2022 Spring Southern Trip: Savannah, Georgia

  Sunday 4/10:  237  miles,  parked at Creek Fire RV Resort, Savannah, GA

Now in Savannah, and more Tee-shirt weather.

Site 50 at Creek Fire RV Resort.

Myrtle Beach KOA to Fire Creek RV Resort.

Our neighbors, big diesel motorhomes on each side of us.  😀

We left the KOA in Myrtle Beach just about 10:00.  The drive was on Interstate Highways a good share of the way; took 501 to Conway, 378 to I-95 South.  The resort was just a mile off I-95 at exit 94 in Georgia.  I-95 traffic in South Carolina was brutal.  70 miles per hour, and then for no reason, stopped. This happened time and again.  When we crossed the Georgia line, 95 turned into 3 lanes instead of just 2, and traffic flowed freely.  The RV Resort was just a mile off exit 94 outside Savannah.

Creek Fire is a new campground for us.  And when they say resort, they mean resort; 4 pools, tiki bar, gym and onsite restaurant.  All the roadways are paved.  This resort is only a couple years old, and it was designed for todays large glamping RV's.  It seems like the only thing they went cheap on is no cable TV, and the air channels are limited.  I had been planning to watch 60 Minutes on CBS, and we couldn't get it.  I know in today's world I can stream it, but when traveling I don't like to exceed my Verizon and ATT data plans.  And I'm not a big user of public wifi.  Call me old fashioned, but I really don't trust public wifi.  Maybe I've been watching too many episodes of FBI.  😀

Adult pool and Lodge

Fire Pit

Splash pool

Lazy River tubing 

View from our camper

Ping pong and game area

Campground Map

Where we are, site 50.

Monday 4/11:  Today turned out to be beautiful sunny and 80 degrees.  We hit a nearby Walmart for some grocery shopping and supplies.  We spent the afternoon relaxing, reading and dog walking.  We also made plans to meet tomorrow with long time friends Charlotte and Robert, who now live in Savannah.

Tuesday 4/12: We agreed to meet Charlotte and Robert at their home at 10:00.  They live about 30 minutes from the campground.  Robert and Char are another North Country couple who have relocated to the south in their retirement.  Charlotte was an English teacher at Potsdam High School when I taught there.  They have both found a new love for the city of Savannah and they are a fountain of information about the history of the city.

First they took us to the Georgia State Railroad Museum where we spent a couple hours.  The museum is the site of the original Central Railroad of Georgia Savannah repair shop.  Active restoration is still being done here,  and parts of the original Roundhouse and turntable are still in use.  I'm always fascinated by railroad history.  It seems like wherever we have traveled in this country, there has been railroad history involved in the original development of the area. 

 

Repair shop in the roundhouse.

Turn table

Early diesel switcher engine.

Coal switcher engine

Wooden brick flooring that adsorbed spilled grease and oil.

Segregated passenger car

Lunch was a stop at the beer garden at Moon River Brewing Company.  We had a wonderful long and lazy lunch in the warm sunshine.  Later the 3 of us sat at Johnson Square while Robert volunteered to fetch the car, which was parked several blocks away.  Charlotte filled us in on the history of the square, which was laid out in 1733 and is the oldest and largest square in Savannah, and the nearby Davenport House.

Lunch at the Moon river Beer Garden

Couple of retired Potsdam High School teachers.   😀

Historic 1820 Davenport House

We were back to the campground about 5:00.  Dinner was light and simple and we crashed.  It was a fulfilled and tiring day.  We're out of shape after spending all winter indoors in snow bound Northern New York.  😉

Wednesday 4/13:  We again met Robert and Char at their home about 10:00, and it's another sunny and warm day.  Charlotte suggested we visit the William Scarbrough House and gardens.  The house was built in 1819, and at one time housed the West Broad Street Colored School. It is now the home of the Ships of the Sea Museum.

