Possibly the most visually pleasing week we have spent traveling. The Atlantic ICW winds its way through Georgia bordered by endless marsh grass flats which spill into wide open bays. At the last of the bays, the Savannah River intersects the ICW and we made a trip up river to sample this southern jewel.
Cumberland Island’s nature trail. It led through a magical landscape of Southern Live Oaks draped in Spanish Moss.
We kept waiting for a dinosaur to step onto the path…Cumberland Sound, one of the estuaries which define Georgia’s Cumberland barrier island.I never did find a ranger to ask how old this guy was… it reminded me of the ~400 year old Angel Tree in South Carolina.
The remains of Dungeness, an old Carnegie estate.
The estate included recreational fields, a carriage house, a dairy barn, multiple cisterns and gardens. Today, the only inhabitants are the wild horses who roam freely through the park.
It is a shame that I can not also capture the fragrance of the magnolia…The Atlantic side beachThis should NOT be used for navigation!🤣An example of salt pruning: the wind driven salt air from the Atlantic has shaped this tree. Little Cumberland Island Lighthouse
The journey up the ICW. At each of the bays the twisting river led to, sandbars at the inside of the mouth of the bay hosted “boat parties”.
We left the ICW and traveled up the Midway River to stay the night on the Sunbury Crab Company dock. Here we learned how delicious (and large) a seafood platter can be and how to eat a steamed crab.Sunbury was once the 2nd largest port of entry of the Colony of Georgia, after Savannah, but is now only a quiet collection of residential properties.We walked through the settlement to Fort Morris, a Revolutionary era fort built to protect Sunbury. Today’s lovely views down the river illustrate how well suited the location of the fort was for protection.When we sat down so many years ago and crafted the list of where to go and what to see, Savannah was one of the top five. We were not disappointed.We stayed on the waterfront, in the historic district. In many ways, the area was reminiscent of Boston… but we decided it was softer and more generous… with space, time, color…Colonial Park CemeteryOur favorite “restaurant” in Savannah! (They ship nationwide! We highly recommend the Lemon Custard and the Savannah Socialite 😋😋😋) https://www.leopoldsicecream.comEven the sky in Georgia is peach!
