The Carnegie Family's Gift....

At last....perfect weather and Georgia's Cumberland Island National Seashore. Seeing the island on a day trip is possible, but it certainly deserves more. For the first pic I just stopped along the highway on the way to St. Mary's to catch the ferry. The rest of today's pics are from the national park.

The basics: Make reservations for the ferry, tour and lodging/camping. If you choose not to camp, then expect to pay big bucks to stay at The Greyfield Inn! (as an aside: to have a small wedding at the inn, it'll cost you a minimum of $32,000 - for fewer than 25 people.) If you only have one day and want an overview of the island take the tour. Like any guided tour it occasionally drags and makes the beach nearly impossible, but it's the only way to see the "whole" island. The tour focuses on the north end, but the guides seem to find ways to get visitors to the south end briefly.

1-3 An important church made famous by a Kennedy wedding. The 1st African Baptist Church (1890s) at the north end.

4-8 Plum Orchard Mansion (1898): This Carnegie family property is considered a "modest seaside home" and started the ball rolling for the creation of the national park. When you see the pic of Dungeness ruins, you'll be tempted to believe it is, indeed, modest! In fact, this house is quite advanced for its time: plumbing, a kind of central heat and air, an ice house, an elevator. Pics in order: the front yard, one of many wild horses, the original house not showing the additions, one of the two "Loggerhead Lamps" in the world made for this Carnegie house by Mr. Tiffany. Guides like to say that these lamps are in the first man cave. Finally, the heated indoor pool (approx. 9ft deep) - dontcha love the stairs!

9-10 Dungeness ruins (1884) with more wild horses, including a very cute 1 month old! When you're standing on the grounds you can almost see the horse carriages arriving with well-heeled guests. As for the horses, they really are wild. The only thing park employees do to manage these horses is move a deceased horse if it's in an area of heavy tourist traffic. Other parks on my visit list seem to control nearly every aspect of the horses' lives. Makes me glad I saw them here...

11 As I said in the beginning, one of the negatives to the tour is that it makes the beach nearly impossible, but it can be done if you hustle! I didn't touch water, but I did walk the dunes boardwalk. I'm told the beach would have added another 8-10min, so I would have missed the ferry. You do not want to miss the ferry: a private charter boat is at least $200 or for $700 or so you can stay at The Greyfield Inn.

So, I highly recommend this stop on one of your future journeys. I would love to return and spend a couple nights in the campground by the dunes boardwalk. While i couldnt get pics, there were cute armidillos, hilarious turkeys running down the main road, and dolphins & manta rays in the river. The place seems almost magical. A man said to me, "Lord of the Rings" could be filmed here.

I'm headed to Savannah tomorrow and could be in South Carolina by bedtime. I have no idea at the moment, but will let you know soon... Thanks for stopping by!

Georgia Waterfronts

Hey Everybody!

At last I seem back to myself, so I spent much of the day exploring - you know, before doing laundry. Even on the road chores must be done! Anyway, I started out this morning on St. Simons Island (SSI) because it is the most tourist oriented and gets crowded. Since it was a "cold" morning I lucked out - got in and out of the island village before it got busy. From the pier I could see several shrimp boats, but I have yet to learn what they were doing. All I have learned so far is shrimp boats go out at night since shrimp are nocturnal (who knew?!) and unload their catch in the morning. Anybody know? Where's Forrest Gump when you need him? So, the SSI photos are:

1. Shrimp boats

2. Local pelican that stalks people for fish

3. A person really has to commit to water to live here! It's low tide right now. There is actual beach, but not on this part of the island.

4. SSI Lighthouse

5. SSI public access beach...you know it's a tourist beach when the walkway is carpeted!

From SSI I drove about 16 miles to Darien, which was established in 1736 if I remember correctly. Once a major seaport for rice, cotton and timber, Darien was later home to one of Georgia's largest shrimp boat fleets. As it turns out, Darien has a "First Saturday" street festival...I think there were 6 vendors! The pics fom this stop are:

1. An 1876 Episcopal church built for "the Colored people of McIntosh County" per the plaque.

2. Port of Darien

And....my favorite stop of the day: Jekyll Island, which is less crowded and not so touristy. SSI has no fee to enter; it's $5 just to drive onto Jekyll Island, but it's worth it. There are miles of trails & paths - foot and bike. Jekyll Island photos:

1. Don't want to walk or peddle, ride a horse along Driftwood Beach!

2. Driftwood Beach with SSI in the background.

3. This feisty little crab could be a Disney character! I just happened upon him and he immediately stepped up his defense. Normally, crabs just try to get away. This dude came at me - running - without hesitation....repeatedly! After a few laughs and pictures, I walked away. He was still standing his ground...

