Beaufort, situated in the Low Country, is known for its historic sites, resorts and Gullah culture (a blend of British, American and West African folklore) with a language of its own.For example: comeya = someone from away, binya = someone who came from here and goya = someone who leaves We woke to thick fog in the anchorage with the shoreline barely visible. When it finally lifted we went ashore to get walk the streets and get some exercise The numerous historic homes in Beaufort have not been turned into museums and are mostly still used as private residences. With original construction dates in the late 1700,s and early 1800’s the maintenance must be a continuous challenge.
Living green takes on a new meaning. This fern has its roots outside of the house near the foundation. It has managed to penetrate the wall to grow inside the window and back out through the siding.
Pink and white camellia blossoms on the same branch.
Not all of the low hanging live oak trees in Beaufort have warning signs like this. One semi driver was caught by surprise when his unit was not quite low enough to pass under an unmarked hazard. The loud scraping and banging caused people to pour out of office and retail outlet doors to see what all the commotion was about.
We missed a celebrity sighting in Beaufort by a few days. There was a newspaper report that designer Diane Von Furstenberg and her media mogul husband had been in town to do a bit of shopping. Diane bought the same $8 wicker covered beverage glasses that I had looked at and decided against as being not appropriate for a boat. Apparently her yacht is better equipped than Polar Pacer is for managing fragile items in the galley.
A beautiful sunrise at Bull Creek compensated for having to crawl out of a nice warm bed for an early departure in a cold cockpit as we headed for Savannah. We had even heard some frost warnings forcasted for the area.
The shallow, shifting waterway through Georgia is probably the least favorite section of the ICW for boaters and many opt to go offshore for the entire stretch. I had my heart set on going back to Savannah and Tom finally gave in. As there has not been enough funding for proper dredging, we had to pay very close attention to the tides and time our traveling accordingly. There were some places, Jekyll Creek for instance, that even our three foot draft would not handle at low tide. It was actually reported to have a depth of 0 feet at low tide! We went through at high tide and did not have any problems.
We stopped at the Isle of Hope Marina which has courtesy cars and access to public transportation going to downtown Savannah. Taking Polar Pacer up the Savannah River to the city docks was not a good alternative. It would have taken about about two hours each way and we had no way of knowing if there would be space for us when we got there.
Wormsloe Plantation, a state historic site, is only a few minutes drive from the marina. It was originally settled in 1733 by English colonists. Construction of the original house, made of tabby, was started in 1737. Today the remnants of those tabby walls are the oldest standing structures in the Savannah area.
The tabby walls were made using removable forms filled with a mixture of lime, sand, oyster shells and water.
This is the roadway leading to the plantation. It is lined with over 400 live oak trees that were planted in the early 1890’s to commemorate the birth of Wymberly Wormsloe De Renne. Some of the plantation is still owned by decendents of the original owner, Noble Jones.
Giant burrs - Seed pods from a sweetgum tree growing on Wormsloe plantation.
One of the benches used in the filming of Forrest Gump.
The trolley driver played Moon River as we passed by Johnny Mercer’s statue in the City Market.
During the tour we also learned some obscure facts about Spanish moss. For starters, it’s not really Spanish and it’s not really moss. It is also not parasitic as I had originally thought. It is an air plant and can just as easily live on fences and power lines as it can on trees. It got its name from its similarity to the scraggly beards of the Spanish sailors and early settlers used it to fill their mattresses.
A good crop of Spanish moss.
We stopped for a real southern dinner at a restaurant owned by the Food Network’s famous Paula Deen. The buffet style menu included a variety of delicious, artery clogging fried chicken, roast chicken, beef BBQ, buttery garlic mashed potatoes, black eyed peas, baked ham and Georgia peach cobbler for dessert. We also had our first taste of collard greens. They tasted a lot like the swiss chard I used to grow in my garden.
Paula Deen’s “The Lady and Sons”
Next stop: Jekyll Island. Jekyll Island became an exclusive getaway for the powerful industrialists of the late 19th century. At that time it was one of the most renowned hunting preserves in the country. Pulitzer, Goodyear, Vanderbilt, Astor and Rockefeller were among the surnames on the guest registers. Many lavish vacation residences were later built on the island when privacy became a priority as it became a location where decisions affecting the future were being made. One hundred years ago a group of prominent financial leaders met discreetly on Jekyll Island to develop a plan to reform America’s banking system after a serious economic collapse in 1907.
The island was purchased by the State of Georgia in 1947 and with limited development has now become a tourist destination with a historic district and preserved natural areas.
The Jekyll Island Club today. Open to the public. Thank you to the nice man who stopped and gave all four of us a ride. The walk from the marina was longer than we expected.
Formal croquet on the front lawn. We forgot to wear our whites.
Two large shrimp boats crossed back and forth as we passed through Jekyll Sound towards Cumberland Island. We were careful not to get too close. The previous day we had heard conversations between the Coast Guard and the shrimper Morning Star who had a yacht get tangled up in its fishing gear.
Morning Star was looking a little bedraggled when she went by.
Since 1989, shrimp boats have been required to use specially designed nets with Turtle Excluding devices and Bycatch Reduction Devices that allow sea turtles and fish to escape when they get caught up with the shrimp.
Miss Marie surrounded by a cloud of birds.
Shrimp hatch and develop in the marshes and when they are mature they head for the colder water offshore where they are caught. The shrimp harvested in Georgia are mostly brown shrimp, caught from June to August, and white shrimp which are in season in the fall.
Cumberland Island was a favorite stop last year and warranted a repeat visit. This time we made a point of visiting the Dungeness ruins, the remains of the 19th century mansion built by the Carnegie family.
Wild horses wander through the ruins. There are several herds, headed by stallions who battle each other over ownership of the mares. The total population is around 200.
This little one seemed to have gotten separated from his family and was making a lot of noise about it.
Besides the horses there is a lot of other wildlife on the island. As we had attached ourselves to a noisy tour group that sent most things into hiding our sightings were limited.
The armadillos were not concerned about the crowds. They just went about their business foraging for food.
These wild turkeys were not concerned that Thanksgiving was approaching.
Next will be Florida and as long as the weather cooperates we should be back in the Bahamas soon. We have been hearing a lot of rumbling about the Bahamian entry regulations for Canadians and at this point do not know how long we will be able to stay.
No comments:
Post a Comment