2009 Paul B. Johnson - Day 2 (Camp Shelby)

When we got up early Wednesday morning, the weather had turned on us. It was overcast and cloudy with a cold drizzling rain. We decided to check out the 1 mile nature trail anyway since it wasn't raining too hard yet. It was a nice walk in the woods.

Then, we were a little at a loss as to what to do on this rainy day. But it was nearing lunch time and we found an indoor play place at a McDonald's in Hattiesburg. We ate lunch, enjoyed some hot cocoa and let the kids run off some steam.

Kangaroo is such a grinner!

Little Bird is victorious over something!

After lunch we headed back towards the campground. On the way back, we passed a sign pointing to the Armed Forces Museum located at Camp Shelby. We followed the signs, went through the checkpoint at Camp Shelby, and followed some more signs to find the museum. We went in, visited the bathrooms first, and then began our tour. The exhibits are set up kind of like a maze, I guess. This is a great place to spend an afternoon if you're interested in the military history of our country. Lots of information to read and exhibits to see.

The kiddos got to see what the inside of a bunkhouse might look like.

Have you every wondered about the dog tags and how they were made?

Well, there's a machine for that.

They may not understand every thing they see, but they sure were interested.

Some of the exhibits included sound effects, like bombs dropping and grenades exploding. Kangaroo wasn't too thrilled at all at this particular part!

There are also some examples of Trench Art. I never really thought about it before, but I guess if a soldier is stuck in a foxhole, he must find SOME way to entertain himself while waiting for the enemy. **shrug**

According to a placard next to this shell, "Many soldiers of the First World War passed the time between actions creating "Trench Art". The abundance of artillery shells and other expendable metal and wood provided all the raw materials necessary for the "cottage industry" to begin. Soldiers skilled in the creation of trench art could make a hefty profit in sales to less artistically gifted soldiers in search of momentos." Huh! Who'd a thunk it!?

As we exited the museum, there is a field full of helicopters and airplanes next to the parking lot. Since the rain had gotten heavier, we took time for only one picture. We'll have to plan another visit to see the rest of the stuff.

By the way, the museum offers a day camp during the summer for kids to learn more about our military.

2009 Paul B. Johnson - Day 1 (Zoo)

After our exciting Eagle experience, we resumed our travels to our original destination of the Hattiesburg Zoo. This little (and yes, it's little) zoo has been in existence for only 50 years. Situated on only 12 acres, it's really quite small but has beautiful exhibits! The animals look healthy and were all very active on this cool December afternoon.

When we first arrived, the children begged to ride the train. Well, what's a visit to the zoo without a train ride, huh? So, we caved and paid the $2 per person per ride fee. The zoo admission was cheaper!!! Only $2 for adults, $1 for children ages 4 - 12, and free for children under 3.

It only took us one hour to walk around and look at all the available exhibits. The winter decorations were still hanging around. Be sure to check out the beautiful playground at Kamper Park just next door to the zoo.

The very beautiful and active Siberian Tiger.

An unusual prairie dog.

Oh, look! Real prairie dogs!

A Gibbon of some sort. This animal actually "talked" to observers. Okay, so it was a gutteral growl but still....he communicated!

The kiddos!

This is the newest zoo resident, Jaguar. My sister and I kept trying to get a really good picture of him while he paced back and forth along the chain link fence. When he approached the end where my sister was standing, he began to make the turn for a return pass but stopped. My sister was so intent on looking through her camera view finder that she never expected what happened next.

Jaguar aimed his hind end right at her and sprayed her!! It was absolutely hilarious! Since the Jaguar is a very territorial animal, we decided that perhaps she had invaded his personal space, and he just didn't like it....

...either that, or he didn't care for that Fightin' Tigers shirt she's wearing!!

My camera was in still shot mode and I have no pictures or video of this spraying event!!! All I can do is hope that she'll forget the incident and I can return to the zoo with her for a repeat experience for which I will be prepared to catch on video!!! LOL

2009 Paul B. Johnson - Day 1 (Eagle)

Upon arrival at Paul B. Johnson state park, we unloaded the suburban and began getting settled into the cabin. We built a fire behind the cabin and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows and then got ready for bed. We were all excited but super tired.

We got up fairly early the next morning and after a quick bacon and egg breakfast, we all climbed aboard our new bicycles and headed out for some geocaching and exploration. The bicycle riding became quite an ordeal due to the little rolling hills throughout the park. They aren't very steep but to small children on bikes with training wheels, they're huge mountains!