4. This is what's behind you when standing on Driftwood Beach.

5. Shells from Driftwood Beach. Yes, I left them there!! Oysters, a well-traveled Atantic Whelk, and Angel Wings. Angel Wings! - those are not easy to find, but here they are in all sizes.

6. Farther south is a larger public beach and the pic just won't do justice to the sandbar at low tide...but there are people walking almost beyond visual range. If you can zoom this photo, you might see a group of 3 people (far right). At high tide, it can be covered to a depth of 10 feet!

My original plan was 3 days in Georgia, but getting sick and booking the ferry to Cumberland Island (for tomorrow!) changed that plan. I'm glad though...the Georgia coast is beautiful. Having said that, I haven't seen an inch of coastline from the Keys to GA that even comes close to that little Gulf island I call home.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and Happy Easter.

 

Surviving the road

Hey Everybody!

I know it's been a couple days, but I've been laid up in a hotel room with some kind of food thing...it has not been fun, but finally late this afternoon I was able to eat and got out for a while. The first week on the road was a challenge, but I am surviving and carrying on...Best of all, the weather has cleared and turned cooler. I will be glad to head back to a campground soon.

I have only a few local (Brunswick, GA) photos for you.

1. Old City Hall building - according to the three officers I spoke with it was built in 1891 and is still used today. In fact, they told me that if they give me a ticket, I will go to court on the 3rd floor! I assured them I wouldn't do anything to get a ticket. The officers were very kind and said they would have opened the building so I could see inside, but they didn't have a key. They also told me about "First Night'" which is a once a month/first Friday event in the historic district with live music, art, etc.

2. The O'Reallys were playing in one of the plazas. They performed some old southern rock, old traditionals, and a little Bob Dylan too.

3. This is The Lovers Tree. The plaque states the tree has been recognized as having been alive in this spot at the time of the signing of the Constitution. I found nothing about why locals call it the lovers tree, but assume this once might have been two trees that became one fluid live oak. Or maybe it was always one with two clear halves made more perfect because of the union. Whatever it is....it's beautiful. St. Augustine had a "Love Tree" also - a palm tree growing out of a live oak tree. That was pretty cool, but this one in Brunswick is infinitely more beautiful.

4. This last pic is just a glimpse of what I've seen down nearly every road I've driven in Georgia.

Anyway, as I said....I am surviving and remain hopeful that this road trip will only get better. I hope you have a good weekend. I'll be in touch again soon.

 

Went a swampin'...

I am officially in Georgia and will remain in the area - give or take a couple hundred miles - through Sunday as that's the day I take the ferry to Cumberland Island. I could have gone as early as today, but weather should be just about ideal by then & worth the wait.

 

Besides this new plan allowed me to spend a few hours in the "Land of the Trembling Earth" - Okefenokee Swamp Park - so named by Native Americans. It is one of the oldest and best preserved freshwater systems in America (according to their website). The swamp floor is so unstable in places that you could feel trees and bushes tremble if you stomped. All the photos come from the park, except for the last two.

1. This cute little dude (Green Anole) was playing on the palm near "Crazy," the largest male alligator staff know of in the park. Staff think there might be 20,000 gators in this swamp land.

2. This is "Crazy" trying to eat an illegally tossed hamburger.

3. An old moonshine still that the government donated to the park after they confiscated it & after they filled the equipment with concrete!

4 & 5. The swamp from a boat, then from an observation tower 1/2 mile away.

6. I'm told this is a Fishing Spider. Apparently, they dive for their food. I want to know who went into an alligator swamp long enough to observe this?!

7 & 8. These last two photos were taken from the roadside into the park....two halves of one large area.

I think that's all the news for tonight. More soon....

Random images of the area...

Word on the street is we have severe weather headed this way, so it looks like I will spend a couple more days indoors when I head to Georgia tomorrow. That's okay with me though because it has been 90+ degrees everyday, which defeats the purpose of getting through the southern states in early spring. The mosquitoes and no-see-ums are winning the battle lately based on all the bites, but I will survive!

Area images:

1. This is how the rare Cumberland Island resident restocks supplies. Drive from your house to your dock, take boat to Fernandina Beach to shop, return home to load supplies in vehicle, and drive home.

2. When in Fernandina Beach you must have shrimp since this is the place that modernized the industry - unless you don't like seafood. If that's the case, then try Peppers Mexican restaurant on Centre St. That's where I discovered my new favorite dish: Shrimp Nachos; brilliant invention! Not only was I impressed with the shrimp dish, but this place had the best avocados I have seen outside of California. The community has fewer than 10 shrimp boats now (used to have about 150) due to changes in the global market among other things...

