November 4, 2006 - This was a free day. We drove into Beaufort to walk the downtown streets for awhile then ate lunch at Barbara Jean's Restaurant - very good. Drove out to old Fort Fremont, a Spanish American War fort occupying 15 acres near the end of St. Helena Island. Nothing much to see there. The fort was abandoned before it was finished, and nothing has been done to maintain it in the 100+ years since. It was surrounded by a chain link fence that was falling down in places - oak trees and underbrush growing up all around. There were some nice homes at the end of the island overlooking the bay.
November 5, 2006 - The caravan moved to the Rivers End Camground and RV Park on Tybee Island
near Savannah, Georgia on this afternoon. Several caravaners left the group this morning to get
home in time to vote. We're down to 22 rigs now - 43 people. Our leaders prepared evening dinner
for us - baked potato and chili - in the screened in rec room at the
campground.
Tybee Island is about twenty minutes from Savannah, Georgia. With
five miles of beach, it has been a playground for folks from Savannah
for years. Ann's Mom and Dad used to ride the train to Tybee from
Patterson for a day's excursion. They'd rent bathing suits to go into
the water.
November 6, 2006 - The first time we saw Savannah was in 1964. The
old houses around the squares were abandoned and dilapidated. It was
interesting to try to imagine what it was like in the pre-Civil War years
when those houses were the homes of the wealthy cotton plantation owners. Still, it was depressing to see
all the decay, but change was coming. The next time was 20 years later. A few of the old houses had been
restored. I remember one where several coats of paint had been removed from the door knobs to find that
the knobs were solid silver. We had rented a guide tape at the visitors center to play as we drove around on
our own. The change in the city was remarkable.
All that restoration is now virtually complete. The historic area around those majestic squares is beauriful. It
is no longer necessary to imagine what it looked like in its heyday. It probably looks better now than then,
but the traffic is far different. It's a busy, busy place.
Two tour trolleys picked us up at the campground on this morning and took us on a tour of the city. After the
last stop we walked over to Paula Deen's "Lady and Sons Restaurant" and twelve of us secured reservations
for later in the day. Even with reservations there was a 30 minute wait, but it was worth it. During the wait Ann
was interviewed by a Charleston TV reporter. We ate in the third floor dining area along with scads of other
folks. Delicious food. Afterwards we walked back to the trolley barn for the ride back to the campground.
Just a few blocks from the campground is the Tybee Island Lighthouse and the old Fort Screven. The
lighthouse has been in place in its present condition since 1867, although several structures preceded this
one. At 154 feet tall it is the tallest light in Georgia. Powered by a first order Fresnel lens, the Tybee light is
among the brightest in existence.
Fort Screven is a nondescrip looking structure that was built during the Spanish American War. It functioned
as headquarters for Georgia's coastal defense until 1924 and was declared surplus in 1944. It is presently
owned by the City of Savannah, but there is no evidence that the city has any intention to do anything with it.
I didn't bother taking a picture of it.
November 7, 2006 - A rainy day in Georgia. This was a free day, so with the rain we just went to the Ogle-
thorpe Mall in Savannah to walk and shop. At 5:30pm the caravan gathered in the screened rec room to share
finger food and crafty things.
November 8, 2006 - With the sun out early in the day the beach looked a bit more
appealing. Dolphins were rolling just beyond the breaking waves. Shortly the sun
disappeared and the clouds again rolled in.
