One Last Lap

With new brakes and tires in place and the leak stemmed with fresh caulk, it was time to get to the New Horizons factory service facility in Junction City, Kansas to see how extensive the water damage is.  And since we are going to be there, might as well get a few other minor issues taken care of too.

Now that we are about to leave St. Simons Island, the weather is finally getting agreeable.  Tree pollen is turning everything yellow-green and bulb flowers are poking their heads up everywhere.  Azaleas of many kind were showing off their best.  The island is absolutely covered in azaleas.

To get access to a Walmart or buy specialty items like tires for the trailer, it requires a trip to Brunswick.  St Simons Island is the barrier island that protects Brunswick and is only about a 9 mile ride from the fort and across the causeway.  While on one of our runs to the mainland for supplies we took advantage of the proximity to a locally famous eatery and dropped in for a bite.

Willie's WEE-NEE WAGON specializes in, what else, Hot Dogs!
 Locals had told us we had to give this place a try and since I love hotdogs it did not take a lot of convincing.  But when we drove up and took a look at the building it began to look like what Cyndee calls an "adventure in dining".  Sometimes Cyndee won't get out of the car at an adventure in dining.

Almost all of Willie's business is conducted at the walk-up window.
I am happy to report that this adventure in dining worked out well.  It's a good thing we are leaving soon our I could end up way out of whack with my healthy eating regimen.

And with our last day rushing up on us we also made a mad dash to see at least a couple of sights that we never got to during the heart of winter.  A late day run back to the beach where the public parking lot is shared with the maritime museum proved fruitless as the museum was closed again.  Had we ever gotten in I'm sure it would have been worth the time.

Maritime Center and Historic Coast Guard Station
This is about the extent of my wildlife photography for St Simons.


Another mad dash was made to Darien, GA about 17 miles north of Brunswick.  We went to go see Fort King George State Park.  Fort King George is from the same era as Fort Frederica, about 1736.  FKG had a really superb museum, much better than the museum at Fort Frederica.  And unlike the Spartan ruins of Fort Frederica, FKG has accurately reconstructed the fort and its support structures and stockades.  Unfortunately, a critical setting on the camera was unknowingly changed while taking it out of its bag and all the shots from this part of the day were unusable.  But the whole day was not a loss, on the way back we caught the shrimp fleet in dock for the day. 

Shrimp boats in for the day at Darien, Georgia.
And before the day was completely gone, we got to the south end of St Simons Island where there is an exclusive and old hotel.  In an era gone by, one of horse drawn carriages, there used to be a road to the hotel that was lined by oak trees.  As time went by and the oaks matured the road took on the name of Avenue of Oaks.  Modern, and larger vehicles came along and soon alternate routes were laid and paved.  But Avenue of Oaks was not eliminated, in fact it has been preserved and is a cherished park setting.
 

Avenue of Oaks
There were several more stops over the next few days, mostly island eateries to sample their best shrimp and grits recipes.  It's a shame we can't stay longer and enjoy more of what the island has to offer now that it is warming up.

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