3. Once upon a time....in the island's glory? days there was a street in town that was a favorite among the men. Care to guess which one? :-)

4. Speaking of women and work....here's an advertisement for women from Fort Clinch State Park.

5. This very green place is Willow Pond....found along a trail at Fort Clinch State Park. Alligators hang out here, but I saw none today.

6. The next two photos are from Big Talbot Island State Park. This shoreline trail takes you to a place that looks like Beer Can Island (local hangout that used to have lots of these trees, near Anna Maria Island) on steroids! I think the mosquitoes were bigger here too!

7. One last photo of Amelia Island...

That's all for tonight....thanks for stopping by!

 

Barely in Florida....

Hey Everybody,

I will be in the Amelia & Cumberland Islands area for the next two nights at least, maybe three. Until 7:15pm tonight I didn't realize that the Cumberland National Seashore was barely 15min by boat from Fernandina Beach. How cool is that?! So, I crossed the GA state line twice tonight, but I'll be sleeping in Florida.

Thank goodness today's travels clicked for me...yesterday I questioned whether I ever wanted to travel again! - and that is not good :-) I didn't post that 'cuz it was April Fools Day; nobody would have believed me! I was tired of traffic, which was way better than I expected, but still.... I was even more tired of not being able to see or stop near bodies of water. In my native California, one of the great things about Highway 1 (the Pacific Coast Hwy) is that a person can stop just about anywhere and wander the cliffs & beaches. Basically, the trip just felt like work and that isn't how I meant for this adventure to be.

I know, I know I sound ungrateful and whiny. I am very grateful for the once in a lifetime opportunity. It just doesn't seem honest to avoid mentioning the unexpected disappointment of life on the road. After all, some of you may start your own road adventures soon...you need to know! Having said that....today I am recovered and you couldn't pay me to get off the road!!

I spent most of the day in St. Augustine and am certain that the town deserves 2-3 days & hope to return in the future. I opted not to spend another day this time because I was satisfied enough and REALLY wanted to get to Amelia Island. And I did....just in time for a sunset cruise. I could live in this place....

Back to St. Augustine for a moment: First, for you chocolate lovers out there - City Perks Coffee has a very fun blended drink called the psychedelic brownie. I don't think it adjusted my perspective about life on the road, but who knows. I highly recommend it! Secondly, if you like pizza then I recommend PizzaAlley - made a nice lunch today. Finally, the three photos are: (1) Flagler Memorial Church, (2) Magnolia Ave and (3) the 600+ year old oak tree.

As for Cumberland & Amelia Islands: stay tuned....surely there will be more to post. For tonight, just a few photos from the sunset cruise with Pajama Dave (our cool captain). Speaking of captains, please tell the captain of the Heidi Ann we need to bring the boat here too :-) Anyway, the photos are: (1) redneck space shuttle - Pajama Dave claims that the semi-truck you see on the paper mill ramp "flies" to I-95 because it gets catapulted; (2) the shrimp boat fleet has been reduced to barely 1/2 dozen boats and is no longer the thriving industry it once was here; and (3) a glimpse of Cumberland Island. The feral horses were back in the trees for the night, but I am hopeful about seeing them tomorrow!

So, I hope this finds all of you well. More soon.....

Florida: Yesterday & Today

Hey Everybody!

I still feel a bit disorganized out here, but am finding my way to places I wanted to see. Although I must confess that I didn't spend much time in The Keys, I did make it all the way to Key West for the official start of my East Coast journey. More importantly, if someone would please pass this message to the Captain of the Heidi Ann; thanks. Captain, we need to bring the boat to The Keys! There is much to explore and, yes, I will drive!

This is my favorite pic from the Overseas Highway:

I also found time to snorkel and walk a short path at John Pennecamp State Park - America's first underwater park. Labadee's reef is still my favorite, but the reef in these photos (the Grecian) is still alive (although there's a lot of bleaching) and has a variety of sea creatures...including huge lobsters and a five foot Barracuda moving way too fast for me!

Today's main stop was the Coral Castle in Homestead. I learned about this place in the last year and am so glad to finally visit it. And so grateful the rain started after I left. This place is so cool! I found it a bit troubling that coral rock chairs and beds were more comfortable than my tent, but I trust that will pass! As you can see I got a bit sidetracked by the iguanas. They're just so cute...

The Rest of the day was spent traveling north on the coast road. It looks like I won't make Georgia by 4/1, but in the next couple days probably. Hope this finds you well. Till next time....