Georgia

Georgia
Georgia … October 4-9, 2018
Trip journal #10 

Some parting shots of SC before heading to Georgia.

This is the largest tree east of the Mississippi, the Angel Oak south of Charleston. Estimated to be 400 years old (1618 thereabouts) it is a Live Oak.  The Live Oak is a native species that only grow along the eastern coast. These trees can withstand hurricane winds, earthquakes, floods and predators. This one is 65 feet tall with a circumference of 25.5 feet and shades an area of 17,000 feet. The longest limb is 89 feet. It is impossible to get a full picture, so here are a couple more.

And a last picture of a swamp in Charleston

Savannah

Founded by British General James Oglethorpe in 1733, he laid out a beautiful town before most people arrived preserving 24 squares with homes and churches surrounding them … 22 remain.  Called a living museum, Historic Savannah is listed in National Historic Landmarks. When General Sherman came through here in Civil War 1864 scorching everything in his way, Lincoln asked him to spare beautiful Savannah. We took a tram tour around before hitting the pavement to explore.


One place we wanted to get into was Mrs. Wilkes Boarding House for lunch (in this picture). We did not … disappointingly … but here is a picture Dan by the line ... that went around the block. No signs, no advertising, no menu, the line forms at 10:00 a.m. for the 11:00 a.m. opening and it closes at 2:00 p.m. Seating is family style with 12 to a table and features fried chicken, cornbread, okra, and much more.  It is listed in the 1000 places to see before ….”

Cathedral of St. John the Baptist

The cathedral of St. John built in the late 1700s was destroyed by fire in 1898 and quickly rebuilt to the same specifications. Inside was gorgeous of course. Cannot get enough of cathedrals. 😊

Telfair House

One of the mansions built on one of those squares is the Telfair House build in 1819. Since 1875, it is now the Telfair Art Museum with a collection of over 2000 pieces … we spent a lovely afternoon here. 

The Black Prince

This picture of the Black Prince, by Julian Story, is enormous. Estimating at 15 feet tall and 20 feet wide, it caught our attention at once. Before I read the sign, I imagined a chess game wherein the Black Knight stands over the defeated White King.  Here is the real story.

Heading West

Near Atlanta in the center of the state, Stone Mountain called to us. We had been to Atlanta 15 years ago and missed the mountain then. Jen and Keith … do you remember that trip? So we headed west.

Little Bird

At a gas station near the pumps, I noticed this little bird. No obvious injuries, but he did not move. I took this picture right next to him.  I scooped him up with a large towel, took him out to a field with some bushes, and left him with a prayer that he would be OK.

Stone Mountain

Stone Mountain is the biggest hunk of free-standing granite in the world. Standing 825 feet tall with a circumference of five miles.  The state of Georgia took control of Stone Mountain in 1954 and pretty much turned it into an amusement park planned for children.

There is also a campground in Stone Mountain where we stayed. Very Nice.

Civil War Heroes Sculpture

Carved over 50 years with WWII intervening, this Confederate Memorial sculpture is the largest relief sculpture taking over 3 acres of the face of the mountain. It exhibits Jefferson Davis, Robert E Lee and General Stonewall Jackson on their horses. There are also 13 pavilions that honor the 13 states that were part of the Confederacy.

Without the big admission fee to the park, you cannot see the sculpture. Therefore, in we went and we did find ways to see the mountain and even got up to the top. The admission includes the Sky-lift cable car to the top of the mountain where you can see the sculpture up close on the ride up.

Random Stone Mountain Pictures

There was a dinosaur park inside the Stone Mountain Park.

Sculpture as seen in the Museum

Top of Stone Mountain ... smooth granite rock.

Hurricanes

Traveling during hurricane season, we keep track of the weather, as well as Evelyn and Debbie checking in to see if we were aware of approaching Hurricane Michael heading for the Florida panhandle. Georgia is right north of the Florida Panhandle, so we left our campground a day early and headed due east toward Gainesville, Florida which is in the center of central Florida. We hunkered down at a Cracker Barrel that night. The manager of the restaurant said there was an unusual crowd in there and the hotels were all filled. Glad we bring our hotel with us.

Michael hit the panhandle as a category 4 hurricane the next morning, October 10. We were on the edge of it and there was lots of rain and wind. In the morning, six large construction trucks pulled in … lining up waiting to head west to begin repairs of the damage. We also spotted many more of them parked along the highways.  This is the second hurricane we dodged this trip. Florence in North Carolina and Michael in Florida.

Next … Heading to Jacksonville Florida