2/12/22 Pebble Hill Plantation, Okefenokee Swamp, GA

 2/12 Saturday

We set out this morning across 84E, known as the Wiregrass Georgia Highway.  Lots more pine trees and bundled pine needles - we'll see them used later as mulch in Florida.

We come to the town of Thomasville  and swing by "The Big Oak", this 300+ year old tree 

before driving down a beautiful main street!  Gotta take a picture of these gorgeous homes and Episcopal church....

Lovely courthouse, too.

We googled bakeries for a quick breakfast and ended up parking in front of some of those mansions and walking to the Savannah Moon Cafe for breakfast. Cute little place and very busy!  I ended up with grits and bacon which were very good (I'm a convert) while Greg had a ham and egg breakfast sandwich. 

Today we are headed to nearby Pebble Hill Plantation. Since plantations were such a way of life in the south for so long, we figured we should see at least one this trip. Quite a nice driveway!  Huge oaks dripping with Spanish moss.  

 This one was built in 1825 and produced mainly cotton and sugar cane.   We were in a small group of 7 with our guide, Paul, who really knew his stuff!  The plantation began small but expanded considerably when the founder's daughter married Howard Melvin Hammon, a magnate in coal, and shipping in the north.  There were 70 plantations in this area. To qualify as a plantation, a home must have 2,000 acres minimum.  Pebble Hill has 3,000.

Front

Back

 

Camellias in red, pink, white and yellow were blooming beautifully!

A few early azaleas too!

Part of the reason this area was so popular was that Thomasville advertised as being far enough south for a mild climate, good clean air improved respiratory problems, yet far enough north to avoid malaria and other diseases which were a problem.  Land back then was $3 an acre! He alluded to the "cottages" we took pictures of earlier on Dawson Street, built mostly by wealthy Northerners as Winter homes.  Many of the furnishings and the modern conveniences arrived from the north.

There were slaves at this plantation, house slaves and field slaves, but not much was said about this.  He did add that sharecropping helped keep the property intact after the Civil War.  We toured each room.  Turkey and quail hunting was popular here and there were dozens of turkey paintings and 33 original Audubon paintings. Mr. Hammon agreed with Ben Franklin that the turkey should have represented the new country.  There was a fire in 1934 in which only one wing was saved, so much of what we were seeing was more recent.  This is the "old" wing which was saved by a bucket brigade.

By 1936, electricity, heating and cooling were installed.  Some notable things we saw were a collection of walking sticks including one that concealed a flask, another that concealed a gun.  The spiral staircase was quite beautiful.  There was a staff of 10-12 servants. 

The second floor of the home was a gallery of art collected by Elizabeth Ireland Poe, including this Carousel Horse from 1922.

The grounds were  quite lovely, including this family cemetery.

and this entrance to a tennis court. Not exactly the plantation we were expecting, but interesting.

Spring is coming.

Back to 84E and onward to the Okefenokee Swamp Park in Waycross, Georgia.  Today has been overcast, but no rain until we reached our destination.  Even then it was just a light rain for 15-20 minutes.  We had called and got tickets for the last boat tour of the day and it was just Greg and I and our guide, Joe, in a small open boat.

The rain in the dark water was kind of beautiful!

Okefenokee is a Seminole Indian word meaning "land of trembling earth", referring to the often less than stable footing in the area not covered by water. We are at the top of the Okefenokee Swamp which is also the beginning of the Swanee River.  From here it flows 50 miles down to the Gulf of Mexico. The swamp covers 700 square miles and is 90% government protected.

Joe says there are 234 bird species, and, of course many alligators. 30 snake species, plus bear, deer, bobcats and other small mammals. He pointed out a couple of old alligator nests, where the females will lay 3-4 dozen eggs.  They incubate for 65-70 days and the mother alligator will tend to the young ones for over a year. It was still pretty cool to see much activity, but they did have some large gators in an enclosed area with a boardwalk above.

The water is dark because of tannic acid from decaying vegetation and is only 6-8 inches deep on the boat trails.  There is quite a labrynth of trails, some very narrow, and it is easy to get lost.  Joe has lived and worked here for a long time and was involved in clearing, building docks and boardwalks, etc.  Lots of stories.  

We stopped and walked a boardwalk to Skull Lake, which is Seminole Indiand hallowed ground where they would sacrifice animals twice a year.  They had their ceremony and then mounted the animal skull to a tree. 

 Joe pointed out different plants that were used for medicine, soap and other practical things. To tell how old a cypress tree is, he says stand next to it. Measure the circumference at shoulder height and multiply by 12. There are 22 carnivorous plants found in the swamp - lots of food (insects) too.  Fortunately the temperature is cool, so we don't see any (insects).

There are a few other things to do here - nature center, train, etc. - but it is nearly their closing time by the time we finish the tour, so we pick up a few post cards for the grandkids and head to town.

Because, I suppose, the Swamp draws quite a few visitors, the usual Walmart, Cracker Barrel do not allow boondocking. ( Some towns pass ordinances so that their area $ campgrounds get more business.) We notice a Lowe's, however, whose manager says it is fine to stay there. 

Snacks and soup.  Good night!