My poor girls completely forgot that the bikes came equipped with brakes! They attempted to coast downhill, losing control and performing the typical crash and burn stunt. As a result, the next 2 hours were filled with tears and declarations of "Idonwannaridemybikeanymoooorrree!" However, by the time we had returned to the cabin, they had changed their minds, said they were having fun, and wanted to keep riding.

My sister and I were exhausted from having to keep up with them! We managed to talk them into pausing long enough for some lunch and then we bribed them with some duck feeding and a trip to the Hattiesburg Zoo.


On the way to the zoo, we were blessed with a special treat! We had spotted a Bald Eagle flying alongside the highway! The observant driver that I am, I also spotted a handful of spectators standing on the shoulder of the road. They had also seen the eagle and were watching it. At the first available location, I was able to turn the truck around and go back to join the others in watching the eagle. As I pulled the truck a safe distance onto the shoulder of the road, I saw the eagle in the brush. One of the spectators approached me and said it looked as if the eagle had been wounded. He then asked if we had a cell phone (his battery had died) and could we call Wildlife and Fisheries, which we did. We were told that it could take up to an hour for someone to arrive!! We decided to wait, watching the eagle until SOMEONE showed up.


About 10 minutes after our call, a Hattiesburg City police officer arrived. He parked his car behind my truck, got out of it, and approached my sister and 2 other ladies who were standing on the road side watching the eagle and chatting. A few minutes later, a Forrest County sheriff's deputy arrived followed by a Wildlife and Fisheries truck. They all joined in a chat fest, I suppose they were discussing what to do. Meanwhile, the poor eagle was watching everyone else who was watching him.

All the while, I'm sitting in my suburban trying to keep the kids from climbing out of their seats and getting out of the truck. Just kiddin! They really were well behaved children who were excited to see their very first Bald Eagle! This was also my first time to see an eagle outside of captivity!

As we are all sitting here observing this poor injured animal, a State Trooper pulls his car diagonally in front of my truck. Well, NOW, I can't go anywhere if I wanted to!! I'm blocked in by all this law enforcement!

Since we're only a mile or so from Camp Shelby, I started wondering who was going to arrive next....the National Guard?


Since no one seemed to be approaching the eagle, he decided to fly off a short distance to a tree limb a bit out of reach from all the bystanders and gawkers.


All of the law enforcement persons were standing around chatting, taking pictures, and looking through binoculars. No one seemed to know what to do!

This shot is a mirror reflection of 2 law enforcement person doing their civil duty!

My sister came back to my truck and informed me that one of the binocular guys said the eagle had a broken leg which would hinder its ability to hunt and eat. The game warden was going to follow it and wait for an opportunity to catch it and get some medical help for it. At this point, I do not know if he was successful but I certainly hope he was.

2009 Paul B. Johnson - Cabin

At the end of Christmas weekend, my sister and I decided to get away for a few days with the kiddos. We didn't want to go too far away but just far enough to make it a worthwhile getaway. We chose Paul B. Johnson state park for two reasons. It was just far enough AND they offered cabins for an affordable price. Any other state parks closer to us were booked up and had no available cabins anyway.

I had searched all over the internet for photos of the Pual B. Johnson park cabins but to no avail.

Upon our arrival at the cabin, I decided to get some pictures to post for future visitors to see what they're getting.

Duplex cabins with indoor fireplaces are also available but since I didn't rent one of those, I don't have any photos.

Front view of the cabin. See the water behind it? That's Geiger Lake.

There are 2 bedrooms with queen size beds and all linens provided. I brought sleeping bags along for myself and my girls .... just in case.
Here's the kitchen. It's fully stocked with all pots and pans as well as place settings for 6 persons. I brought along my own cast iron skillet, spatula, and crockpot.
This is a queen size sleeper sofa where 2 of our kiddos slept.
At the opposite end of the 3rd room is the dining table and TV. The back door leads out to a patio with a picnic table and grill as well as a fire pit for roasting marshmallows.

I was pleasantly surprised at the affordable price of only $60 per night for this cabin!! The Paul B. Johnson state park has plenty of fishing piers and hiking trails for further exploration. It is also located close enough to Hattiesburg, MS for any other little excursions such as the tiny Hattiesburg Zoo and Armed Forces Museum at Camp Shelby.