#Gates50States

When planning out our #Gates50States strategy from the get-go, we knew there would be years where it was necessary to travel over spring break and summer. Financially, driving for one trip and flying for the other made the most sense. The thought of spending spring break in the South and visiting Ryan’s Grandma in Charlotte on the way down to Georgia and then taking some time with his sister’s family on our drive home from Alabama was appealing.  2018 would be the year, we decided.

As it turned out, we got hammered with snow and cold in northeast Ohio in March and school was closed on the day the kids and I were to leave, so we got a jump start on the drive.  Yea!  But… As we’ve come to expect, we have zero control over the weather, and while the cold at home allowed an early start, there was a huge cold spell over the entire South.  That’s part of travel, though, right?  We made the best we could of it, and we’d not trade the following experiences at all.

The kids and I, along with Ryan’s parents, overnighted in Charlotte, and arrived at a nice condo on Tybee Island on the north side next to the Cock Spur Island Channel.  A small but well-stocked IGA just a short drive from our condo provided good staples for some in-house meals, along with a great roadside seafood source (more on this below).

Why go to the Georgia coast with kids and not hit the beach?  We couldn’t think of a reason either.  The beach was fun…. the water was cold.  Funny thing about our kids, though, they’re not phased by cold water.

Of course in the South, there is rich military and war history, from the American Revolution to the Civil War.  We were most fortunate to get into Fort Pulaski National Monument just hours before it was to close for several weeks for flag pole safety improvements.

Ryan flew into the Savannah airport late on Friday night, just in time to get a decent night’s sleep before a fantastic beach excursion the next morning that hi-lited our Georgia experience.  We’ve mentioned this in other posts, but our priority of making these state visits both educational and interesting reigns supreme.  After making some calls, I learned of Dr. Joe, a retired marine biologist from Savannah State University.  We arranged to meet him early in the morning at low tide and take advantage of the conditions to see wildlife and witness what most beach goers (including us!) miss when we’re splashing in the water and building in the sand.  The cold weather wasn’t going to stop the animals, and it wasn’t going to stop us!

He brought all sorts of gear to help us capture some of the wildlife, observe and compare the various species, and appreciate the beauty of the beach.  We literally practiced science on the oceanfront.

Clams, snails, and hermit crabs of all sizes crawled and dug all around us.  And although we didn’t find a ghost shrimp, we learned a lot about them, and this was to prove useful in Oregon, where Lydia would shock a staffer of the Hatfield Marine Science Center by identifying a ghost shrimp in a terrarium.

If you’re on Tybee Island, you’ve got to get some lunch at The Crab Shack.  For us northerners, crawfish is rarely on the menu, and when it is, it ain’t like what we found at The Crab Shack.  And I’ve never seen the kids eat shrimp and clams like this.  Make it a priority for your family to visit this yummy place.

While we had nice weather for lunch, the next day’s weather was gross, so taking some time indoors at the Tybee Island Marine Science Center kept us dry.  The Center isn’t big at all, and thankfully we beat the rush ’cause it was way more crowded as we were leaving than when we arrived.  (Clearly other people had the same idea.)  The exhibits entertained our kids for an hour or so, and we all enjoyed the wildlife.  Georgia’s coast hosts many species across a variety of ecosystems, and the Marine Science Center captures and displays this quite well.

Speaking of seafood, go to Lazaretto Creek Seafood when you want to prep a really good meal for yourself.  Ryan and I get tired of eating in restaurants night after night on vacations, so I always try to make a few meals wherever it is we’re staying.  (One of the several reasons we aim for homes and condos rather than hotels!)  This meal was a big seafood sampler!

When Ryan goes to the beach, he feels like he must fly his kite.  It takes a good bit of wind to get the box kite up, and that was no problem during this cold spell.  They didn’t stay out long, and took a while to warm up on their return, but the kids had a blast while they shivered out there.

