Georgia to Fort Lauderdale

Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island

On the Georgia coast we crossed the road bridge to Jekyll island where we walked along a stunning beach covered in driftwood. Turtles nest here and we visited the Georgia Sea Turtle center where they monitor the turtles and rescue any injured ones.

St Augustine Market Place

Crossing the state line into Florida we stopped at the historic town of St Augustine. It was first settled by the Spanish in 1565 and the town square and market place is the oldest public space in the USA. It also boasts the oldest wooden school in the USA, and is home to the Castillio de San Marcos, an impressive fort built by the Spanish to protect the town. The climb to the top of  St Augustine lighthouse and museum on the nearby Anastasia island gave us a great view over the surrounding area too.

Driving on the beach !

Heading down the coast to Daytona the weather just kept improving with glorious sunshine all day. On Daytona Beach Shores, we drove along the beach - just because that is what they do here - and it was a bit of fun and not something that we can do at home.

On the winners podium at Daytona

No trip to Daytona would be complete without visiting the International Speedway, and we did a tour of the track which just happened to be "hot" - there were cars lapping the track. Practice sessions may not have the same atmosphere as on a raceday but the sound was just incredible, as was thirty one degree angle on the banked curves. The track is so well set up with full service campsites that we can just imagine how great it would be sitting on the roof of an RV coach with a cooler full of Budweiser, watching the racing.

Our last day on the road took us to Titusville, and the Space View park that looks over the Kennedy Space centre and the NASA shuttle landing facility. From here we crossed onto Merrit Island and drove down past Cape Canaveral, through Cocoa Beach - home to the one of a kind Ron Jon Surf Shop, and past Patrick Air Force Base. Its a lovely area here but with time running out we got back onto the freeway to Ft Lauderdale on the outskirts of Miami. What a difference in just a few miles, the traffic went crazy with five lanes of freeway backed up solid, so we are definitely a busy city again. Not many pictures from this day but the latest selection are now on Facebook as promised - please click here to see them.

For those of you who aren't aware of our plans for Christmas and New Year, you'll have to wait for our next post to see what we get up too, and we wish all our families, friends and followers of this blog a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year for 2015.

Alabama to Georgia

Sel in front of  the "Pathfinder" shuttle stack

Our next stop was indeed Hunstville, Alabama and we visited the Space and Rocket museum which has the only complete space shuttle stack on display in the world. The shuttle is named "Pathfinder", and was originally a full scale mode used for handling tests such as checking roadway clearances and crane capabilities. Although not an actual flying shuttle it is an accurate and full scale replica, the orange external tank is real and was actually used in propulsion testing, and the two solid rocket booster are also real having been built after the Challenger disaster but never used. The museum showcases plenty of other rockets, many of them with military origins, plus numerous authentic rocket engines, and lots of interactive displays, exhibits and a myriad of information. The centrepiece is an actual Saturn V rocket, as used in the Apollo space program. It was the last one built and was never fired, and there is no mock up here - its the real deal. Also on display is the Apollo 16 command module named Casper, the last one to land on the moon, which is pretty special to see.

The visitors centre
at Jack Daniels 

Briefly returning into the state of Tennessee we stopped at Lynchburg for a free tour of the Jack Daniels Distillery. Even if none of the Bourbon names were familiar to you, Jack Daniels is a truly global brand and can be found in nearly every bar anywhere in the world. Now we want to set the records straight here - Jack Daniels is not a bourbon...but it could be. It is made in exactly the same way, with the same ingredients and to the same strict rules as bourbon is, with the addition that it is mellowed through charcoal before being aged. So, they could call it bourbon but they choose to set themselves apart as a Tennessee whisky, and are very proud to be different. Anyway, we thoroughly enjoyed the tour, seeing everything from the charcoal being made, the spring water which began it all, Mr Jack's original offices, through to the mash vats, the four giant stills and the charcoal vats. Its a surprisingly small operation really although the barreling, and most of the ageing and bottling is now done off site. Moore County where they are located is - rather ironically - a dry county, although the distillery do now have an exemption and offer tastings for an extra fee, as well as a bottle shop selling some of the more unusual and hard to find special editions. We spent some time in the quaint and nearby village of Lynchburg where we had a spot of lunch and visited the historic jail where legendary Jesse James was allegedly once incarcerated, as well as browsing the huge amount of branded merchandising that Jack Daniels has also become famous for.

