Northwest Community Center-Eunice, Louisiana

One of the benefits of the RV lifestyle is that you can camp in some amazing locations. Rosie, our 25 foot Airstream trailer, has allowed us to camp along the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. We have also camped along mountain streams and in beautiful wooded campgrounds. If you love sharing nature with similar minded campers, the RV lifestyle may be for you.
Sometimes you camp in a location not for the natural beauty but for the local culture. Such was our experience when we stayed at the Northwest Community Center in Eunice, Louisiana.

Rosie parked in the shed

Some of the Airstreams in the shed

This place is not a normal campground. It appears that the town allows RVs to park at this center for special events.
This was a brief stop on our Wally Byam Cajun Country Caravan. It was the stop I had many reservations about before we arrived.
The 25 Airstream trailers and motorhomes participating in this caravan were supposed to park between the steel beams supporting a large open shed. My anxiety level increased when I learned that I was going to help as a "parker" for the caravan. We had a two-hour window to get all of the units safely inside the shed before a predicted rain shower.
Our caravan leader accomodated my known lack of skills in parking trailers and positioned me on the road as caravaners were arriving. I would radio to the "real" parkers the length of the incoming unit. They would assign that trailer or motorhome an appropriate parking position.
In short order, all members of the caravan were parked in the shed. It didn't take long for the campers to pull out their lawn chairs and start forming a large circle in the middle of the building. A guitar, mandolin and dulcimer appeared along with some Cajun food and we were having a spontaneous gathering. Needless to say, the close proximity of our trailers allowed us to easily visit with our fellow caravaners.

Members of the caravan having a spontaneous social event

Bevo, peeking out his owner's Airstream (photo by Jim Broedlow. Used by permission.)

The lights in the shed at night

Why stop in Eunice? Cajun music seems to be very special to the people of this community and we appreciated them sharing their love of music with us.
Here are some specifics about camping at the Northwest Communiity Center in Eunice, Lousiana:

• You can squeeze two Airstream trailers between each of the support beams in the shed, but the distance between trailers will be tight.
• The camping area has 30 amp electrical service and water connections.
• There are no sewer connections for your RV.
• There are no restrooms and no showers available to the campers.
• Watch where you park your tow vechicle because there are lots of ants in the grassy area around the shed.
• Rain is another potential hazard for tow vehicles. If it rains, the grass will be slick and soft.
• Did I mention the trains? The camping area is next to some frequently used railroad tracks. You will both hear and feel the trains rolling by all day and night.
• Did I mention the lights in the shed? You will need some additional window shades to block out the many shed lights left on all night.
• WiFi does not exist at this camping area.
• AT&T provides good voice service and mediocre data service at this camping area. I had to travel to a nearby fast food restaurant to log on to the Internet.
• We were able to watch ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and PBS off Rosie's antenna. We also saw Antenna-TV, CW, ME-TV and THiS on digital channels.

What started out being a location I was dreading turned out to be a special place because we were able to get to know our fellow caravaners. While I would never stop at this place on our own, I am glad the WBCCI Cajun Country Caravan had this place on its agenda.