Day 12 - August 11th - Lafayette, LA - Vicksburg, MS

---

Sometime in the middle of the night it started to storm....and I mean storm! Thunder, lightening and flash flooding. It was crazy. Our swamp tour was cancelled and we made a decision to head north after watching the weather channel and seeing that it was showing sunshine up north. We left town and headed towards Vicksburg, Mississippi. What a beautiful drive. We drove over the swamp for about 45 minutes and the kids thought it was so cool that they were on a never ending bridge, it was storming the whole time too! As we were cruising along we saw a sign for Port Hudson. We decided to stop and see what it was all about. As it ended up it was a military fort that was used during the Civil War by the Confederates to protect the Mississippi River. When Vicksburg, MS surrendered, Port Hudson surrendered a few days later. It was very interesting to learn that they were cut off from all supplies by the Union and resorted to eating rats, dogs and horses. We wanted to hike down to the actual fort and all the earthen buildings, but were told by the park rangers that it is tick season and they suggested we not go without alot of protective clothing and bug spray. Well after my alligator alley bug infestation, I decided I WASN'T going. We headed north for Natchez, MS and the kings mansion in True Blood. Of course with my outstanding navigating skills, I took us right to the mansion...this is where it gets tricky. We were informed it would be $40 for us to drive up to the house to take a picture! Screw that! They are smoking crack if they think I was paying them $40 for a freakin picture! We made a quick stop at the visitor center and then headed north to Vicksburg. We wanted to get a good nights sleep and head out in the morning for the National Military Park. Of course Theo and my dad found a riverboat casino that they wanted to try out. We left the kids with Subway and their uncle in the room and took off for the riverboat. We had a very good dinner in the cafe with a beautiful view of the Mississippi. The guys went gambling and then we headed back to the hotel for a good night sleep.

---