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St Marys GA A Serendipitous HappenstanceDec 2, 2007
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The main waterfront street in St. Marys GA at 10:00 AM on...
A beautiful park on the waterfront
Darlene was fascinated with these derelict boats
| December 1-3 St Marys,GA. When we left Savannah, we were headed for Florida, traveling south down I-95 which is the east-coast version of I-5, carrying most of the traffic from northern states into Florida. The NASCAR culture is apparent every time we get on a highway here; with people driving 10-15 mph over the speed limit, tailgating and cutting back into lanes after passing without sufficient clearance. We thought we might stay at a State Park near Jacksonville FL, but when we called they were full, so we pulled into Crooked River State Park at St. Marys GA, just across the river from Florida - a very serendipitous happenstance!! This is one of the nicest parks we have stayed in on this whole trip. The sites are large and well spaced (no more than 4 sites per acre) in a stand of live oaks and longleaf pine. We are paying $18 per night for water and electricity and 10 channels of cable TV. The bath house is clean, warm and modern. Crooked River is a tidal river that is about 200 yards wide by the campground and there are lots of birds and small wildlife. The river is full of shrimp, fish and crabs, but I have not caught very many - just seen what other people are bringing in. It is not unusual for boats to have 20 pounds of great big fresh shrimp that they catch with cast nets, along with sea trout, drum, flounders and bass. We are right next door to Kings Bay Navy Station which is a large submarine base, and the area around the base is very developed with new chain stores and malls. However, the little town of St Marys is about 5 miles away on the St Marys River, and it is about the cutest little southern coast town imaginable. There are lots of antebellum mansions, live oaks, and Spanish moss, and very few signs of development. We went to a farmers market on the main street on Saturday morning, and there were almost as many vendors as customers. There was even a sleepy old golden retriever lying down in the street and people drove around him. This is also the HQ for Cumberland National Seashore, which is an 18-mile long island once developed as a huge plantation and later owned by the offspring of Andrew Carnegie. The ruins of old mansions are part of the attraction to the site. Now access is limited to 300 people per day and the only access is by NPS boat. Most of the island has returned to natural vegetation and it is one of the biggest sea turtle nesting sites on the Atlantic Coast. We visited the visitor center and museum, but did not tour the island, which would be a major and worthwhile expedition. We liked it well enough here that we took a down day and just hung out. It was 80 degrees and sunshine all day. We think we could live here, with the only downside being clouds of sand gnats that are similar to our western 'no-see-ums', except more numerous and not quite as venomous. Because the town is surrounded by salt marshes, I guess the bugs are almost unbearable in the summer and the park naturalist tells us that they have a reputation for having the greatest concentration of venomous snakes in the state. It is also alligator, fire ant, tick, and chigger country - so maybe Idaho is a little less threatening. Tomorrow we are headed for the Okefenokee Swamp and Florida Panhandle. |
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