Ruby Falls

Next stop was the city of Chattanooga, internationally known for the 1941 record "Chattanooga Choo Choo" by Glen Miller, inspired by the fact that the city was a major railroad hub. It still plays on that today, but also boasts the attraction of the spectacular Ruby Falls, a 145 foot tall underground waterfall located within Lookout Mountain, and only discovered in 1928. Our photo just doesn't convey what an amazing sight the falls are.

On top of Lookout Mountain is Rock City, located just over the border in Georgia. From this elevated viewpoint it is possible to see across seven states, and the attraction is well known in the USA for
its many barn advertisements with the slogan "See Rock City" that can be seen painted on barn sides and roofs across the county. Aside from the great views the attraction boasts extensive gardens running through a variety of unique and bizarre natural rock formations, and also rock caves that are now home to many spectacular black-lighted exhibits based on well known fairy-tales.

Dolly's statue in Sevierville

After here we headed up to Pigeon Forge, a mountain city resort in the heart of the Smoky Mountains. Primarily a tourist destination, it's biggest attraction is Dollywood, a theme-park owned by Dolly Parton, and although it was closed when we visited we did see Dolly's statue in her nearby hometown of Sevierville. We did get collared by a timeshare sales presentation there but we escaped without buying anything and were even given a prepaid debit card by way of a Thank You for attending, so it was well worth the time spent there !

On the flight deck of USS Yorktown

After using our free gift to fill the tank of our rental car, we drove to Charleston, SC, on the Atlantic coast. This historic city has a vibrant waterfront from where we could see Fort Sumter, where the first shots of the civil war were fired. Charleston is a natural harbour, and just to the east at the mouth of the Cooper river is Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum. It is home to many exhibits but by far the most imposing is the USS Yorktown (CV10), a decommissioned US Navy aircraft carrier. Now open to the public as a museum, there is full access to most areas of the ship - the bridges, flight deck, hangar, crew quarters and engine room. There are many aircraft on display too, and in hindsight we could easily have spent the entire day here.

Driving the Holiday Festival of Lights

Whilst in Charleston we also stopped by at the Angel Oak, a huge and impressive ancient oak tree which our photos just don't do justice too, and in the evening we drove the Holiday Festival of Lights, a three mile drive-able circuit through James Island County Park comprising over 700 light exhibits which was quite unique.

The Plantation House at Hofwyl-Broadfield

Crossing into the state of Georgia, we stopped in the border town of Savannah - a former British colonial capital and host city for the sailing events in the 1996 summer Olympics in nearby Atlanta - before moving further down the coast to Brunswick. Here we visited the Hofwyl-Broadfield plantation historic site, which represents the history and culture of the rice industry on Georgia's coast. When the rice industry collapsed the plantation became a diary using Jersey and Guernsey cows so we felt a special connection to the place, and we were very lucky to have a private tour guided tour of the plantation house and outbuildings.

The remains of the fort, and the Spanish Moss in the trees

The Georgian coastline is a network of small islands interspersed with marshlands and tidal estuaries, and we visited St Simons Island, connected by a road bridge and home to Fort Frederica. It is now a national monument but was once a thriving fort and village built in the mid 1700's to protect the southern boundary of the British colony of Georgia from the Spanish who raided from their territory in Florida. Basking in the sunshine on a stunning and warm December afternoon we were privileged to see dolphins swimming and playing close to shore in the river estuary, and the drapes of spanish moss (which isnt spanish, or even moss...) glistening in the trees was truly stunning.

No photos this time on Facebook but we'll include them in our next post which will be coming up very soon.

Tennessee and into Mississippi

So on our last post we had just arrived in Nashville having crossed the state line into Tennessee. We ventured into the huge mall at the Grand Ole Opry on the Saturday after Black Friday - swamped with people but not the scenes of chaos that we have seen on the news from the UK.

In downtown Nashville we visited the store of Antique Archaeology This is the sister store to one that we visited in Davenport, Iowa and will be familiar to anyone who follows "The Pickers" on the History Channel. In keeping with the music scene there was a live band playing, and we saw many artifacts that have been on the TV series though we couldn't help feeling they are doing pretty well selling branded merchandising now.