The plan was to then visit Plant Riverside, but after circling several city blocks, we could find no parking. (On a side note, parking is a HUGE problem in Savannah.  And I don't know what the answer is.  Above ground parking garages would ruin the historic appearance of the area.  Underground garages? Limit auto traffic to force more public transportation? I just don't know.)    Anyway, we gave up and decided to go to the The Pirate's House for lunch.  Again, no parking available.  😞  So Plan C was The Wyld Bar, a tidewater bar and grill outside of Savannah proper.  Here we had lots of parking, and enjoyed a really nice lunch of fish tacos while sitting on an outdoor deck.  Thank you Robert and Char for knowing the area so well.  If we had been typical tourists, we would have never found it.

We were back to camper by 4:00.  Another fun day in Savannah.

Thursday 4/14:  This morning we had time to complete a few chores.  Yes, just like living at a house, when your home is temporarily on the road, you still have chores to do.  Judy went to the nearby campground laundry facility while I puttered around the camper.  A lawn chair storage rack needed repairing.  I took the living room wall clock down and realigned the hour arm.  I emptied the grey water tanks.  I finished just in time to help Judy fold laundry.  Sound like an exciting day??

We met Char and Robert at the Pinpoint Heritage Museum at 1:00.  The Pin Point community was founded in 1890 and allowed Emancipated freedmen to purchase property at a reasonable price.  An  oyster and crab factory was opened and operated until the factory closed in 1985.  In 2011 the original factory buildings were restored and the small interpretive museum was created.  We viewed a 35 documentary which was very informative.  Pin Point is also the birthplace of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.  I found the 2 hour visit really moving.  This link will take you to the excellent 35 minute documentary that is shown at the museum explaining the history of Pin Point.  If you have the time, I highly recommend it!  As we travel around the country, it is so interesting to learn about the various cultures that make up the United States.

After visiting the museum, we all went to Char and Robert's house for dinner.  Robert cooked salmon and mahi on cedar plank over his Big Green Egg.  We chatted and chatted, and then chatted some more.  Great dinner and great conversation.  We were back "home" by 7:30.

Friday 4/15:  Another absolutely beautiful sunny and warm day.  This Savannah area is really starting to grow on me.  However, as a country boy, I'd sure have to learn how to get used to all the traffic.  And does Savannah ever get bad weather?  Oh ya, I forgot.  There is something called the Atlantic Hurricane Season that runs from June to November.  😀  About 10:30 we went to the nearby Super Walmart for some grocery shopping.  We are hosting Charlotte and Robert for dinner at the camper tonight and we are making a shrimp, cod, and white bean soup.  Sort of a North Country version of a seafood dinner, as all the seafood we used was frozen, not fresh.  Our guests arrived about 4:30 and after giving them the tour, we tried to sit outside, but it was just too windy.  So it was appetizers, dinner, and dessert inside the camper.  For dessert Char brought 3 different flavors of Savannah's famous Leopold's Ice Cream; Coffee-Chocolate Chip, Honey-Almond, and Lavender.  What a treat!!  Robert and Charlotte left for their home about 7:30, and we crashed soon after.  Another wonderful day in Savannah.

Saturday 4/16:  Today is our last full day in Savannah.  We are meeting Char and Robert at 4:00 at Love's Seafood for dinner.  Other than that, the day is unscheduled.  We decided to cook our Easter Ham today since we were going to be on the road tomorrow, Easter Sunday.  We finally settled on using the slow cooker with a simple brown sugar glaze.  Showers were forecast so we put away away the outside furniture.  Lunch was very lite as we were having an early dinner.  I spent some time getting the next blog post ready while Judy spent over an hour on the phone trying to get our account balance at Sam's Club.  We upgraded to a new Sam's credit card and the new card did not arrive before we left on our trip.  Customer service over the phone was unproductive.  The language barriers with the help line made communication difficult.  We ended calling my brother-in-law who picked up our mail and went through it until he found the new card.  After finding the card he sent us a picture.  Once we had the new card number, creating the new account online was a breeze.  We met for dinner at Love's and had a wonderful meal.  Again, we all chose seafood, with Judy and I getting stuffed flounder.  When near the ocean, might as well enjoy it.  After dinner they followed us back to the camper to visit and say our good byes.  We had such a good time in Savannah this week.  Tomorrow it is off to St. Augustine, Florida for 4 nights to catch up with good friends there.

Good bye Savannah!!  See ya next year.

Stay tuned!!