Fishing, hunting and boating?  They are all right here, with free boat ramp access to our 20 mile long horseshoe lake when you check in here.  We have city water and city sewer connections.  It’s the best of both worlds combined, with the worst left out.  And by God, we do love our Veterans.

Let me tell you a little story.  I lived here 14 years ago when the economy was crashed in 2008.  I loved it.  The very first time I drove into the camp I decided; “This would be a great place to live.”  Sure enough, within a year I had an address on the “Cutoff”.  It was quiet, you could let your hair down – though I had cut mine off by that time – and there was never any traffic noise, at all.  It was like I was already home.  Then the crash of the CDOs hit and you just couldn’t find a job.  Well, my friend Troy was in Seattle and kept telling me how much higher the minimum wage was there.  , I packed up my Dodge Stealth and headed for the pacific Northwest.  Troy was right, the minimum wage was higher, much higher, but so was the cost of living.

Now I have lived many places in the US during my life, and at one time I was a Fiber Optic Cowboy – what we called ourselves – for WorldCom.  I traveled all over the US working on long distance telecom rings.  And yet, when I made my escape from Seattle I knew exactly where I was headed.  I was going back to the Tunica Cutoff, back to Tait’s camp.  Of all the places I had lived, and worked, this was the only one I considered returning to.  I had bought a 30′ camper and though I spent three months in Butte Larose LA, it was nice but it just wasn’t home, and it was twice the cost.  It was close but close wasn’t good enough.  I made a couple phone calls and packed back up for Tunica MS.

And let’s talk about costs and prices a little bit.  Gas is presently $3.91 and inflation has hit us here as well, but not nearly as bad.  Back in Seattle they are changing the pumps at the gas stations to allow them to display gas prices of $10 per gallon.  My friend Dennis is there and keeps me informed.  When I did return here my truck had lived all it’s life in rainy Seattle, and the first winter I was back my truck refused to start whenever it was under 32 degrees.  You could actually tell whether it was freezing or not by whether my truck started.  I had my truck towed to the local garage, and being used to Seattle prices I figured I would be very lucky if the repair bill was $300 or less.  Well, Chad’s replaced my fuel pump and charged me $150.  That was it, I was truly home.

Winters here are mild too, compared to anywhere in the North.  And, if you travel about 30 minutes North to the Memphis area you will pay twice as much for a camping spot, and they are likely booked up through November.  If you need to borrow a cup of sugar from your neighbor in a Memphis camp, all you have to do is reach out your window and you’ll be able to knock on the wall of the next camper.  Aside from that Memphis has become rather dangerous lately, as most big cities have.  But not at Bordeaux Point RV Park where there is always room, quiet and safety.

Taxes, you ask?  When I departed from here for Seattle, the property taxes on my home were $35 per year.  Yep, $35 per year.  And though I live in a camper now, taxes have not increased to any noticeable degree.  People are friendly here too.  Folks wave at you, even if they don’t know you.  They smile and talk to you.  This did take some getting used to when I first came here from Illinois.  In Illinois you don’t really smile at folks for fear that they will decide you are foolish and try to take advantage of you.  Not so down here.

Jobs you ask?  Everyone is hiring.  In fact, though I am retired – save for website work – I was offered a job at the local NAPA/Ace Hardware.  I had to explain that my legs were shot as far as standing on them for eight hours at a time, but I was buying hardware, not applying for work.  But honestly, you will have a hard time finding a business here which isn’t looking for more employees right now.  Combine this with the amazingly lower cost of living and you can breathe a large sigh of relief.  Oh, and don’t forget the Levee Commissary.  Just across the Levee from the camp is the Levee Commissary.  It’s a deli, a convenience store, a bar with great food, pool, darts, and when you are having a drink you are free to smoke a cigarette if you like.  Fair warning though, the Friday Catfish Special will send you for a nap afterward.

So come on down and visit, or come on down and stay.  You will love this area, as I did.  Bordeaux Point RV Park is so quiet, so spacious and so affordable it constantly amazes us that we aren’t full to overflowing.

True, Forrest was involved in slave trading before the war, but he would never break up a family when offering slaves for sale.  However, most don’t know – because we were never taught this – that the biggest slave market in the country was located a few blocks from the Lincoln’s Capitol Building in Washington City.  At that time Washington had not become Washington DC yet.  that wouldn’t happen until Grant took the Oval Office.

