THREE DAYS - THREE STATES

Tuesday, October 9, 2001  over forty members gathered in Pensacola to prepare for a lighthouse tour.  Following an orientation meeting they retired to their rooms to rest up for the next days activities.

After breakfast at the motel, the group boarded the bus and drove to Mobile, Alabama.  Here they transferred to a boat and did a drive by of the Sand Island Lighthouse.  Next on the agenda was a tour of the Mobile Bay Light followed by a viewing of the Mobile Point Light.

Following the tour of the Alabama lighthouse they re-boarded the bus and continued on to their motel in Gulfport, Mississippi, where they would spend the next two nights.

On Thursday, day two of the tour, they climbed aboard the bus and headed for New Orleans, Louisiana.  Here they visited the Port Pontchartrain Light on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain.    Next would be a tour and climb of the New Canal Light.  The New Canal prides itself in the fact that they have probably had more women serve as lighthouse keepers than any other light in the country.  To the right the group can be seen posing in front of the New Canal Lighthouse.

Following lunch at Joe’s Crab Shack they would drive across the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway to visit the Lake Pontchartrain Basin and the Maritime Museum in Madisonville.  A boat trip to Tchefuncte River Light and Pass Manchac Light would conclude the tours for the day.  After dinner at a Seafood restaurant they boarded the bus to return to the motel in Gulfport.

Friday would be the third and final day of the tour, featuring the Mississippi lights.  First was the Ship Island Light and Fort Massachusetts.  Following lunch they would drive into Biloxi and tour the Biloxi Lighthouse, which has the distinction of sitting in the middle of the median of Route U.S. 90 right in the heart of the city.  On the left the group can be seen outside their bus parked in front of the Biloxi Lighthouse.

Following dinner, all boarded the bus to return to the motel in Pensacola.  Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi in three days, they were ready for a  good nights rest before the FLA meeting on Saturday.

Photos are by David Hanko.