We stopped at Savannah, Georgia making our way out of Florida towards Greenwood, South Carolina to visit Sandy’s brother Eddie.
St. Marys
On our way to Savannah we stop at a KOA near St. Marys. This is a historic entryway to Cumberland Island, the southern most island of Georgia. The National Park service runs a ferry to the island at 9am and goes back to St. Marys at 4:45pm. We considered it, but dogs are not allowed. Thinking we would have really enjoyed it. St. Marys is 35 minutes north of Jacksonville, Florida. Once a trade and paper production hub, St. Marys dates back to 1787. We walked along the waterfront. Most stores and restaurants were closed, maybe waiting for everyone to return from Cumberland Island.
Many of the streets and building walls had sea shell pieces imbedded in them.
This is a geodetic survey marker. Its a mean sea level marker. It helps to determine a finished floor elevation. Flood insurance rates, construction planning and other applications are often derived from it.
The KOA really needed a facelift. On paper it looked amazing, but tripped our surge protector, low water pressure, no wifi, and unusable cable TV. All that would have been tolerable, but the road noise from Interstate 95 was deafening. We were in the middle of all the long-term campers. Each spot was filled end to end with cars, motorcycles, storage units, laundry, you name it. Never the less, everyone we met were extremely personable.
Orange Hall
Its name comes from all the large sour orange trees which encircled the entire property. It was built by Rev. Horace Southworth Pratt, a Presbyterian minister, in the early 1800’s. Lots of history of death, fortunes, obligations, Civil War, turnovers, and now a historic place.
Savannah
We stayed at the Savannah South KOA. What a difference compared to our last KOA. Our site was large, quiet, nice views, and no problems with the electricity, water, noise, or wifi. There was a large lake with numerous Canadian geese and swans.
We only had a day to explore Savannah. It would have been great to stay longer. The historic district is charming. Old brick buildings with numerous placards explaining the history at each site. There were so many nice parks and some with fountains.
Even the police station had old police cars on display. Sandy is still nursing that ankle.
We walked through the cemetery. There are haunted cemetery tours at night. Many of the gravesites have placards that provide some history about the deceased.
Many of the building had gas lamps. Must be beautiful at night.
There were so many tours going on by bus, walking, or carriage. We were there the day before Easter. This horse had bunny ears and a bunny tail. We had lunch at Six Pence Pub. We later found out why people kept taking pictures of us eating. Apparently, Julia Roberts and Dennis Quaid did the movie Something to Talk About, and a scene was shot here.
There were so many beautiful sights around the city.
There are numerous stores, bars, hotels, and restaurants along the river front.