It should also be remembered that Forrest sold horses, land, was a blacksmith, served on the Memphis City Council before the war, and was a plantation owner.  During the war, if a woman or a group of women came to General Forrest with a problem, Forrest always turned his troops to go fix the problem.  But enough about the Civil War.  I should mention though that after the war the Freedman’s Bureau warned Forrest that he was too generous to his black tenant farmers, and the Forrest’s funeral was attended by 3,000 blacks whom he had helped.

From reading this book I discovered that while I was working I had delivered packages to every area in which Nathan Bedford Forrest ever owned land, but I also learned that Forrest, before the war, also owned land in Tunica County, where we are.  So, I started asking questions, and I didn’t have to go too far.  When I asked our very own Tait Seldon he picked up the phone and had an answer.

I learned that if you travel north on Old Hwy 61 and take a left on Indian Mound Road you will find the land that Nathan Bedford Forrest once owned, which is on the north side of Indian Mound Road.  In fact, once you find the Hollywood Indian Mound you are pretty well there.

However, don’t consider stopping to explore these Mounds up close.  Not only are they overgrown with trees and brush – and probably snakes – but there is a notice that this is private land and you shouldn’t go much further.  Here’s your sign…

But we’re not really interested in the Indian Mounds for our purposes, except as a marker that we have found our destination.  There are two tracts of land, one on either side of the Indian Mounds.  The tract to the west of the Mounds actually runs up to the Mississippi River Levee.  Here are a couple shots.  On the first shot you can see the Levee in the upper left corner of the photo.

This photo shows the same piece of land looking eastward.  In the distance you can see the Forest containing the Indian Mounds, but from a distance.

On the other side of the Indian Mounds’ break the scene looks much the same, but I am nothing if I am not thorough.  Here is a shot looking east.

And here is a shot looking west.  Here you can see that I didn’t go much past the Indian Mounds before snapping this photo.  The tree line is actually the Indian Mounds.

So, if your staying with us, or just passing through, you might want to pull off and take a look, just for a lark.  But be warned, if you pass Indian Mound Road don’t let Google tell you to take Hambrick Road.  The roads that connect this road to Indian Mound Road are dirt roads that run through planted fields, and the farmer that owns them might not appreciate that.  If you would like a guide look for the older white F250 parked near our parking lot and I will be happy to show you.

To keep things this safe we have strategically placed our security agents in key positions in the camp.  On guard right next door to me is the ever vigilant Misty.  Now Misty, unfortunately, is pretty much blind, but because of that her other sense have been sharpened to a razor’s edge.  If Misty hears, smells or senses you in any way, she will raise the alarm in an instant.

Here we see that Misty has sensed something and is about to spring into action.  Luckily, strangers don’t realize that she can be calmed if you simply go and pet her.  We’ll keep that our little secret though.

Also carefully placed, on the next corner, we have Opie stationed.  Now Opie doesn’t really resemble Ron Howard  (who played Opie on Andy Griffith) but he is overfull of energy and will make his assault by running towards you very quickly but stopping just out of reach.  From that vantage point he will bark you right down to your shoes and socks.  Apologies for the blurriness of the photos but Opie fairly vibrates with energy, and at my age I shake a bit too.

Opie, being the youngest of our security staff, is full of beans and will bark at you whether he knows you or not, unless of course his owners are outside with you.  And he will follow you to do his barking as efficiently as possible.  At times it seems as though he is about to take out one of your ankles.  However, Opie is a young master of keeping you right on the edge of worry.  Still, he has yet to bite even one ankle, but if you meet a burglar or thief don’t tell them about this.  Another work about the blurriness – Maggie Mae was in heat at the time of this, erm, photo shoot, and he was just outside of Maggie’s door.  I believe this is his expectant look.

Last, but certainly not least is Maggie Mae (aka The Inspector).  When Maggie is on patrol she literally inspects everything.  She checks on all the other security staff, patrols the parking lot and secures the area from all squirrels and similar creatures which dogs find annoying and so distracting.

Maggie will bark at you even if she knows you, and even if her owners are near.  However once she settles down about your presence you will find an insistent nose under your arm as she instructs you to pet her, and you had better not quit too quickly.  The pictures of Maggie had to be shot indoors because of the previous mentioned “heat” situation.  In the next shot we see Maggie considering her treat, though she was whining about her unrequited urges at the same time.  poor Maggie Mae.

