiful live oak trees such as the one below. A link to the Longwood website follows.
http://www.stantonhall.com/longwood.php
St. Mary’s Basilica
Another amazing architectural design in Natchez is St Mary’s Basilica. The See of the Roman Catholic Church in Mississippi designed the church and began construction in 1842. Most noteworthy, it is the only church built as a cathedral in Mississippi and designated a minor basilica.
It is a beautiful building. Unfortunately, we arrived at a time when mass was just beginning, so we did not get to take photos of the interior. I would have loved to be able to just sit quietly in all that beauty and splendor for a few minutes. Our schedule did not allow for a return to the basilica on this visit, but we want to see it again if we are in the area.
Roux 61 Seafood and Grill
Dinner was at the highly-rated Roux 61 Seafood and Grill and it lived up to its reputation. We arrived at approximately 4 p.m. and the parking lot was full. We had some incredible chargrilled oysters! Our favorites were the oysters, slaw, hush puppies, and bread pudding. We shared a seafood platter and the fish and seafood were also good. This was a very,very good meal!
After dinner, we returned to our camper and watched a movie. It was raining, but we were dry and cozy and the temperature was perfect.
There is still much more to see in Natchez and we hope to return.
Next stop, Sea Rim State Park in Sabine Pass, Texas!
