Checking out Folly Beach

Just south of Charleston, South Carolina, is the beach community Folly Beach. Linda and I took a spin around town but found it challenging to find public access to the beach. We DID find the path up to where we could see the Morris Island lighthouse. It took a walk of about a quarter mile to reach the point where we could see the lighthouse. The wind whipped over the ocean and dunes putting salt and sand in the air; nice experience for a lifelong Midwesterner.

Checking out the Harbour Town Lighthouse

Honestly, Linda and I both had expectations of a lighthouse more like we saw at Tybee; clearly, the two lighthouses will not be confused. The Harbour Town lighthouse is a much more modern structure finished in 1970. While a little disappointed, it was still pleasant to stroll around the harbor. The shops were closed but we peeked in a few. There was live music flowing out of somewhere. All in all, a nice stop even if the lighthouse was a bit newer than expected.

Strolling in Savannah

Linda and I drove into the historic district of central Savannah with its square parks surrounded by homes, businesses, and churches well over a century old. Each little park was named and often had a distinctive feature like a fountain or statue, many with azalea's in bloom. Designed so that traffic going parallel to the river passed cleanly along the sides of these squares, they were centered right in the line of street going to or from the river. This design made for a squared traffic circle.
When the squares run out, several blocks from the river, you find handsome Forsyth Park and it's fountain. Built in 1858, the fountain is a major feature of the park. That said, this park is much larger than the other small square parks dotting the streets on your way to the river. In the image you can see the broad shaded walkway leading up to the fountain. People were sitting on the benches along the walkway chatting and enjoying the spring weather.

Checking out Tybee Island

Just beyond the mouth of the Savannah River lies Tybee Island, Savannah's beach playground. When Linda and I stopped at the visitor center in Savannah, one of the workers there spoke about spending time relaxing on the broad beach like someone who'd done it and enjoyed it. We parked the car and headed out on the pier to catch a better view of the beach and some spring sea breeze. Pelicans were cruising over the waves, wheeling, and diving for their dinner. We paused for a while, soaking in the seaside experience before moving on to the Tybee Island Light Station.

"Ordered by General James Oglethorpe, Governor of the 13th colony, in 1732, the Tybee Island Light Station has been guiding mariners safe entrance into the Savannah River for over 270 years."

Stopping at Fort Pulaski

At the mouth of the Savannah River sits historic Fort Pulaski National Monument, one time guardian of Savannah. Today, it's a handsome, very well maintained example of fortress design, complete with moat, ammo bunkers, and several period piece cannon atop the walls. The defeat of this fort by new technology during the Civil War signalled the end of an era in fortress design.

"The Battle of Fort Pulaski in April 1862 marked a turning point in military history. It featured the first significant use of rifled cannons in combat. These accurate, long-range weapons shattered Fort Pulaski's walls from over a mile away. After thirty-hours of bombardment, the fort surrendered. The battle surprised military strategists worldwide, signaling the end of masonry fortifications."

Beyond Fort Pulaski sits the Cockspur Island Lighthouse. This view of the lighthouse is actually from one of the gun batteries that fired on Fort Pulaski, about a mile directly beyond the lighthouse. There's a trail we could have taken from the fort out near the lighthouse but, that day, we weren't really up to the hike.

"Tragedy struck again in 1854 when the structure was destroyed by a hurricane. The tower was rebuilt and enlarged on the same foundation the next year. At the start of the American Civil War, the light was temporarily extinguished. On April 10, 1862, Union forces in eleven batteries stretching along the beach at Tybee Island, started a long range bombardment of Fort Pulaski. Thirty-six guns participated in a thirty-hour siege of the fort with the Cockspur Lighthouse in direct line of fire."

