--- Addendum ---

On our trek home, we stopped at a few places that merit a brief mention, and so here is an addendum ---

We took an extra day to visit the Georgia Aquarium, largest in the world with 8.5 million gallons, 120,000 animals, and 500 species. The aquarium was funded mostly from a $250M grant from Bernard Marcus, co-founder of Home Depot. The main hall of the aquarium almost reminded one of Epcot Center with several pavilions surrounding a central area.

In addition to several huge tanks that you could view from above or below the water level, the aquarium also had many smaller tanks exhibiting fish we have all seen, like these Discus ...



and exotic ones, like these Sea Dragons ...



For us, one of the smallest animals made the biggest impression. This 4 second video of some 2 inch long jellyfish shows why.



It was mesmerizing to watch the ribs on this creature flash like christmas lights.

Lion fish, many larger jellyfish, and exotic frogs (some poisonous) were also included in the exhibits.

One of the large tanks had a plexiglass tunnel. Watching the 20+ foot long Whale Sharks glide overhead was a special treat.

The tunnel and this view show just how large some tanks and animals (Whale Shark and giant Ray) were.

This is a view of Atlanta on our walk back to the car park. We thought that it sums up our excellent day at the Georgia Aquarium - a really special place!

Did you ever hear of Zappo's? Its a large shoe seller that does all of its business over the internet and boasts big discounts. Our friend, Sharie, told us about a Zappo's outlet in Shepherdsville, Ky, just south of Louisville. Their unassuming entrance tells it all!

We made Shepherdsville, Kentucky an overnight stop and decided to stay an extra day to avoid the expected snow in the midwest. It worked out perfectly, because we did miss the snow, we were able to avoid Friday traffic around the Chicago - Indiana corridor, and we managed to find seven pairs of shoes to take home. What a deal!$!$!

Another plus for Shepherdsville is that nearby is the Jim Beam Distillery, which, we were to find, offers an interesting tour of its facilities. With several distillery buildings and 27 large aging facilities, Beam produces  half the bourbon sold in the United States right here.

Your visit begins in the gift shop / welcome center where the history of this family business is explained.

The tour starts at a micro brewery within the larger facility that explains the ingredients and the fermenting process and shows you the original yeast culture used since 1935.

You also get a view of the fired barrels, which can be used only once, and the inside of the 8 story building where 4 or 8 years aging takes place, depending upon product.

And, finally, the bottling plant.

The best of this tour, however, is the tasting room where visitors can sample some of the products.

We felt pretty good after this tour!

OK. That's all folks! Honest this time!

#7 From Jax to Savannah to ......

When we arrived in Jacksonville, we checked the Roadside America app for things to do here. The first thing that came up is to see a big dinosaur at a mini golf course 10 miles away. And then there was a giant coke can 14 miles away and an alligator statue, also 14 miles away. That kind of set the tone for our four day stay in Jacksonville where we found a nice city park to stay at, Katherine Abby Hanna Park, with a great beach ….. but not a whole bunch more!

Not all beaches permit pets, so this one was nice for Duffy

One day we found the tide had left a nice bunch of shells on the beach.

And here was a perfect whelk that Anne found.

The ferry across the St. Johns River leads to a scenic ride along the coast and to a small resort town with the interesting name Fernandina.

We found a state park along the water’s edge where you could drive your car along the water and a Farmer’s market with an all-olive stand. Their Muffalatta mix was scrumptious! 

Before leaving Jax, we found time to take care of some of the necessaries and to spend some time watching the water fowl at the fresh water lake in the park.

With nearly a million people Jacksonville has the distinction of being  the most populous city in Florida as well as the city in the Continental US with the largest area. The sunny mild weather we experienced here gives us positive memories of the city, and was a big contrast to what greeted us at our last stop on the trip, Savannah Georgia.

Savannah has a long and rich history. Settled in 1733 by James Oglethorpe who was  seeking to establish a colony where people of modest background could build a prosperous life for their families. Unfortunately, sickness plagued the group and the lack of some of the required skills to build a successful community resulted in many of the original colonists leaving for other settlements in the new world. But because it was a strategic location where it  buffered the northern colonies against the Spanish in St. Augustine, Georgia became a colony of Crown in 1751.

We started our visit at the Visitor Center, which is housed in the building where the Savannah Museum of History is located and that also happens to be the oldest original standing train station in the US.

The cotton gin was invented by northerner, Eli Whitney, who was living in Savannah at the time.