There are other, larger dogs in the campground, but they are either on a leash or in a fence.  And really they are a little too obvious to be effective enough for our security purposes.  So next time you plan a visit to Bordeaux Point you can rest easy.  You are in good paws as far as security goes.   Oh, and I will get better pictures of Opie and Maggie Mae this weekend and replace these.

Now for our more distant readers let me take a minute to explain that “Cutoff” is a term which describes loops of the Mississippi River which the Army Corps of Engineers “cut off” as they dredged straighter channels in Ole Man River for easier navigation by barges and ships.  The Army Corps of Engineers did this in 13 places along the length of the Mississippi and in each place left behind an oxbow lake for the locals of these regions to fish, hunt and enjoy.  One Cutoff in LA has even become Cut Off, Louisiana with it’s own zip code and area code, but we can say with pride that Cut Off, Louisiana does not have our Levee Commissary

Now before anyone starts to panic over these changes, both Tracy and Tara have assured me they don’t plan on changing anything the Levee Commissary has been doing up til now.  Propane will still be available, the dinners and lunch specials will remain, bait will still be available, and so far as we know, the night time entertainment will also remain the same with Karaoke, Trivia and Dart Nights.  Pool tables and dart boards will remain, as will the Deli, and the Convenience Store in the front will still carry beer and groceries to save us the 7 mile drive into town.  And, I am told, that milk will still be available as well.  This is wonderful news because the milk from the Levee Commissary always tastes better than the milk from town.  I believe this has a lot to do with it being the cheapest milk in Tunica, but I may be wrong and it may be the shorter drive instead.

For those who aren’t local, or who don’t know them, Tracy and Tara Mallet have been our neighbors at Nel-Win camp, but Tara has also been the head of the Nel-Win Homeowners Association.  Tracy, her husband, is not only a local Contractor but is a great guy and has been very helpful to those of us who live on the Cutoff, including myself.  We locals wish them all the luck in the world and will be more than happy to help them, when and if they need it.

Tara and Tracy tell me that starting in April the Levee Commissary will be open seven days a week.  As someone who worked in bars for many years, in various capacities, I truly hope they can manage this without letting it wear them out.  I know from experience that as much fun as I had in the bars I worked, those days off were always wonderful and usually never lasted quite long enough.  Still. 7 days a week would be very nice indeed.

Perhaps we have saved the best news for last, because we hear that Miss Linda and the ladies who have been doing the cooking for us will still be part of the family.  I know I tip every time I go there, whether I buy dinner, deli stuff or just a gallon of milk.  I know how hard these folks work.  I remember it well.  I am much too old for these sort of shenanigans anymore.

One More Change

Up until now, when the fl**d waters (we have escaped these for two years now, I dare not spell it out for fear of creating a jinx) came in the past we, in campers, would move to the Battle Arena, which is named after Paul Battle who operates the Catfish Ponds in the area.  In the photo below you can see the camper parking at the top left.

Generally, fl**ds and Arena events have come at different times of the year.  Tunica County would allow us to pay a rather reduced rate, when compared to Memphis rates.  And if the fl**d was declared as a disaster, Tunica County would refund all our rent – it was rather like going to one of the Casinos in that way.  Now, the folks in Nel-Win have homes, on very tall supports, but they still have to provide for electricity with generators, and they must boat from the levee to their homes.  At the RV camps – of which Bordeaux Point RV Park is now the only public one remaining – those of us in campers would skedaddle until the water dropped sufficiently.

However, the Battle Arena, lately operated by the County of Tunica, has now closed it’s doors.  I am informed that though they stayed open to finish up scheduled events, they are no longer booking events and they are now officially closed.  COVID hit Tunica County hard, financially, because of the lengthy closing of the Tunica County casinos and the loss of county revenue during that time.

The Battle Arena’s closing means that in times of fl**d those of us in campers will be skedaddling to one of the local casinos instead, for a slightly higher rate.  The noise shouldn’t be much worse than the adjustment required at the Arena, even so, we hope this skedaddling will be held to the absolute minimum since we love staying put on our lake.  Those of you in the Ohio, Missouri and Mississippi Valleys can help us out greatly each and every year by sending all your snow East or West, away from Ole Man River.  We will thank you when you come to visit.

Bill Frankell
Webmaster