End of Vacation

We left Savannah Monday morning and drove 8 hours back to Harrisonburg, VA.  Yesterday we drove to Burkholders Fabrics in Lancaster County, PA where we shopped for fabrics for about 2 1/2 hours.  Then to the motel in Lancaster.  This morning we went to the AQS quilt show, then more fabric shopping before heading home.  Our schedule was determined by the fact that we had to be home in time for chorus rehearsal tonight.

Savannah, Georgia

Our guided trip ended after breakfast this morning.  We said our goodbyes and drove to Savannah for the day.  We took a trolley ride to get an overview of the city, including seeing neat buildings

went to the art gallery, then headed for our bed and breakfast on Jones Street.
The Eliza Thompson house is very nice.




It has a neat courtyard with a fountain and lots of bronze statues.










I especially like the little boy with his ice cream cone.


Tomorrow we drive back to Harrisonburg, VA on our way to Pennsylvania.

Paddling in South Carolina - Day 3

Today's paddle was on the Ashepoo River.  We put in downstream and paddled upstream with the incoming tide.

Paddling in South Carolina - Day 2

Today we did part of the Cumbahee River, the "C" in ACE Basin.  We put in on Cuckholds Creek and did a one-way paddle to a takeout down the river, for a total of about 8 miles.  The tide was with us on the latter part of the paddle, which was a good thing since the winds were strong in places.


After the paddle we stopped at the ruins of the Prince William Parish Church, which was built between 1745-1755; burned by the British army in 1779, rebuilt in 1826; then burned again by the federal army in 1865.  The circular brick columns are amazing.

Paddling in South Carolina - Day 1

Today we put in on Penny Creek, a small tributary of the Edisto River in the ACE Basin.

The winds were forecasted to be fairly high, so we paddled down to the larger river

then returned to our starting point.

Paddling in Georgia - Day 3

Our first stop today was at the Lutheran Church at the now-deserted community of Ebenezer on the Savannah River.  The Salzburg Lutherans who founded the community raised silkworms and wove silk to make part of their income.  The church itself is still active.




Then we drove nearby to put the boats into Ebenezer Creek, a tributary of the Savannah River.  According to our guides the water was lower than they usually see it, so the cypress trees loomed over us.  It was very neat.






Late in the afternoon we arrived at our next lodging, the 907 B&B in Walterboro, SC.

Paddling in Georgia - Day 2

Today's paddle was on the Ogeechee River.  It was quite warm and you could almost see the leaves popping out as we traveled.  We did a one-way paddle down the fast-moving river, dodging obstacles when necessary.  It was another fun day.

Paddling in Georgia - Day 1

We met our group yesterday at Magnolia Springs State Park outside of Millen, Georgia.  We are staying in very nice, spacious cabins in the park.  Today we drove to George L Smith State Park to paddle on the Mill Pond.  It is full of bald cypress trees and we had fun paddling among them, in some cases really "paddlewacking" through the trees.

Driving to Georgia

We started out this morning on our drive to Georgia to meet up with the guides we paddled with last year in Florida.  This time we will be paddling in Georgia and South Carolina.  We meet the group Sunday afternoon and then paddle the next 6 days - so much more to come.
Today we stopped in Luray Caverns on our way south.
My favorite spot was a shallow pond that reflected the roof perfectly.
But there were other great sites as well.





It was definitely worth the stop, but since the tour only lasts an hour it would not make sense to make the drive just for the Caverns.  We had considered hiking at Shenandoah on our way back home but most of the facilities there do not open until the beginning of April.
We are happy to be leaving the area, since it snowed hard as we headed to dinner and a motel in Harrisonburg, VA.  Fortunately it did not stick.
Tomorrow we drive to Columbia, SC and then on to Magnolia Springs State Park in Millen, GA on Sunday where we will meet the group.

Snow in March

We appear to have taken the cover off the patio furniture prematurely.  And much more is forecast for next week.

Concert in Princeton

We went to Richardson Auditorium for another concert last evening, part of the Princeton Music series.  The Hagen string quartet played

• Schubert Quartet #10
• Shostakovich Quartet #12
• Dvorak Quartet #14

The Dvorak was my favorite.