When the weather cleared, we took a drive to scenic oceanfront Tybee Island.

We took one of many bus tours around Savannah. There is much to see in the historic center of town, which boasts one of the largest National Historic Districts in the US. The tour highlighted many of the historic homes, including that of the founder of the Girl Scouts of America, Juliette Gordon Low. With over 400 antebellum (pre Civil War) homes still standing, its no wonder that Savannah is such a treasure trove of American architectural history.

We ended our bus ride at the River Street (above) and enjoyed a shrimp boil lunch at the Shrimp Factory on River Street.

We can’t forget the Oatland Wildlife Center where we saw some wolves in their natural habitat as well as a number of other animals and the Civil War era Fort Pulaski, that offered a great tour with many interesting exhibits.

Our last stop in Savannah was the plantation estate, Wormsloe, of Noble Jones, one of the original Oglethorpe colonists. We walked the grounds and stopped for a long while gazing at the ruins of his home and thinking about this multi talented colonist who in so many ways embodied the enterpreneurial spirit of our great country.

Thanks for reading our Blog!

#6 Private Enterprises Reborn Into State Parks

A few days before we left, Anastasia park hosted a day of "Archaeology in the Park". It was a gathering of a half dozen or so exhibitors with displays ranging from the Coast Guard’s showing how they help find and preserve shipwrecks to a State of Florida Archaeologist (who would have thought Florida has state archaeologists?) discussing her role in monitoring construction projects and explaining their impact on archaeological sites in the area.

Our next stop was on the other side of the state at Rainbow Springs State Park, another gem in the Florida system of State Parks. Located near the small town of Dunnellon, approximately between Ocala and the Gulf Coast, Rainbow Springs is the site of a former Florida attraction that operated between the 30’s and the 70’s and was owned by a private concern. Not a big town, Dunnellon nevertheless has its own historic and shopping district, as well as the requisite Wal Mart, Walgreens and CVS pharmacies.

It all starts at the headwaters of the Rainbow River where the ground gives up an incredible 400 million gallons of water every day! A panoramic photo shows the pool at the headsprings towards the right and the river flowing to the left.

Florida sits upon a layer of very porous and saturated limestone; ground water easily migrates through this layer. It explains why Florida, with more than 600 natural springs, has the highest concentration of natural springs in the world. The headsprings is where the incredibly clear Rainbow River begins. 

The park has cordoned off a pool where visitors can swim in the year round 72-74 degree water. That seems a little chilly, but not to this fellow or the egret watching over him.

The park has several miles of paths, and we chose one of about 2/3 mile. We were treated to many azaleas and camellias in bloom, waterfalls and scenic landscapes.

The campground was not as lush and the sites not as private as some we have seen here in Florida, but its pool, clubhouse, swimming beach on the Rainbow River, tubing spot, and excellent maintenance more than make up for that.

One day we took a short drive to visit a second state park that was also converted from a local attraction in 1989, the Homosossa Springs Wildlife State Park.  Your visit begins with a half mile narrated ferry ride to the park.

In addition to the endangered Florida panther, black bears, pink flamingos, sea otters, and many species of birds, we were able to see many manatees in the warm spring fed river adjacent to the park. Most were lazily swimming, though, and you really see more of a shadow! Some closer viewing was possible at a pool.

At the end of the day we opted for the tram ride back to the visitor center

On our way to Savannah, we decided to spend a few days at Jacksonville’s Katheryn Abby Hanna Park along the Atlantic. If we had known the fun we were going to have navigating the RV through Jax, as its called around here, we may have thought differently of staying here. After navigating a confusing mess of expressways, the final road to the park (Florida 116) has no fewer than 5 names in its five mile stretch from the highway to the park - Merrill Rd., Fort Caroline Rd., McCormick Rd., Mt. Pleasant Rd., and finally, Wonderwood Dr. When we finally arrived, after a few wrong turns, we weren't sure whether we or our GPS was more confused!

Katheryn Abby Hanna was a Chicago author and educator who retired to Florida and served on the board of Parks and Historical Places. The park named after her is a large one with 300+ campsites, all within walking distance of the ocean beach. We arrived yesterday and took a few pix from the beach area.

At day's end, Anne and Idgy were pretty tired out from the ride here, 

but at least Idgy woke up to join Duffy. He was watching Rose gobble up some of the special food she was prescribed when we visited the vet in Dunnellon a few days ago for her tummy problem.

Join us again ......  We'll keep the fires burning .....