"Following the surrender of Fort Pulaski on April 11, 1862, the little beacon miraculously only suffered minor damage. Theories abound as to why the tower escaped destruction. One theory suggests to effectively hit the Fort walls approximately 1,500 yards distant, Union artillerists had to fire shots at a high angle, thus passing over the tower. This strategy, coupled with the short duration of battle could explain why the tower was spared. Soon after war's end, April 25, 1866, the beacon was relit and painted white for use as a daymark."

Watching the sun come up

Linda and I got up early to see the sun rise over the ocean. When we first went out, there was very little light in the sky. I turned back from the ocean to get the shot of the moon over a couple of homes. As we waited, a rich red worked its way up the sky. The tide was coming in too so the beach before me kept shrinking as the waves rolled a little close. Before long, the waves had reached far enough to fill a small hollow in the beach. The sky was picking up more blue and, in the image at the lower left, made for a nice reflection as Linda walked down the shore, looking for shells as the surf washed over her feet.
Before long, the sun was over the horizon and I thought my photo opportunities were pretty well past. When we got back up to our room, the walkway outside had a palm tree positioned just so it would be well framed in a shot. After a shot or two, a flock of sea gulls came in to eat bread some people were tossing out for them from a room below. When the gulls left, it made for this image.

Exploring a little of Jeckyll Island

Linda and I pulled in at our stop for the evening at beautiful Jeckyll Island. No, the striking building with the tower and croquet on the lawn was not where we stayed. It looks like a beautiful place to spend some time but ... hmmm... there's gotta be a reason we didn't stay there. Ah! It lacks a view of the ocean.

Actually, the Jekyll Island Club Hotel is the centerpiece of historic district of the island. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Jeckyll Island Club included Morgans, Rockefellers, and Vanderbilts.

As the sun sank in the west, Linda and I headed up to Driftwood Beach on the north end of the island. Of course, the opportunity to get a nice photo was also attractive. In the background of this shot, you can see the bridge back on the mainland. The route out to the island is actually a causeway making access by car as simple as driving to the store.

As usual, Linda did a nice job of mentioning a shot that would be striking. This is one of my favorite from Driftwood Beach.

We hung around and watched cruise boats ply the waters protected by the island. A few dolphins were playing a couple of hundred yards out. We watched them for a while as the sun set.

Recovering from hard disk failure.

I know, I should have had a better backup strategy for just such an occasion. It's taken me over a month to get everything back to where I feel I can resume fairly normal operation. Just this morning, I found the software that makes it easy for me to assemble the multipanel images I enjoy. Now, I have a lot of catching up to do!

Strolling St. Simon's

St. Simon's Island, along the southern coastline of Georgia, is a beautiful place to spend some time wandering. Linda and I started out near the handsome lighthouse and ended up having a bite to eat at one of the neat little eateries near the shore. My fried green tomato sandwich and sweet potato fries hit the spot. It was a nice place to pause and soak up a little coastal flavor.

Pausing at St. Mary's

St. Mary's, Georgia, sits about as far south along the Atlantic coastline of Georgia as you can get. As such, it's has wonderful docks filled with boats and seabirds. St. Mary's is also the gateway to the Cumberland Island National Seashore, a popular National Park Service destination that time didn't allow us to visit. Just getting to visit St. Mary's was a real treat and certainly a different place from home.

Admiring the Okefenokie

More then one person questioned why we were going to make it a point to stop at the Okefenokie Swamp on our trip to the southeast. After having spent a couple of hours roaming the grounds at the entrance and taking a little boat tour, Linda and I both felt that it had been time well spent. It wasn't in it's full summer glory and signs of last years fire were still evident but it was still a place with distinctive beauty... and a little hint of danger. The black bears were in an enclosure and more entertaining than threatening but the gators come in from the swamp and have complete access to the walkways and parking areas. I don't believe I've ever been aware that I was so close to major predators with no barrier between them and me; if we'd been careless or foolish around the gators, there could have been serious consequences. All in all, it was a very pretty and interesting, different place to be for a while.

