Day 11

 Goodbye Savannah, hello St. George's Island!

This was a travel day as we drove 360 miles south to St. George's Island which is located in the Florida Panhandle, very close to Apalachicola.

We were on the road by 8:15 AM, and since our GPS suggested a route back through Savannah we decided to return to Café M for cappuccinos and pastries to go.  Why settle for Starbucks or Dunkin' Donuts when there's Café M?

We avoided I-95 for all but 15 miles and kept to the back roads of Georgia.  Despite the monsoon rains, this route is a great way to see the real Georgia; the pine forests, pulp mills, cattle farms, and abandoned shops of small town main streets.

Georgia is the nation's largest producer of lumber, and primarily uses its vast pine forests—comprising over 14 trillion trees—as a sustainable, privately managed crop for the timber economy, generating over $35 billion annually. Pines are processed into construction lumber, paper/pulp products, and pine straw, with trees harvested every 10–50 years and immediately replanted.

Around 1 PM we stopped for lunch at Culvers, a fast food restaurant in Valdosta.  This was our first fast food indulgence on this trip, but sometimes you just have to go with this convenience when on a long road trip. Their burgers are pretty good too.

We arrived on St. George's Island around 5 pm.  The state park campground where we've stayed before did not have any vacancies when we first started to book places for the trip in January, so we lucked out and found this VRBO studio apartment on the bay side of the island.  

This is the view from the bed in our apartment!  Can't wait to see the sunset. Only rain and fog was visible when we arrived.  Over two inches of rain fell on us yesterday.

This was our 6th spring visit to the Forgotten Coast of Florida since 2017, so despite the weather we went to Up the Creek, a tradition passed on to me by my sister and her husband who loved spending a month here every spring.  

What makes this place so special is the view as shown in the photo below from our trip in May 2023.  Today's monsoon forced us to sit inside, and as you can see behind Joni, the place was empty.

Taken on May 2, 2023, our last visit to Up the Creek

Day 10

 We started our last full day in Savannah returning to Café M. We just can't resist good French pastries and coffee.  The woman sitting next to Joni was a delight; engaging  conversations with locals is one of the joys of traveling.   She lives in Savannah within walking distance of the cafe, but earlier in her life she'd lived in California, Massachusetts, and Oklahoma City.  In fact she was a big fan of the OKC Thunder, and our whole conversation started when she overheard Joni and me discussing the Celtics.

Leaving the café I wanted to get a better picture of the Goast Guard ship "Eagle", so we drove along River Street where it was docked yesterday.  No luck.

River Street parallels the Savannah River (duh), so it is a very popular tourist destination for those who want to window shop, be seen, or simply walk and cool off by the breeze off the river.

The Waving Girl of Savannah.  Florence Margaret Martus, took it upon herself to be the unofficial greeter of all ships entering and leaving the Port of Savannah between 1887 and 1931.  As a young girl, she had fallen in love with a sailor and wanted to be sure he would find her when he returned.  When, after 44 years, he did not, she died of a broken heart.

Leaving River Street we took a repeat driving tour of the parks of Savannah.  I never get tired of these incredible squares and the homes that surround them.

A renovation in progress.  

Returning to our campground we unrolled our van's awning in order to escape the 90° heat while we lunched on our sandwiches from Cafe M.  I delayed my bike ride for the day with a nap for an hour while I digested my lunch.  My ride was a short one, remaining on the roads of the park and continually seeking the shade of pines and magnolias.  

For dinner we returned to the River Street for Mexican food at the Savannah Tequilla Company.

Eternal Summer Margaritas:  Altos Blanco, Orange Liqueur, Lime Juice, Agave

 Freshly Made Guacamole: Tomato, Red Onions, Cilantro, Lime, Jalapeño

Street Tacos

Shrimp Al Pastor-Roasted Pineapple, Creamy Jalapeno Salsa

Pork Carnitas-Salsa Verde Avocado, Pickled Onions

Asada-Avocado, Charred Salsa, Red Onion

Baja Fish-Lime Cabbage, Pico De Gallo, Spicy Aioli

Chicken Tinga-Jalapeño Cream, Pico de Gallo, Queso Fresco

Needless to say it was another fabulous meal for the two Aging Hippies!

Day 9

Happy Mother's Day!

Our first night's sleep at Skidaway was very quiet and restful.  There was a light rain during the night but the sun came out around 9 am.  

For her Mother's Day breakfast Joni chose Café M, where "French Delights Pair with Southern Hospitality".  

The food, atmosphere, and service could not be better.  We will probably return for breakfast tomorrow.