Savannah is just a half-hour drive from Tybee Island.  Once you arrive, you don’t have to walk far to get from the Children’s Museum to the Railroad Museum, both of which are family friendly if not overly full of exhibits.  The kids ran around both areas to get the wiggles out without getting on each others’ nerves.  Fort Jackson comes with the ticket package and is a bit of a drive away east on the river.  We arrived shortly before closing time, but still got to take in the fort, compare it with what the kids had seen at Fort Pulaski, and take in one more facet of Georgia’s history.

Ryan and I were also able to snag some free time away while Grandma and Grandpa kept up with the kids. Thankfully, we were able to enjoy Savannah on the only sunny afternoon of our entire trip. The city is immensely walkable and boasts many fabulous restaurants (check out the Olde Pink House), bars (stop into Jenny’s for a Twix Martini) and fun little boutiques.

The weather really was quite horrible for the majority or our time in Georgia. Instead of spending our last day in Savannah before heading to Augusta out in the rain, we decided to take a major detour to Macon, GA for the Museum of Aviation at Robins Air Force Base.

This.  Was.  Cool.  Bonus, it’s free! The SR-71 Blackbird was a big draw (and if you’ve never read this story from the pilot of an SR-71, take a few minutes and you’ll thank me later), but even without this gem, we would have spent no less time touring through the various themed buildings and learning about the different periods of military flight and history. A list of backup activities is incredibly helpful for those times the weather just doesn’t cooperate. Usually, we’re pleasantly surprised by our impromptu finds.

Afterward, we needed a quick bite to eat, and the Rookery in downtown Macon gave each of us a good meal.  It’s not really a family restaurant that caters to kids, but that didn’t matter.  Our kids can (and do) eat most things, and we were on vacation!  And oh my, the Jimmy Carter Milkshake of banana ice-cream with peanut butter and a slice of bacon!

The next stop on our Georgia adventure was Augusta.  Seemingly down the street from Augusta National Golf Club, and a few blocks away from Augusta University (a perfect location for an extended evening walk), the little house we found on Airbnb couldn’t have been more finely appointed.  These homeowners had done this before, and fine-tuned their presentation down to a science.  The loaf of bread awaiting us, the granola bars and fruit for our next day’s excursion… they thought of everything.  We loved that little house!

Before this trip, we were ignorant of Augusta’s role in the South’s economy of the 1800s.  Touring the August Canal not only taught the kids a lot, but Ryan and me as well!  We have a canal where we’re at in northeast Ohio, the Ohio & Erie Canal, which played an important role in 1820s and 1830s transportation and commerce between Akron and Cleveland.  The Augusta canal, we learned, was instrumental in both of these areas as well as energy production for the adjacent textile mills.  It was truly a monumental force for the South.  We loved the canal boat ride, the museum and all that we learned.  The goal of making this trip educational and interesting: Mission Accomplished for Georgia!

After the education, we loaded up on dessert at the Boll Weevil Cafe & Sweetery!

There’s no compelling reason not to stop here for a decent meal and a great sweet finish to your day.  We’d decided to order and split three selections among us, and when Grandpa Doug didn’t hear his choice called out when I ordered, he added a fourth.  We made them all disappear!

Our family enjoys the outdoors and hiking, and it’s not as though Georgia doesn’t have a ton of hiking opportunities.  They have the southern-most portion of the Appalachian Trail, for crying out loud.  While our travels didn’t take us near the Trail, we were near Phinizy Swamp outside Augusta, and this definitely provided the Gates family with a nice dose of outdoors and wildlife away from the coast.

Ryan is part of a Facebook group of 40-some-odd veterinarians around the country and they’ve gotten pretty close over the years… as close as virtual relationships can get.  He mentioned to them where we were headed, and one of them suggested that we stop in Madison, GA, her old stomping grounds, for a pit stop before Alabama.  What a quaint, quintessentially Southern town!  Perfect for a short, leg-stretching walk, as well as for stopping at the candy shop, picking up some local preserves, and seeing one more corner of small-town America, the little town of Madison definitely rolls out a friendly welcome mat for their visitors.

It was the perfect, final memory-making stop for our time in Georgia.