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Alligator on the St. John's River. I forgot to post it when I typed about the St. John's, so it's getting posted here.
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We left Florida on 4/7/14. It was overcast and in the mid 70's. We anchored off Cumberland Island. If you read my earlier post from the Fall, you'll remember JFK, Jr. got married on Cumberland Island. It was too rolly to get off the boat in the Fall and tour Cumberland, but this day was gorgeous. What a beautiful, beautiful island. I can see why somebody would want to get married there. We probably walked five miles or more touring.
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| Live oak forest. Camping is allowed in this area of the island. |
The ferry brings campers to probably the most beautiful camp sites you will ever see. There is no electricity and no hot water in the bath houses. But they do have large bags filled with water that are laying around being warmed by the sun and you can take a "sailboaters" shower with them. It is very peaceful and serene.
We walked to the historic district of the island where Thomas Carnegie built a house in 1884. It was originally 37,000 sq. ft. in size. That's not a typo friends. All that remains today are the ruins, but it was so huge that I could not get it all in one picture. The brochure says there are rattlesnakes living in the ruins. Thank goodness I didn't read the brochure until we were back on the boat. I don't think I would have gone there if I had.
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| The ruins of Dungeness (Carnegie mansion) |
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Front gate to the Carnegie mansion
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We saw wild horses, wild turkeys, and deer. One of the original owners of the island stated in her will that her horses were to freely roam the island after her death, and they have been doing so for over a hundred years. A park ranger explained to us that if you see one or two horses by themselves, then they are males that have been outcast by the stronger males. The strongest males keep a "harem" for themselves and the younger and weaker males have to hang out with no mares, at least until they get older and can fight back. John walked right up to the horses, even though they tell you not to. They claim that they are dangerous and will kick and/or bite you.
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| John with wild horses on Cumberland Island |
John made me put this next picture on here because all "stallions" think alike. I got to tell you, this stallion was not at all loving. He was all business. Slam Bam, Thank You Ma'am - - and right in front of the young 'un.
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| You'll have to zoom in fellas if you want to really see what's going on. |
We also saw Henry Lee's tombstone. For all you Yankees out there, he was Robert E. Lee's father. He was on his way home to VA when he took sick and died on Cumberland Island. His body remained interred there for a very long time until the family had his remains removed and re-interred at the family graveyard in VA in 1913.
We left Cumberland the next morning, 4/8/14, and headed to Jekyll Island. Anyone looking for a very nice vacation should consider Jekyll Island, GA. There are a number of places to stay that are all very beautiful. This is also a very historic island. This island was once the private winter retreat of America's wealthiest families, including the J. P. Morgans, the Rockefellers, the Pulitzers, and the Vanderbilts. They each had a "cottage" on the island, but their idea of a cottage is very different than most people's idea of a cottage. Their cottages have bedrooms that number in the double digits, as well as bathrooms in the double digits. And... none of them have kitchens. Their servants would fix their meals at the club hotel and everyone would gather there at mealtime to socialize and eat.
There are nine miles of beach, numerous golf courses, horseback riding, a water park in the summer, plus lots of other things to do at this place. We visited here by car a couple of years ago and fell in love with it, so we had to stop by boat on our way north.
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| One of the "cottages" where you can rent a room. |
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| The chapel on Jekyll Island. It is no longer used for regular service but many weddings take place there. |
Our first day was spent doing laundry and other boat chores, but the second day we rented a "red bug", which was the main means of transportation in the early 1900's. Today's red bug is quite different than the ones used back then. The red bugs are a great way to get around the island, not to mention a lot of fun.
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| Original Red Bug; only one known to exist today. |
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| Today's Red Bug |
While at Jekyll, I decided I wanted to try my hand at golf. Why should John have all the fun? We played Indian Mound, which is very pretty. We saw white-tailed deer standing right next to the tee box and when we tee'd off, they never even moved. I guess they're pretty used to people. On the 13th hole, I hit my tee shot within 50 feet of an alligator. John wanted me to "take a drop" but there was no way I was going to lose a stroke because of a silly eight-foot alligator. I figured I could outrun him to the golf cart and then take off. Dumb, huh? Anyway, I should have taken the drop because I only hit the ball about 30 feet. I guess I was a little more intimated by that gator than I thought.
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| Now don't pay any attention to that fat ass and zoom in on the gator. |
We left Jekyll Island on April 11th, heading for South Kackalackey.
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