Fun in Savannah

May 27th through June 10th, 2024

Our goal (other than enjoying ourselves every day) is to stay in each of the lower 48 states, at least for a little while. We want to see as many national parks as we can in that time, and really get to know each state. We know it takes longer than a week or two to really know a place, but we have limited time. We think we can pull it off by starting in the fall of 2021 and finishing in the fall of 2027.

Sometimes we stay a week or two. But sometimes we stick around a bit longer just to relax and take it all in. We had four weeks in Savannah, Georgia, and we couldn't wait to settle in.

We had the best site in the CreekFire RV Resort booked, site 106 that faced a lake. When we came around our final corner, we saw that someone was already in our site, all set up. We figured this was bound to happen at some point with all of the sites we have. We called the office and they straightened it all out (the other campers were supposed to move to a different site but forgot), so we sat in a roundabout for an hour trying not to block traffic too much.

When we finally got to pull in, we barely fit. Our front end was just a couple feet from the edge of the lake, and the trailer was right at the end of the site's driveway. The car was going to be half in the grass. It was tight, but it ended up being very cosy and private.

We ordered new, white patio chairs and side tables from Polywood that fold for storage, and got rid of our campchairs. Even the nice camping chairs fade and slowly break down in the sun and weather. We're loving having "real" furniture to hang out in.

Some of our visits to national parks are truly special, and our first one may be our best one so far. We were able to take our eBikes on a barrier island at the Cumberland Island National Seashore. We put the bike rack on the car, loaded up the bikes, and drove them to meet the ferry. Then, we babysat them on a wonderful ride through the waters of Savannah to walk them out onto the island. We spent a few hours riding around, and it was glorious.

The only vehicles on the island stay there permanently, and there aren't many of them. We rode almost to the other end of the island until the sand started getting deep. That's when we realized our bikes didn't do well in deep sand. We were all over the place and wiped out a couple times. So, we turned around and headed to the other end of the island where the roads were packed a bit more. That ended up being a good decision.

There are old remains of large, stone houses and buildings used by the Carnegie family a long time ago. And there are wild horses! We were watching a trio of them chase each other around, playing, and one of them ran by within a few feet of us. It was such a nice time. We had a little picnic and really didn't want to go. But soon we had to get back on the ferry and head for home.

Margot had the opportunity to do some very cool kayaking. She cruised through mangrove forests and heard alligators and fish splashing around nearby. She saw them, but they kept their distance. The best part was that she could leave from our campground and didn't have to drive the kayak anywhere. It was a great way to get closer to Jorge, the gator in the lake out our front window.

Another big highlight of Savannah was a visit from Sue and Toni. They flew in from Salt Lake City to stay for a few days. First, the two of them went kayaking with Margot. Luckily, no alligators bothered them, and they had a great time on the beach. Margot bought a trolling motor that fits in her kayak, and Toni and Sue used a sail on the double kayak. It was a blast.

We had to see the city, of course, and we were happy to discover that Savannah had a Hop On Hop Off Trolley for us to ride. Even better, we scheduled a shuttle to take us from the campground to the trolley in the city and back. It couldn't have been easier.

We rode around and checked out all of the parks and beautiful homes. Savannah and its canopies of old oaks and Spanish Moss is a beautiful city. We hopped off to go to lunch at Paula Deen's restaurant, The Lady and Sons. As you can imagine, it's tough to find vegetarian food in Savannah but it isn't impossible. The restaurant serves its food "family style" so you are supposed to order an entree and a bunch of sides, and it comes in large servings to share. The only vegetarian option was to have a bunch of sides, so that's what we did. They were delicious!

At the next hop-off stop, we walked through the beautiful Johnson Square on our way to the river. We took the free ferry out into the water where we had lovely views of the city. That brought us to another stop where we caught the trolley again.

After we made it back to the campground, we went out to dinner at what might be the most popular restaurant in the area -- the Waffle House! None of us had been to a Waffle House before, and they were all over the South. We really liked everything a lot, especially the waffles, and we'll be back.

The last fun day we had with Toni and Sue was spent on a boat. We booked a tour with Captain Derek's Dolphin Adventures, and they took us out in the waters near Tybee Island to spot them. The views and the ride were so nice, and it was such a blast to watch the dolphins play in our boat's wake. So cute!

We went around the corner from the dock to a fantastic little restaurant for lunch, and it was a great day.

It was sad to see our friends leave, but they were busy in SLC and had to get back to it. We love having visitors! Our stay in Savannah wasn't over yet, but we'll save that for the next post.