Remembering Smokey

Seventeen years ago, my kids and I brought home a pair of kittens. One was a grey on grey tiger pattern with peachy undertones; we named her Smokey. She spent virtually her whole life in that same home; she did strike out on her own in the urban jungle for a full week once but never showed an interest in going back.

Several years ago, she was diagnosed as diabetic so we started a twice daily pill regimen; that established a new daily rhythm for the house. Every morning and every evening, at about 7:30, I'd snap my fingers to signal it was time for her pills. More often than not, she'd hop up onto "her" chair and wait for her pills. Then she'd wait for me to snap my fingers again to signal it was time to go downstairs for food. It was our way of dealing with her condition and it appears to have extended her active life a great deal.

She kept her inner kitten well into her later years. One of our morning games was to play chase with an old tie. As I would be getting dressed for work, she'd hop up on the bed and wait for me to flip this old tie out on the bed. She'd pounce on the tip and then let it go for me to do it again; we'd often play for a few minutes. Maybe she had trained me.

She always like to be around me. As a young cat, she liked to be able to lay on me or have a paw on me. Later, she'd lie down facing the same direction I and feel around for me with the tip of her tail. When I'd work at the computer, she'd sit on the back of a chair a few feet behind me or sit on the floor in my peripheral vision. Often, I'd hear a faint rumbling purr and know she was nearby, apparently happy.

The last week or so were a pretty steady decline. She may have had a stroke as her left legs didn't seem to respond as well as usual when she walked. That made hopping up on the couch or her chair more challenging; going up and down the stairs to food and litter became a major effort. I helped her into her chair and down the stairs; she'd have to make the climb back up... and she did a few days. When she wouldn't make the climb, I set up a little bed in the basement using one of her favorite blankets.

On her last day, I noticed it was a little cool in the basement. The sun was shining so I took her out to the back yard to get some sun; I wasn't worried about her dashing around. The birds in the neighborhood sure made a racket about this poor old cat coming out to get a little sun. She laid on her blanket in the sun as I worked on some weeds in a flowerbed; she appeared to like the feeling on her old, worn coat. When we came in, I took her back downstairs to be near food and water though I doubted she'd be interested.

Later that evening, I went down to see how she was doing. She was lying on her side, breathing about three shallow breaths and then one deeper gulp. I petted her and called Linda to let her know how Smokey was doing. As we talked, I continued to stroke Smokey's fur. Her legs looked uncomfortable so I tried to move them up closer to her body; there was resistance so I stopped. Slowly, her head started to arch back and her front legs stretched even further; then the front legs relaxed and the back legs stretched, then relaxed. After that, there was nothing more. No more breathing, no more resistance in her legs. She was gone. I was glad to have known her and to have been there, petting her, at the end. She was a sweet spirit.

Spending a day at Atlanta Motor Speedway

Linda and I went to Atlanta with only one real committed activity: attending the Kobalt 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. (Yes, we had other things in mind.) When I go to a race, it's pretty much an all day event. One of the activities that I enjoy is roaming around the various activities outside the tracks. Generally, I see at least some of the RaceDay television show live. I also wander the merchendise haulers to see what and who's available. Linda has developed a real knack for finding the haulers where drivers can be seen. Here are the drivers from Atlanta, the most I've ever seen at one race.

Of course, the main event is the race. These shots capture some of the images from the race. I don't know the guy in the lower left corner but he's clearly a character; not the norm for the crowd but certainly a fan. Bottom center is Greg Biffle's car going the wrong way up pit road after a pretty significant accident. In the lower right, a fan celebrates his souvenir: the rear panel from Greg Biffles wrecked car.

The blue car with the 2 on the side in the right center image was the winner and kept my streak alive: I've not yet seen any driver win twice. This time, Kurt Busch was at the wheel.

Answering "What'll ya have?"

