Biking Baton Rouge

Hi Blog! Today dawned bright and sunny, albeit a little on the cool side.  Having spent the last two days cooped up inside waiting on microwave repairmen, we were looking forward to getting out and about today. On the bright side, all that down time gave us a chance to learn more about Baton Rouge.

Did you know that Baton Rouge was first settled by Europeans in 1719 when the French established a military fort at this location. Did you also know that Baton Rouge has been governed by France, Britain, Spain, Louisiana, the Republic of West Florida, the Confederate States, and the United States.

Baton Rouge is located on the banks of the Mississippi River in Southeastern Louisiana.  It is the Louisiana State Capital and home to Louisiana State University. We wanted to get out and explore the campus and see the historic district and capital buildings. As with most old cities, the roads are really narrow and parking is hard to come by.  So, we decided to find a place to park the truck on the campus and then ride our bikes downtown.  Anyway, bicycling around town is much for fun than trucking around town.

Before pedaling, we stopped to fuel up at The Chimes, a bar and restaurant near the LSU campus.  After a couple craft brews and cajun delicacies, we took off to explore Baton Rouge.  Here is Kathy admiring one of the three lakes we went past.

Our route took us down Park Boulevard, a beautiful tree-line street.  Every house was unique, but the one with the gigantic flamingo on the front gets to be in the blog.

Spring is just starting to blossom.  You can see that Park Boulevard's name aptly describes it, with its strip of grass and trees running down the center of the street.  Note the two trees blossoming on the right!

We turned onto North Boulevard (not to be confused with North Street just four blocks away).  Here is the old Governor's Mansion.

Next came the Old State Capitol, a medieval castle overlooking the Mississippi, complete with turrets and crenellations.   Not everyone was a fan of the "Castle on the River."  Mark Twain, as a steamboat pilot in the 1850s, loathed the sight of it, "It is pathetic ... that a whitewashed castle, with turrets and things ... should ever have been built in this otherwise honorable place."

I wonder what Mr. Twain would have thought about the New Capitol. The New Louisiana State Capitol has 34 stories and is 450 feet tall, making it the tallest capitol in the United States. Currently, it is also the tallest building in Baton Rouge and the seventh tallest in Louisiana.

Since we were in the neighborhood, we decided to stop in and check out the exhibits at the Capitol Park Museum.  First, find a place to park the bikes.  The Capitol Park Museum features exhibits on the diverse aspects of Louisiana history, industry and culture.

Topics range from the Louisiana Purchase to Sportsmen's Paradise to Mardi Gras traditions throughout the state. Here is Dave getting up close and personal with a resident of Acadie.

After filling our heads with all sorts of history and culture, we soon found it time to head back to the truck and out of the city before rush hour started.  Our route back to the LSU campus took us along the Mighty Mississippi.

As we traveled along River Road, we passed the original Rose Hill Missionary Baptist Church, tucked away in a modest little community that is protected from Katrina-like disaster by only a massive levee not more than 50 yards away, on the other side of which the Big Muddy growls not more than 50 more yards beyond.

Before we knew it, our ride was over.  Time to pack up the bikes and head back to camp.

 Tomorrow, we plan to attend another Mardi Gras parade - YES - more beads!