M/V ILLUSIONS                             EARLIER CRUISES            

1996 CRUISE LOGS Houston, TX to Lake Charles, LA and Return May 3 - 6, 1996       Contraband Days was a big celebration in and around the lake and port at Lake Charles.  Marc and Cindy Snowhite had made the trip by car in 1995 with friends who had been there before.  Now they were going by boat and leading us on our first visit.  We spent the night on the boat so we could get an early start.  We were up at 6:30 and out of the marina by 8:30am.      Our 38' Carver was comfortable for us at a slightly faster speed than Marc and Cindy's 43' Carver.  But they had more fuel capacity.  So we ran on to the Stingaree Restaurant and Marina on the ICW east of Galveston and bought fuel.  They passed us, and we tried to catch up to them later in the day.      John Myers was a man Marc and Cindy had met on the cruise the previous year.  He was arranging slips for us at a local marina.  He thought we would stay at the Bridgeport Marina, but he was able at the last minute to secure slips for both of us at the Casino Marina at Players Island Casino on the east side of the lake.  We were secured there at 7pm, and some friends of ours, Bobby and Rick, picked us up for dinner at 7:30.  It was a late evening; we were excited to be there for the big weekend.      On Saturday, May 4, the lake was packed with boats at anchor, along with various boat skits that were part of the celebration, such as a bathtub race.  The participants were to row their own bathtub across the lake in competition with others, without sinking.  We did not see, but heard about, the mayor being thrown into the lake; and pirates took over the waterfront for the duration.  Black flags with the skull and bones symbol were in evidence everywhere.           On the shore at the seawall vendors sold hot dogs and other foods of all types, t-shirts, souvenirs, face-painting, etc.  We bought a hat for Angela and two t-shirts with the Contraband Days symbols shown on the front.  A band was playing on and off throughout the day.  Beer was flowing, and wet t-shirts were helping to ease the heat.  We ran the jet boat with Bobby and Rick.  Then we rode on John's pontoon boat, which was very pleasant.  John's wife, Becky, Marc and Cindy, and some other friends of ours and John's were all on the slowly-moving pontoon boat.  John seemed to know everyone; he was a very friendly person, and very considerate, too.           We were delivered to our boat at 7:30, and we showered and changed for dinner.  John arranged so many things for us; we all ate at the buffet at the casino that evening.  We finally called it a night about midnight.      On Sunday, May 5, we all had breakfast and lunch together, tried our luck at the casino, and then moved over to Bridgeport Marina.  We wanted to leave early the next day, and we needed to get fuel before then.  We bought about 220 gallons, which is what we would use on the trip back to Stingaree.  That boat could hold 300 gallons of gasoline.  After that we motored up the Isle of Capri Casino, on the west side of the lake.  We donated a few dollars and returned to the marina, where we were going to spend the night.      Contraband Bayou intersected the Calcasieu River just downstream of the Port of Lake Charles.  At Bridgeport Marina we were not far away from there, so we ran the dinghy over to check out Contraband Bayou.  There were some very nice homes on the waterway there, and a large restaurant and bar at the upper end of the navigable channel.  There was a radio station DJ there, and a wet t-shirt contest was going on.  The music was quite loud, and no one was feeling any pain.  We stayed as long as the wives would let us, and then we ran up the Calcasieu River to a point north of the I-10 bridge.  That's a high bridge of 4 or 5 lanes over Lake Charles.  We cruised and looked around, and then we returned to Bridgeport and John's cooking.      John was a real Cajun and a good cook.  He prepared chicken and pork barbeque for us on a grill under the old bridge in the marina.  It was good eating!  We loaded the dinghy on its lift, rinsed it off, and prepared for the return trip on Monday.      The trip home began at 8am, after breakfast, shower, etc.  Marc led the way down the Calcasieu River and turned right at the ICW.  We soon passed Ellender, LA on our way west towards home.  We bought 203 gallons of gas at Stingaree about 4pm, and we arrived at South Shore at 6pm.  Again I had a plane to catch the next day, so we headed home to shower, change, and repack the suitcase.