When we do not have reservations or when we have a time constraint, we find ourselves looking for a free spot to park for the night. Walmart is often a good choice, some rest area can be ok and there are also free spots in the woods you can find for a night or two.
One of the times we were through Louisiana on I-10 we thought about staying in a brewery parking lot but opted for a Walmart. Mrs Ram was worried that the brewery parking lot might flood. This time when were ready to stop for the night, none of the nearby Walmarts would allow overnight parking. Our options were the Sherburne WMA in the Atchafalaya National Wildlife Refugee or a rest area on I-10. Our first instinct is to drift off into the woods so we took exit 127.
There was 10 miles of gravel road to reach the Sherburne WMA free, approved camping area. When we arrived it was empty. We did like that the camping area was elevated from the roadway. But the road had water on both sides and some puddles on the road. And since the sky was full of clouds we worried that overnight rain could leave us stranded out here the following day. We also notice a number of very large bugs bouncing off of our van Sparty. That rest area began to seem like a much better choice.
It was getting dark as we headed back out the 10 miles of gravel road and up to exit 121 and the rest area at the Atchafalaya Welcome Center. After a good nights sleep, we setup for a hot breakfast and then headed west.
And it did rain overnight.