"The World's Largest Drive-in Restaurant," The Varsity, has been asking that question for over eighty years and people have been stepping up to tell them. Linda and I stopped in to experience this Atlanta landmark. As you can see, we were not alone. As we drove in, all of the drive up slots were taken so we headed to the upper deck of their two story parking ramp. Inside, the counter is wide and the many lines move smoothly. Soon, we were enjoying our orders, happy to have stopped experienced another taste of Atlanta.

Shooting the Georgia State Capitol

When in a capitol city, Linda and I like to get a photo of the capitol building. This handsome structure is the capitol of the great state of Georgia. Unfortunately, we were unable to enter the building but did get to roam the grounds a bit. Near the building itself is a very nice statue and ring honoring former President of the United States, Jimmy Carter. It is a very nice tribute recognizing the various areas where Mr. Carter has served his greater community.

Touring Turner Field

Much like I like to see different NASCAR tracks, Linda and I like to see different Major League Baseball venues. If possible, we like to see a game and sample the foods offered. (Remember the goetta in Cincy?) The season hadn't started yet so the best we could do was tour Turner Field. We right down on the edge of the field, into the locker room and press box, some very nice facilities for fans with deeper pockets than ours, and onto the rooftop. That giant Coca-Cola red Adirondack style char that Linda is perched on is one of the rooftop attractions. It looks like a nice facility but it would have been even better to have seen a game there.

Learning the truth about the Talladega Superspeedway

It took us way longer than I'd expected but we did find the track. You'd think that a HUGE oval, high-banked race track and surrounding grounds would have been easy to find, wouldn't you? Alas, it was not. Linda and I were passing near Talladega so we (more she than me) thought it would be good to swing by and see it, even from the gates. I'd seen it on Google Earth so I knew that it was north of town, didn't look far. Using the gps software we sometimes use on a pc in the car, I saw a large oval area northeast of town surrounded by roads but void of any crossing it; looked like a likely place for a racetrack to me. As we drove into twilight, the road quality got worse and worse as we got closer to our goal. Before we actually got there, Linda was having to drive more left and right than forward to avoid the huge craters in the gravel road; on either side were standing pools of water; this couldn't be right.

I conceded that my memory of the location of the track had to be wrong and we turned back to the business district to find a sign or directions. We stopped at a convenience store, got some vague but helpful directions that included the famous directional statement "You can't miss it." This new route sent us out northwest of town on highway 77. Ten miles later, we're in Lincoln, Alabama; we missed it.

We stopped again for directions. Again they were vague but they did sound plausible so we headed a mile or so back down 77, turned left and found we were on Speedway Boulevard; that sounds better. Sure enough, a few miles later, we saw the sign in the photo. It was too dark to really see anything else but we learned that Talladega Superspeedway is actually closer to Lincoln than Talladega. I s'pose Talladega has a better ring to it.

Stopping by the Kymulga Grist Mill And Park

As Linda and I were looking ahead on our route, the Kymulga Grist Mill And Covered Bridge showed up as a possible place of interest. Having seen most of the bridges of Madison county, it would be interesting to see how they're done in Alabama; they're similar... but different. The bridges I've seen in Iowa have little to no exposed metal. This bridge, built about the time of the Civil War, is one of only two in Alabama remaining where it was originally built. It's a pretty stop and has a small campground to make for an interesting getaway location.

Stopping for a little breakfast...

... but this is not a little breakfast. As Linda and I were crossing Mississippi and Alabama, we thought we should stop and get a bite to eat. Out in the country, at an interchange that wasn't closely related to any town sat a gas station and one of the regional chain restaurants; I forget the name. We stopped in, took a booth, and looked at the menu. When asked if this selection came with eggs, the waitress answered, "Yes. They just throw them on the pile." With marketing like that, how could you not place the order?!

Pausing at Elvis Presley's Birthplace

When in Tupelo, you nearly have to stop at the birthplace of The Kind of Rock 'n Roll. It's not too hard to imagine a young boy running out the front door, jumping off the porch, and off to who knows what. Imagining that young boy would grow into a superstar takes a little more imagination but he did.