Dotted blue lines

The author, William Least Heat Moon, wrote about traveling blue highways.  I took that to heart.  These trips that we take are not on Google maps, they're not the most direct route.  They are the two lane black top roads marked as scenic.

Ilze plans the routes with paper maps and we design the routes so that we travel no more than 5 hours per day.  Many of the routes we took report, using Google maps, to be 100 miles in 2 hours or longer.  These are not the interstate, 70+mph highways.

Scenic for us is not the architecture, but the people in their environment.  We traveled 4,700 miles from Chicago to the Okefenokee Swamp and back.

Geography of Savannah

Being  from  Chicago, East is water.  In Savannah, the river  is north.  Along  the river is the  historic  district.  The  historic  district  is the downtown, major tourist  area and college  town all rolled  into one package.  This district  is served by DOT, a free bus service  and is very walkable.

West of the historic  district  are Pooler and the airport.  East are the barrier  islands, the easternmost  being Tybee.

South  is the rest of the city.  Savannah  reaches south.  There are  numerous  districts.  South of the historic  district  is the  Street car  district  that has the largest  park/square  Forsyth  Park. 

We lived on Skidaway, a major  north/south street approximately  a half mile from the southern  boundary of the  city.  Immediately  south is the Sandfly  area and south of that Wormslow and the rest of the southern barrier  islands  ending in the  exclusive  Skidaway  Island.  The rest of the  city is served  by CAT, an hourly  bus service.

I   did not see walkable  grocery  shopping in the  close areas.  We are a half mile from the   Food Lion; walking  with  groceries  would  be difficult  because  there  are no sidewalks  here.  The sidewalks end at DeRenne  about  a mile from our cottage.  It seems  that  most people  drive  to malls  that surround  the  city.

Cumberland Island

We took the ferry to Cumberland Island from St. Marys located at the most southeastern part of Georgia.  After having several weeks of beautiful fall weather, it turned and has been hot and sultry breaking area records.  Usually this was jacket weather.

Joining us on the ferry was a class of 7th grade students and a bunch of backpackers and campers intending on staying.  You have to bring in all your food and supplies. 

The picture of the woman below wearing a jacket is crazy.  It was 92 degrees and 100% humidity.  Apparently people wore long sleeves to protect themselves from ticks.  They looked so sad. I would just look and shake my head.  Oh my it was hot! We were committed to this trip.  The ferry tickets were nonrefundable, as well as the deposit on the hotel in St. Marys.  So we did it!  We hiked with packs. Michael carried our lunches and water.  I had my camera pack.  We sweat through everything.  Then we got all salty from the ocean.  The water felt so good when we reached the beach.  We still needed to return to the ferry pickup site.  I don't think I have been so hot, ever.  

The island has wild horses that are relatively tame and wander all over. They looked healthy and content and would pop up when you least expected.  

These seagulls seemed to have a problem.

Pictures from Okefenokee

Pictures from Stephen C. Foster State Park in the Okefenokee Wildlife and Wilderness Area

It took awhile to drive to this area from Savannah but well worth it.  Where else would we see such a place!  It was awfully hot and felt like the middle of their summer. The park guide said this heat was unusual and is bringing back the snakes.  Sure enough, we saw two on the road getting here.  The pictures can't capture how wildly beautiful it was.  We went on a 90 minute boat ride through lakes and rivers in the swamp and must have seen a 100 alligators enjoying the sun and heat.  The water was dark and opaque but reflective like a mirror. The sounds of birds were everywhere.  There were different species of woodpeckers including a large pileated woodpecker with a red crest.  Not too many biting bugs but a lot of gorgeous dragon flies swooping around.  

This guy was really big - 10 to 12 feet.

Sunrise on Tybee Island

The time change this morning threw us.  We were up way too early and decided to see if we could catch the sunrise at the beach on Tybee Island.  It was great, no traffic, no flooding (a recent concern) and only dedicated people.  The little bird in the picture below had legs that worked like fast animation in a blur. Another picture shows a wedding party taking their pictures.  Very happy group. 

It is hard to imagine that today is November 1. Tomorrow we go south to St. Mary's near the Cumberland Island Wilderness Area.  We plan to visit the Okefenokee Swamp and the Island over the next few days.

The CAT, Dot and Belles

We visit a city by public transportation.  We both enjoy seeing the neighborhoods and people of the city.  For me, the people and their lives are more important than architectural landmarks.

The 31 approaching.

The paddle wheeler docked .at the City Hall pier.

Savannah is a long city.  The northern boundary is the Savannah River.  This part of the city is the historic district and major tourist area.  It is served by the Dot, a free bus service that wends its way around all of the 24 squares in the city.

The river is served by the Belles, 4 ferries that connect the historic section to the convention center on the other side of the river.  Each of the Belles is named after an historic woman in Savannah history, two white, one Black and one Native American.  The Belles are part of the CAT, Chatham Area Transportation and use the CAT pass.

The CAT is the bus service for the area.  There are 19 bus routes.  The cost/ride for an adult under 65 is $1.50 one way with a free transfer.  The transfer cannot be used on the reverse route of the bus, if you use route 11 out, you cannot use your transfer to reverse ride.  For the senior the cost is 1/2 or 75 cents with proof of age, your Medicare card.  A rider can purchase a pass at the terminal in the historic district or at some libraries.

Our area, Skidaway and Bona Bella  is in the south.  It seems to me that the sidewalk ends at DeRenne and everything south of that is sidewalk-less.  Bus riders here walk well worn paths on the side of the road.  The 36 bus serves the area north of us, about a half mile walk, on an hourly schedule.  The 11 drops at the door, but serves the area Monday through Friday rush hour only.

