Still on Tybee time

It seems you're expected to pay $1.50 an hour to park just about any place around  town. I imagine in the summer that gives everyone an opportunity to get to the beach!

We chose to ride our bikes all over town, but one of our favorite rides was 7 miles along the rail trail that runs alongside the south branch of the Savannah River between Tybee Island and Savannah. Check out our new bicycles bought for this trip!!!

Filtered sunlight was provided by the palms and palmettos along the trail. It did not hurt that we also stopped for about 6 geocaches. What a fun experience.

Leon thought I got lost and had perhaps spotted some flowers but no, it was butterflies this time.

Next stop was the North Beach Bar and Grill. This place is just off the north beach and must be packed in the summer.

Mussels was one of the appetizers I sampled. I decided to have several and call it supper.

The race for the cure was held early and we missed it. Over by the lighthouse I did locate the ladies with their booths and even an autographed pink firetruck! They also flew pink ribbons from the top of the lighthouse.

Along the north shore are the remains of  Ft. Screven. Part of the battery is a museum. It was turned over to the city after its use ended and some portions even have homes built on top of the concrete wall structure. Fort Screven was established in the 1890s as a site to train troops during the Spanish American War. It was also used during WW I and WW II.

A geocache led us to Lazaretto Creek and when we followed the road to the end we were pleasantly surprised. There was a fishing pier on the creek. The creek was a busy place with fisherman on the pier, law enforcement in the water, and tourists on the dolphin cruise boats.

This is also where many of the shrimp boats dock. I felt like we were getting some of the real local flavor.

We soon noticed that while the fisherman were cleaning their boats the pelicans and dolphins were waiting for a meal. Usually by the time I snapped the camera I only captured a fin!

What a fun lunch we had on Saturday when we met with one of our former students from the class of '85.

Jennifer and Chuck live in Savannah and drove down for a visit.

 We did do a little shopping while on the island. This is a fun, crazy place and the owner must be extremely creative if he created these oddities.

After we watched the Razorbacks beat Ole Miss at Huc-a-Poos on Saturday, I left Leon there and wandered up the way to stroll through the quaint little shops that line the street.

A trip into Wilmington led us right past Uncle Bubba's at lunch time on Sunday. We beat the crowd and I had Louisiana oysters but at least they admit it.

We toasted the sunset  on our last night at Coco's Sunset Lounge while the owner blew her conch shell.

The sun has finally set on a fantastic week spent on Tybee Island, Georgia. I could certainly do it all again next year.

Tybee Island, Ga

An Indian word for salt, tybee, gave this island it's name but the people give it the laidback lifestyle. We were only  twenty minutes east of Savannah in the early morning hours when we arrived at this small island on the Savannah River and Atlantic Ocean. There were just over 3,000 people living here a few years ago but the number of restaurants alone make it obvious the town feeds many more! Our first night in town we headed over to the backside of the island for drinks at AJ's.

We were delighted that Mel, Kay, Chris, and Darla joined us for supper. We were not disappointed.

An added bonus was that we were in the perfect spot for a sunset. This wasn't even planned.

The next day began with a morning walk on the Atlantic side. The girls are staying in a condo right on the beach.

Shops for tourists are scattered around the quaint little island. I am sure glad to be here in off season. I can imagine what it must be like in the summer.

The lighthouse, supposedly the oldest and tallest in Georgia, leads ships to the Savannah River.

Our second night in town the rains came and we went indoors at perhaps the most touristy of all eateries.  It comes complete with a little pond of alligators. The outdoor patio was not an option.

The Fish Art shop was a fun place to visit. They ask for a $1 donation just for taking pictures because they know we will. I was so impressed with the creativity and craziness of this place. It is just fun. They even have a night slot in the door where if you buy something you just put your money in the door.

The rains did bring a cold front through but that did not stop us from geocaching. This was before we realized where the trail through the hammock was so we took the low road through the marsh.

Once in the hammock we traversed among the live oaks, spanish moss and palmettos.

What a view of the marsh we had here from this hammock, or small hill, in the marsh.

 Our friends took a marvelous (they said) boat ride out to see dolphins and learn more about the island life. It was just too cold for me.

We explored the island and picked up some geocaches along the way. All the caches on the island seem to take you to a neat place which is just the way caching should be.

Leon, what are you doing under the pier? A geocache of course.

The back side of the island is a land of creeks, marshes, and plentiful wildlife.

The Atlantic side is so pleasant this time of year without all the tourists. The condos and cottages line the beach and rental cottages are sprinkled throughout the town.

 The island is home to the nesting sea turtles but the only ones we have seen are painted.

We found Sting Ray's to be a delightful place to park our bicycles and have lunch. There is a bike route on the back streets on most of the island but the entire town is bicycle friendly. I only wish Hot Springs could figure that out!

Kay E and I went geocaching one afternoon and found this out of the way marina and bar and grill. Too bad it was too cold and windy to even think about sitting outside other than long enough to sign the log.

The streams here provide excellent spots for kayaking. I brought mine but I think I would need a guide to keep from getting lost. Where are my kayaking buddies when I need them? Oh yes, all out west.

Ft. Pulaski, Tybee Island, Ga

Fort Pulaski National Monument is located on the outskirts of Tybee Island at the mouth of the Savannah River. Ft. Pulaski was completed 18 years and 22 million bricks after it was begun in 1829.

The fort is shaped like an irregular pentagon and surrounded by a moat crossed by drawbridges. It was one of many coastal forts built to protect the U.S. from foreign invasion.

The 1862 battle was the first use of rifled cannons.

In 1862 Union forces bombarded the fort for 30 hours before forcing the confederates to surrender. It signaled the end of masonry forts and demonstrated the improved power, range and accuracy of rifled cannons.

We watched a movie about the fort and then went to tour while waiting for someone to fire a musket. We toured the whole fort and he was still talking when we left, but we were getting hungry.

We had not been here long when I realized I had visited this fort once before with my rv'ing group.

We planned to return and ride the bicycle trails but they had run out of trail maps so perhaps not.