The month of November finds us in Biloxi, Mississippi. We last visited this area in July 2005. We spent maybe a week or so here enjoying some great seafood and exploring the white sand coastline. We recalled the casinos that once lined the beach front and how much we enjoyed them, the coast campgrounds we stayed and especially the stately old antebellum homes that were on Hwy 90. Unfortunately on August 26, 2005 Hurricane Katrina hit this region with monumental force. It has been interesting yet sad to see photographs of the massive destruction of the city and coastline after the hurricane hit, then compared with the redevelopment & new construction of Biloxi and the surrounding regions. We certainly appreciate what Biloxi has done to bounce back from that disaster. To see some striking and unbelievable photographs of Biloxi before and after Hurricane Katrina, click on this website PhotosFromKatrina.com.
From the front lawn of the newly built Biloxi Visitor Center,
I made this photograph of the Biloxi Lighthouse. This lighthouse was erected in 1848 from cast-iron and bricks. From when it was built in 1848 until 1936 it was civilian run by mostly women, notably Maria Younghans. She was the lighthouse keeper for 53 years. Amazingly this lighthouse survived Katrina's storm surge and winds with some damage. It was repaired, restored and reopened in 2010 to for public tours.
I made this photograph of the Biloxi Lighthouse. This lighthouse was erected in 1848 from cast-iron and bricks. From when it was built in 1848 until 1936 it was civilian run by mostly women, notably Maria Younghans. She was the lighthouse keeper for 53 years. Amazingly this lighthouse survived Katrina's storm surge and winds with some damage. It was repaired, restored and reopened in 2010 to for public tours.
This info sign in the side yard of the new Biloxi Visitor Center describes the hurricane surge water marks for Hurricanes Camille in 1962 (blue) and Katrina in 2005 (red). Ronnie is standing beside the pole for reference. That's 22 feet (with reported waves of 34 ft) for Katrina and 19 feet depth of mean sea level for Camille.
The interior of the new two-story Biloxi Visitor Center was beautiful with it's spacious art galleries, museum, theater, gift gallery and visitor information desk. I found these wonderful stained glass windows mounted on an interior wall. Inquiring about them with the Center's Receptionist, she tells me they are from the Robinson-Maloney-Dantzler House, an antebellum home built in 1849 by a wealthy English cotton planter. The neo-classical home was destroyed during Hurricane Katrina and the new Biloxi Visitor Center was built on the vacant property. She went on to state that the entire building was destroyed but these six windows were found in the wreckage unbroken.
Our home base for the month, Majestic Oaks RV Campground is very comfortable with great WiFi, cable TV, paved sites and roads.
Their entrance and clubhouse greets you with those stately old live oak trees but their campground has open sites with clear sky views (and no acorns).
Our home base for the month, Majestic Oaks RV Campground is very comfortable with great WiFi, cable TV, paved sites and roads.
Their entrance and clubhouse greets you with those stately old live oak trees but their campground has open sites with clear sky views (and no acorns).
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| Just a quick note about Majestic Oaks. During our stay, the RV park has provided community get-togethers with pizza lunches, biscuit breakfasts and a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch. We've never seen this before! |
We discovered the quaint, artsy town of Ocean Springs, Mississippi just a few miles east of Biloxi. This is a view from the town's Front Beach Drive looking across Biloxi Bay and the Hwy 90 Bridge.
Driving around Ocean Springs, we travel under canopies of huge live oak trees. Their downtown area lined with shops, restaurants and topped with the branches of these wonderful old trees.
We really enjoyed the Peter Anderson Art Festival held annually the first weekend in November. It took us most of day to peruse all 450 vendors!
At the base of the new Hwy 90 Bridge we found this incredible tile mosaic mural. The plaque states it's The Biloxi Bay Bridge Mosaic created as part of the rebuilding process of Bilixi after Katrina. Dedicated in 2009, it is the effort of several collaborating artists with lead Elizabeth Veglia heading up the endeavor. I found the mural just amazing with its detail and color.
Ronnie and I also happened upon the Ocean Springs' water front dock. There we saw fishermen selling fresh shrimp and fish.
Looking at the map, we notice
Gulf Islands National Seashore on the outskirts of Ocean Springs. We take a quick drive through the wooded Davis Bayou Area and find it reminds us of North Carolina's Croatan National Forest in Cedar Point. We did take time for a stroll down this marked nature trail.
You can see the Biloxi Bay Fishing Pier from the new Hwy 90 Bridge. You can drive your vehicle on the pier as it goes out into Biloxi Bay for a half mile or so. What a great place to see what fish folks are catching, view the water and catch a nice sunset.
We have seen several colorful sunsets, this one as we traveled west on Hwy 90, the Biloxi Beach Road.
What have we discovered in Biloxi? Some great casino deals on food, some tasty seafood, Mexican and Greek restaurants, interesting breweries, peaceful Gulf of Mexico water views and some really nice folks.
More Later on what else we may find..
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