Must-see Bayou La Batre

Part of Dauphin Island’s charm, a huge part for me, is the island’s lack of commercialism. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy visiting a good, touristy coastal town, with its kitschy souvenir shops, funky eateries, and gaudy decor. Oh, and the beach. But I have also really enjoyed chillaxing on Dauphin Island where all that stuff is minimal.

We did need to go off-island on several occasions for our COVID boosters,  major grocery runs, stocking up on dog food, craft supplies (🐸), and other important stuff. That’s how we found Bayou La Batre, a quaint little fishing village about a 25-minute drive from our campground.

One of our many nice RV neighbors recommended we try eating at Bayou Seafood. I’m so glad he did, too. Their fried seafood is delicious. The onion rings are pretty darn good, too. We didn’t have room for onion rings on our last visit. We both wanted to eat all of our main courses. It was our last chance to dine there since we are headed east to Florida tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

 

I couldn’t leave the are without a shout-out to these folks. We met the owner last night and chatted a bit. The girls who work there with him are very sweet, too. If you ever visit this area, Bayou Seafood is a must-eat place to go.

There is also an Asian restaurant — Phnom Penh Fusion — that I found surprisingly good. It has a big sushi menu, too (I prefer eating cooked proteins).

Even if we hadn’t needed to visit the Bayou, I would have wanted to see the town anyway since that’s where Forrest Gump’s fictional friend, Bubba, hailed from.

It’s not full of stately old homes or anything like that. It’s a fishing village full of modest houses and buildings. Besides the fleet of fishing and shrimp boats, there are also several shipbuilders and big seafood processing houses. Live Oak trees are scattered throughout the town. It may not be as visually charming as some other places I have visited, but it’s very picturesque in its own right.

There’s an impressive vertical lift drawbridge there, too. I watched it operating one day, and even captured a video. If anyone is interested, let me know in the comments and I’ll add the video to YouTube when I’m able.

For now, it’s time to turn in. Tomorrow is a travel day. We are off to a two-month stint at two different campgrounds in Florida. One, we visited earlier this year. more on that from Florida.