Riding the 11 home is a hoot.  CAT buses are shorter, 2/3s as long as a Chicago bus.  The 11 drivers. all of whom needs special training, wend the bus through 3 squares, 2 hospital parking lots and a Wall Mart lot and innumerable side streets.  The ride home for us takes us through the whole route and drops us last.

We're all the same

This is Benny's a tavern at an intersection on Tybee Island.  Tybee is heavily commercialized on the Atlantic side, not so much on the inland side.

We were wandering down the commercial strip looking for lunch and we decided on Benny's.  Written on the door is a sign proclaiming that Benny's has the coldest beer in town.  It does.  It is the joint that Han Solo walked into in the first Star Wars.  On the left the main bar with a group of regulars who it seems were camped there for the last month or so.  In the center a pool table.  On the right a raised section for diners.  If smoking was allowed, you'd be greeted with a low hanging fog of cigarette smoke.

Ilze was drawn here because there was a hand lettered sign that said something about chowder.  The kitchen is independently run.  I'm sorry I don't remember the chef's name, he is a black man in his 50's.  We ate well, the beer super cold, eavesdropping on the bar conversation entertaining.

While Ilze was freshening up, I was finishing my lunch and the owner, Benny ?, came over to ask how the experience was.  I praised the food and the cold beer.  He told me the chef was a good 'ol boy and asked me were I'm from.  When he heard Chicago, he backed up a pace and reflected that "Well we're all the same."

How ARE the people?

I was asked this question by friends.  Before answering, I need to point out that we're senior citizens, white, married 43 years and quiet, despite my unusual choice in clothing.  When you travel it is difficult to strike up conversations other than banalities.

Waiting in line in the Food Lion, a local grocery chain, I listened to the conversation between the cashier, African American and a senior, to a customer, white male and middle aged.  The conversation flowed freely and friendly.  When it was my turn to check out, I greeted the cashier, who responded How's Chicago?  It appears that my Chicagoese immediately marks me.  My sense is that about 80% of what I say is understood.

This holds true for us, despite our hearing (which is getting worse), about 3 in 4 statements in Georgian are understood.  This Southern patois is soft and silky with a tendency to go fast and trail off.  South Carolinian seems to be the southern spoken the most in Chicago because we both recognized it immediately.  North Carolinian and Tennessean are twangy.

Hey! How ya'll doin?

The most common greeting in Savannah.  Everyone greets everyone everywhere.  I still haven't figured out a response.  I tried my usual, Doin' Great! but that doesn't bring back a rejoinder.  I don't think that it requires a response, it reminds me of the wave in the West.  Driving in the Western states when you see a car on 2 lane blacktop you wave.  I asked a local in Wyoming why everyone waves and the response was to make sure your safe and not a bad guy.

I'll try, best I can and see what that does.

Hey, as a salutation has multiple syllables.  Waiting in line at a food court an older woman got to the head of the line and responded to "what would you like?" with a haaaaaaaayyyyyy that trailed off as she read the menu.

Getting to Know Savannah

Taking a walk through Forsyth Park.

I bicycled today from the cottage to the Historic District.  It took 35 minutes and was for the most part easy and flat.  I learned to use my phone's GPS which gave me directions as I went.  Really useful in finding bike paths and pretty streets.  Weather has continued to be great although the sun in the afternoon is intense. Time for air conditioning.


Taking a boat out into the mouth of the Savannah River we found dolphins surfacing near us.  Most of them were too quick to capture with my camera, but I got lucky with this one.

This cat along with his siblings seemed to own the dock.

The sky had these beautiful colors.

Savannah, Georgia

We are staying in a cottage on a property called "Cohen's Retreat".  In the 1920's (or 30's) a man
left a bequest to create a place for old men to have a place to live.  Since then, it has turned into a mixed venue of shops, upcoming restaurant. and cottages on five acres of land.  Our cottage is lovely, thoughtfully furnished and very comfortable.  We will be here for a month.

Today we took a bus to the historic area of the city.  Savannah is beautiful.  The trees with hanging moss are everywhere and they are gorgeous.

The pictures below were taken at squares found throughout this area.  There are 23 of them breaking up the community with beautiful parks.

First African Baptist Church (1859)
The oldest black church in North America constructed by slave hands.

Haitian Monument to those who fought during the Revolutionary War.

Nathanael Green was George Washington's second-in-command in the Revolutionary War.

Christ Church (Episcopal, founded 1733, is the "Mother Church of Georgia" where John Wesley started the first Sunday school.  Juliette Gordon, founder of the Girl Scouts married William Low in this church.

The "

Gardenia tree blooming!

Cotton Exchange Building

Upper and Lower Factor's Walk where the warehouses stored cotton for shipment.

Regular residences are found throughout the historic district.

Where else do you smell gardenias in October when taking a walk.  Fall is making it cooler but doesn't seem to change the colors. Flowers and beautiful trees and bushes are everywhere.  This was the 13th colony, created in the mid 1700's.  There are history lessons all around.

Off the Blue Ridge Parkway

We have continued to have glorious weather for being outside.  Mountains, water and fall colors!  Michael and I have learned to use our trekking poles when walking on paths.  It makes a big difference.  I am sad to realize that my knee is never going to handle full out hiking. The poles help make trail ups and downs more manageable.  They offer support and help with balance.  Once upon a time I could scamper up these trails, but now that I lost some cartilage and my ACL, it just isn't gonna happen. Today we needed to turn back just as things were getting interesting. Oh well. On the other hand we saw a hiking group today that consisted of seniors.  They were doing pretty good.