Thunderbolt, GA, More Shallow Water and a Road Trip.

Sunset on the Intracoastal..........

We left Brunswick, GA and continued north along the Intra-Coastal Waterway, making sure our travel coincided with a rising tide, as much of the Georgia waterway is extremely shallow.  We anchored at a couple nice, secluded, spots along the way, noting the influx of huge pesky deer flies as we moved farther north.  They were on a mission to keep us company as much as they could but we were able to keep them out.  Those that found their way in never lived to tell the story!  We are sure that a sailboat cockpit must have been near unbearable.

Sailboat trapped in the Marina

Remember the "Super Moon" in early May?  The day we arrived at Morningstar Marina in Thunderbolt, near Savannah we were amazed to see all this debris in the water.  Much of the marina was clogged with it.  The Super Moon caused the tide to be so high it picked up all this "stuff" (swamp grasses) and it was carried along in the waterway.  The debris would find its way into our marina on a rising tide...however, when the tide changed much of it moved back out.  This went on for 3 or 4 days.  Finally, things got back to normal.

Seafood Steamer Pot.....GREAT!!

We had heard that a restaurant called "Uncle Bubbas" was a fun place to eat, so of course we had to try it.  The seafood was fantastic and we really enjoyed our rich meal.  As it turned out, Uncle Bubba is the brother of Paula Deen (the Food Channel Paula) and there were family pictures throughout the restaurant. 

Georgia Oysters...Excellent!!

So.....after a great meal... we were picked up by none other than Guy Fieri from the Food Network (the Dinners, Drive-ins and Dives guy) who gave us a ride back to Serena Ray.  He tells us he is a bit of a good cook.  Or is he just a GF look-alike?   Hmmmm.

SERENA RAY IN GEORGIA UNTIL FALL.....WHAT DO YOU MEAN LETS DRIVE ACROSS THE USA TO SEE THE GRANDKIDS????

Well,  at least no one can say we are predictable.  A month ago we were in Georgia planning our

summer exploring the Chesapeake Bay and reuniting with our former s/v Eager Dreamer, her builders (Gary and Lana) and her new owners.  Somewhere along the way I (Rosie) realized I had such a yearning to return to the Pacific Northwest to get a grand kid fix.  We still have our home in Blaine, WA. so we have a place to stay.....  It had been up for sale (and we all know how great the real estate market has been) and we had leased it out twice.  When John had his shoulder surgery last November, we moved our belongings back into the house so ........   After much discussion, we decided to drive to Washington and spend the summer in Blaine, hiking, motorcycle riding and biking....but most importantly spending time with our kids and grandkids.  

Our first car (truck) in over 4 years!!!

So, the first order of business was to get a truck for the drive west and fill it with all the items that we haven't been using on Serena Ray.  Any cruiser knows that you can sure accumulate "stuff" just like a house.  Eventually it is time to do some "housecleaning".  Our new truck proved to be a real trooper - we were jam packed and she road very well for the 3,000 miles it took to get home. 

For the items we couldn't fit into the truck, we bought US Postal Service Flat Rate Boxes.  Whatever you can fit in the box, up to 70 lbs, you can mail anywhere in the US for around $15.50.  A fantastic deal.  Serena Ray was buttoned up and we started the trek to the West Coast....with a few stops along the way.

Amacalola Falls

Our first stop was Atlanta, GA to visit our long-time friends Karen and Steve Smith.  Steve and John worked together at Potlatch for 28 years and our families skied together for years at McCall, ID.  They took us to some great places around Atlanta and we enjoyed catching up with them.

Next Stop....The Hermitage -- Home and Plantation of President Andrew Jackson

Pathway to the mansion

Storyteller in front of the Home

Burial grounds of President Jackson and wife Rachael in the garden near the house

Wagon Tour of the grounds

While driving through Nashville, TN, we took the opportunity to tour of the 1,000+ acre home/farm of President Andrew Jackson.  He retired here after his Presidency.  Cotton was grown there along with vegetable gardens and livestock to keep the slaves and their families fed, there were approximately 150 slave families living on the grounds.

A storm brewing in the mid-west.....We drove 6 to 7 hours a day (400 to 500 miles) through 13 states along our route west, most of which I had never visited.  John had been through many of them with family growing up or on business. 

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St. Louis, MO

 A stop at Wall Drug....a true tourist attraction!!!

MOUNT RUSHMORE, SOUTH DAKOTA

Another highlight of our trek across the US was a visit to Mt. Rushmore.  We spent two days there and were able to visit the museum of Gutzon Borglum, who was the artist/sculptor of Mt. Rushmore.  He was 60 years old when he started the sculpting of the Presidents and worked 14 years on the project.  He passed away 6 months before its completion but his son was able to finish.

Gutzon Borglum and son Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln -- Borglum's favorite President

Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln

The heads are about 60 feet tall--the average size of a six-story building.  Washington's nose of 21 feet high and the rest are approximately 20 feet.  The eyes are about 11 feet wide and the mouths approximately 18 feet wide.


GRAND KIDS AT LAST!

Jayden and Ethan in Colbert, WA

Shamus with Grandpa in Blaine

Back in Blaine, we are settling in for the next couple of months looking forward to spending time with our family and friends until we return to Serena Ray in the fall to resume our cruise north.  Until our next update....enjoy your summer!!