Leaving the café we searched for a parking spot along River Street where we could get a strong cell signal so that I could update our blog.  "The Savannah River is a major river in the South, forming most of the border between the states of Georgia and South Carolina. The river flows from the Appalachian Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean, for a total distance of about 301 miles."  It played a huge role in the transportation of cotton and slaves prior to the Civil War.  

This is the US Coast Guard's "Eagle"  a 295 ft three masted barque known as "America's Tall Ship," serving as the flagship and primary training vessel for the US Coast Guard Academy.  As the only active square-rigger in U.S. government service, it trains future officers in seamanship, navigation, and leadership.  It has participated in the annual Hyannis to Nantucket Memorial Day race in the 1990's when my "Bombo" was also a participant.

After enough blogging we decided to check out some of the Victorian homes built between 1870-1910, and fountain that are located around Forsyth Park.

For Joni's delayed birthday dinner we dined at Jazz'd Tapas, which she had already picked out, and was recommended by a couple from Savannah who was sitting next to us at Café M.  They said it was their favorite restaurant in town, and they recommended the lamb chops. 

Our meal was elegant and fantastic. The menu included a "Tapas for Two"  special which included soup or salad, four tapas, and a choice of desserts. Their tapas were larger than the typical tapas found in many American restaurants, so we didn't come close to cleaning our plates, and in fact we even brought our desserts home.  To add to our gorging, we each ordered a cocktail as well.  After all it was also Mother's Day, and the drinks were as good as the meal.

White Wine Sangria and a Georgia Peach Swing:  Vanilla Vodka, Peach Combier, Orange, Peach Infused Syrup, Cranberry, Aromatic Bitters

CRAB STEW:  A Hearty Cream Based Stew made with Blue Crab Meat.

FIVE ONION SOUP:  Spanish Onions, Red Onions, Shallots, Leeks, Scallions, Fresh Thyme, & Provolone over Garlic

Lamb Chops:  Three Grilled marinated Lollipop Chops, served with a crispy Rosemary Garlic New Red Potato & finished with a Rosemary Cabernet Demi-Glaze

Poutine:  Hand cut fries, Applewood Smoked Bacon gravy and Cheddar Cheese Curds topped with Scallions

LOW COUNTRY SHRIMP & GRITS:  Local Shrimp Sautéed in a Tasso Gravy, Smoked Pork, Coffee, Ham Broth & Thyme. Served over Cheesy Grits

Completely satisfied, we left before the evening entertainer began to play.  Fortunately our walk back to the van was a short one; it was 82°.  We arrived back at our campground, ready to relax and enjoy a quiet night on Skidaway Island.

Day 8

 Day 8

We resumed our travels south today with our ultimate goal Georgia’s Skidaway State Park Campground which is only 15 miles south of Savannah.  Mila put together a wonderful breakfast of frittata and oatmeal, and even a tiramisu birthday cake that she baked for Joni.  Borrowing a phrase from the old Topper TV show, Mila is truly the “hostess with the mostess”.    

Mila was not certain how old Joni was, so the second digit is a question mark.  For the record Joni turned 75.

Chef Mila

We were on the road by 9:30 AM, heading for Charleston where we planned to have lunch at the “Swig and Swine”, a barbecue restaurant that makes the absolute best corn pudding.  We arrived there around 1 pm, fortunately the restaurant wasn’t too crowded so we got a table immediately.  Our meal was as good as we remembered.  

Pulled pork, sausage, corn pudding, and hash & rice.

A mango spritzer!

After lunch we decided to take a driving tour of old Charleston; it’s such a beautiful city with incredible architecture.  We’ve been there before but I never get tired of seeing all those gorgeous homes.  Charleston has become a very common locale for bachelorette parties,  so we saw many groups of 20 something women, all dressed alike, roaming the streets and riding in the horse drawn carriages.  Since it was Saturday we also saw a number of wedding parties too.  Charleston is certainly a happening place!

Returning to the open road, our next stop was Savannah, where we arrived around 5 pm.  We had dinner reservations for 7 PM, but we were so stuffed from Mila’s breakfast and the “Swig and Swine”  barbecue that Joni decided to opt for a birthday dinner at Leopold's Ice Cream parlor where we both had hot fudge sundaes.  Leopold’s is a popular institution in Charleston; so the line was long extending out the door and down the street, but it moved fast.  Their staff is very well trained.

Leaving Leopold’s around 6 pm, we drove further south to Skidaway Island State Park Campground.  Of all the campground we’ve visited, this easily makes our top 5.  The entrance is a beautiful tunnel of trees covered in Spanish moss.  

There was just enough daylight to get our van set up and settle in to an evening with the Red Sox, but apparently it’s raining in Boston and the game was canceled.