Bicycling around Historic Savannah

We needed to fill a week of time before we could arrive in Charleston, so we called all of the campgrounds we were familiar with around Savannah . . . only to find that they were all completely booked through April!  We found one in Rincon, GA, just west of I-95, and fortunately we were able to book the week we needed.  Whew!

So, we made our exit from Florida,

and ventured into Georgia.

 

 

 

After all the reports of horrendous traffic on I-95, we opted to stay on the backroads – taking US-301 to US-84, until we reached I-95 just south of Richmond Hill.  We only had to drive about 30 miles on 95, and fortunately the traffic wasn’t too bad.

We arrived at Whispering Pines and got set up on site 50.

The sites are a little close together, but plenty long, and we have a nice pine tree for shade.  The campground is also in a great location for exploring Savannah.

On Friday, we took a drive into town, stopping at a couple of Quilt Shops on the way (Tom was thrilled!).

 

Since we still had the bikes on the back of the Jeep, we decided to use them to explore the city.

They turned out to be a good way to get around and cover lots of ground – as long as we didn’t end up going the wrong way on a one-way street – that was a little nerve-wracking!

 

 

 

 

It was getting close to lunchtime, so we rode down towards River Street, although we did not attempt to ride down the cobblestone drive like this woman did!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We enjoyed the view from the Riverwalk,

and finally settled on Spanky’s for lunch – being Friday, our choices were limited.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After lunch, we ventured over to the City Market,

where we walked through several shops and admired several monuments to historical figures.

 

 

 

We were going to get an ice cream cone at Leopold’s . . .

but it appeared that everybody had the same idea!  Ben & Jerry’s was just down the road, so we went there instead – no line!

Back on the bikes, we rode up and down several streets, admiring the beautiful old architecture of the historical buildings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As we were riding, we came across an old cemetery, and stopped to take a walk around.

It was a beautiful cemetery – with trees that are as old as the graves!

There were graves above ground,

as well as below ground – with the stones so weathered, that you could barely see the words.

Along one boundary, the brick wall was lined with headstones,

we weren’t sure of the reason they were attached to the wall like that, but assuming the graves were relocated, too.

Looking in each direction from the cemetery, we could see a church steeple,

 

including the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist.

The Jeep was parked close to the Cathedral, so on our way back we stopped in to take a look.

 

St. Patrick was there to greet us as we arrived.

 

 

 

Inside, the cathedral is amazingly beautiful!

 

The detail is incredible – from the murals, the stained glass, and the sculptures!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Breath-takingly beautiful!

It was a beautiful day in Savannah, and it was really nice to have the bikes, which allowed us to venture further from the “tourist district” and discover new areas we had not seen before! 

Visiting the little town of St. Marys

We really didn’t have any plans for Sunday, so after getting home from church, I some ribs in the crock pot for dinner, and we went out for a drive.

 

 

Just across the border into Georgia is the little coastal town of St. Mary’s, right next to the King’s Bay Naval Submarine Station.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As a surface Sailor, Nicolas won;t be stationed there. but many of his fellow Nukes call this base home.

We continued into the historical downtown district of St. Marys, along the river.  St. Marys is the gateway to Cumberland Island, home to a herd of wild horses.

We had thought about going, but not soon enough – the boat to Cumberland Island only has two trips over to the island, and both are in the morning. 

Oh well, we made due with the St. Marys Submarine Museum instead.

The Museum was two floors of submarine models and artifacts from US Navy submarines – early submarines on the first floor and nuclear submarines on the second floor, as well as a video of life aboard a Navy submarine and a working periscope.

The periscope was really cool – you could spin it around 360 degrees and see boats on the river and the entire area surrounding St. Marys.

We looked at the collection of submarine artifacts – we were amazed at some of those early submarines,

and how much they have grown in size as technology has improved.

USS Silversides – this one is a Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Upstairs, we looked at the numerous displays donated by crewmembers of various subs – there were a lot of subs!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After looking through the displays and models, we watched the video of life on a nuclear submarine.

It was directed at kids, but was very interesting and informative, even for adults.

The Museum was very nicely done . . . and I’m still glad Nicolas is going to be on a carrier instead of a sub!

Across the road from the Museum is a nice little park, next to the Cumberland Island boat dock.

 

We walked through the park, and along the edge of the river.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There were several swings along the walkway, overlooking the river – we had to try them out!

 

From the river walk, we turned up the main street.  It was Sunday, so all of the little shops were closed, but we walked along and admired the old, historic buildings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a very cute little town!

Back home, our ribs in the crockpot smelled really good!  We crisped them up on the grill for a few minutes while I cooked some vegetables inside, and the 3 of us enjoyed a delicious dinner!  I usually cook ribs in the oven, but I used the crockpot this time so we could go out for the day.  They turned out really well, so I think I’ll use the crockpot from now on.

On Monday, we just hung out at the RV Park.  Nicolas cleaned up his car, and then got on the road back to Charleston after lunch.  Rain was expected later in the afternoon, and we wanted him to get home before it arrived.  We were really glad to spend his days off with him, and he enjoyed it, too!