Dames Ferry Park Campground (SP) 3/27/22 - 3/30/22 (#10)

Our first camping trip of 2022 went off w/o a hitch. Dames Ferry is a small SP in Juliette, Ga, just a few miles N. of Macon, Ga (SE of Atlanta) & operated by the much larger nearby High Falls SP. 

Left on Sunday morning & checked in just before noon. First time driving I75 almost the whole way. Not an issue except for construction the last few miles before our exit. The CG actually called to check us in when we were enroute. 

We had the 'premium' site this time (#28)  & was well worth it. It's located on the tip of the peninsular beyond a cove & very private. 

The only downfall was traffic from the busy road running near. But, even that was something you could tune out & it slowed dramatically at night. It was quite windy Sunday & Monday but not too chilly. Tuesday was darn near perfect. 

As is our custom, we take Nelly for a walk around the CG & noticed several very cute little campers, some vintage. 

Turns out they are part of a group called Sisters on the Fly. Consists of women who solo travel & have gatherings throughout the US, usually around festivals in various states. This group was in town for a nearby Cherry Festival the prior weekend & most had already left on Sunday morning.

On Monday we drove over to High Falls but didn't get to drive thru the CG sites because there was a gate & we didn't have the code. We drove over to Indian Springs & noted a few sites that would be worthy if we ever visited that park.

Juliette is where the movie Fried Green Tomatoes was filmed (1991 / starring Kathy Bates & Jessica Tandy). They had built the Whistle Stop Cafe for the movie & left it standing after filming was complete. They have since built several old style buildings creating a little tourist street that houses shops carrying antiques & movie trivia. We had lunch there on Monday & of course had to have fried green tomatoes as an appetizer. Greg got a burger & I got a salad with fried chicken (could only finish 1/2). Everything was very good. The train even went by & 'whistled" when we were waiting to be seated.

On Tuesday, took a longer walk w/o Nelly & just hung around the camper reading, watching boaters & casting a few lines. The local ducks (Moochy & Scrounger) would squalk (isn't that what ducks do?) as they came up to the campsite, come out of the water & walk right up to you wanting a handout. Nelly wasn't having any of that, she would run them off each time so they mainly visited other campers on the cove.

Overall, it was a very relaxing trip to 'get our feet wet' & kickstart the 2022 camping season. 

Various CG pics:

Beautiful Sunsets:

Obligatory Nelly pics:

Kolomoki Mounds (SP) 11/1/21 - 11/4/21 (#9)

Our last camping trip for 2021 was to Kolomoki Mounds State Park in Blakely, GA. The drive is only about 2 hours from the farm. It's a very small but well laid out state park. We had driven over when we were camping at Cotton Hill (Dec. 2020) & had scoped out what we believed was the best site (#11).

#11

On the end & on the water!

We like our sites to be secluded & on the water if at all possible. This one didn't disappoint.

This park is a local favorite for hiking, fishing & holiday activities (Fall festivals, Halloween - ghost tour through the woods, Christmas, Spring festivals, etc.).

The hiking trails were a short walk through the woods just a couple of campsites down from us. I can only walk about 2.5 miles before I have to take a break (due to foot issue that I hope to get fixed in 2022). But, we went twice & very much enjoyed both trails. Started out cool but stripped those layers as we went. 

The other hike we went on was to the mounds themselves (there are 8 total). These pics are from the largest of the mounds ... the Temple mound where religious ceremonies were believed to be held. It took over 2 million basket loads of earth to build this mound (couldn't figue out where the dirt came from, no real excavation area & we forgot to ask the ranger when we visited the visitor center. 

Climbing up Temple Mound

From top of Temple mound overlooking other mounds

Yes, it's as steep as it looks

Read here all about them if interested: Kolomoki Mounds

We also ate at nearby White Oak pastures. A regenerative farming operation that brought the town of Bluffton back to life. Read about that here: White Oak The restaurant has excellent food & would recommend if ever in the area.

Here are a few more pics:

As of 1/2022, I still haven't finished this book

2020 Christmas gift from our niece

Nell Mell

Our next trips start in late March 2022. Will try to be more timely in posting about them.

FD Roosevelt (SP) & Desoto (SP) 10/10/21 & 10/15 - 10/18/21 (#8) - Part 2

 We left Desoto fairly early on Friday, headed back to FDR.

Our site this time was great #302. It backed up to a creek & the beginning of one of the many hiking trails. Although that kept Nelly on her toes as many people took their dogs on this particular trail.

# 302

We went for a hike w/o Nelly (about 2.5 m) the next morning & relaxed the rest of the day. As is usually the custom, I took Nelly for a walk around the campground each morning.

We visited the FDR museum & Little White House in nearby Warm Springs. The museum was well laid out & the film was very informative. This is where FDR came to seek treatment & a hopeful cure for Polio. He built a treatment center where people brought their children. The pools are now empty but once were fed by the springs & the facility housed & treated thousands over the years. He died of a massive stroke sitting for a portrait at the Little White House.

Unfinished Portrait

We had lunch in Warm Springs at the Bulloch House. Home cooking buffet in a beautiful old historic home in the downtown area. Highly recommend if you are ever in the area. Food & service were fantastic ($13.95 pp).

This trip was more of a real vacation instead of just a few nights camping. The fall color was a little late this year so we missed that but we did some real sight seeing & exploring of each area we visited. In hindsight, we could have driven all the way to Desoto but without knowing the mountains or roads we played it safe this trip. We continue to learn our limits on each trip.

Obligitory pic of Nelly. She continues to be such a good camping buddy.

Note to self: Write posts very soon after coming home. Many details are already forgotten.