Johnny Cash Museum

Also in Downtown was the Johnny Cash museum, and though we are not huge fans he is one of those names that is so significant in the music industry that we could not just pass him by. It also gave us a chance to see Broadway, the main strip in Nashville, full of bars playing live music in between stores selling cowboy boots of every style, size, colour and pattern.

That's a 9 foot tall tyre !

Final stop in Nashville was the Lane Motor Museum, a impressive private collection of mainly European cars and also motorcycles, micro cars, cycles and a few trucks too. Located in a former bakery that has been renovated into a brilliant museum, it was well worth visiting. Highlight of that trip has to be the US military LARC, a huge submersible vehicle with nine foot tall tyres which is located outside. Sporting four massive engines, it could carry a whopping 100 ton payload, and is unlike any other vehicle we have seen.

Outside Graceland, Elvis's home in Memphis, TN.

Moving onto Memphis on the banks of the Mississippi, we had a quick bite to eat and a walk around Franklin, a small but homely village and another significant site from the civil war. It was perhaps foolish to think that summer had returned with the temperature hitting 20c by mid afternoon, as by the following morning we woke to just +1c. A big difference but despite the cold wind it didn't stop our visit to Graceland, the eternal home of Elvis in Memphis. Now we aren't the biggest Elvis fans either but there is no doubt that he was a special and talented man who made an enormous contribution, and had a huge influence on modern music -  and continues to do so today. His house has been preserved just how it was when he passed away suddenly in 1977, and what a fantastic place it is. Being able to walk through the living areas was a great experience, as were the exhibitions with numerous awards and memorabilia, finishing with quiet reflection in the memorial garden where his body is buried beside his other late family members.

Stax Museum of American Soul Music

"Elviness" is everywhere around here, the motel we stayed at filled with its own collection of Elvis photos and memorabilia, and playing Elvis Radio from 9 am till dusk everyday (yes, Elvis has his own dedicated radio station on Sirius XM which plays his songs 24/7 - well he certainly recorded enough material to do it !)

Continuing the music theme and on the recommendation of several people that we met back in Franklin, we visited the Stax Museum of American soul Music, also in Memphis. Located on the site of the former Stax Records and recording studio, it celebrates Soul music and the legacy that Stax Records has left. The list of artists who where recorded and produced there are incredible - Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, Albert King, Booker T and the M.G.s to name just a few, with some stand out exhibits including a 101 year old Mississippi Delta church from where the gospel roots of Soul emerged, the restored 1972 gold trimmed, peacock blue Cadillac El Dorado that belonged to Isaac Hayes, and the Hammond Organ used by Booker.T.Jones to record "Green Onions". Legendary stuff indeed.

When Stax was producing hit records in the 60's, Memphis was still a deeply segregated city and whilst there was certainly racism around some artists the studio provided an escape from the turmoil of the real world where the only desire was to make good music - some of which became the soundtrack to the civil rights movement.

Room 306 at Lorraine Motel

That led us to our next stop - just over two miles from Stax is the former Lorraine Motel, where in 1968 Martin Luther King was assassinated, the day after he made his famous "I've been to the mountain top" speech. The motel has been preserved for history and is the centerpiece of a privately owned complex that now makes up the National Civil Rights Museum.

Our final stop in Memphis was Tom Lee Park, on the banks of the mighty Mississippi river where we learnt about the heroic efforts of Tom Lee, a negro who in 1925 saved thirty two lives when a steamboat capsized on the river. The park offers great panoramic views over the Mississippi and looks like it would be a great focal point in the warmer months.

Panorama over the mighty Mississippi 

Delta Blues Museum

Within a very short time of leaving Memphis we crossed into the state of Mississippi on Highway 61, the "Blues Highway". What a difference - the land opened out as we entered the Mississippi Delta, with vast cotton fields spread out all around us. The cotton crop has finished for this year but the remnants are still scattered over the fields and the roadside, in places thick enough to give an appearance of light snow. This is the land of Blues music, and we stopped in at the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksedale to learn more about the origins and history of the Blues, associated with many well known artists like B.B.King, and Muddy Waters to name just a few. Clarksdale is also the birthplace of many musicians such as Ike Turner and John Lee Hooker - and several famous people have also lived and worked here including the actor Morgan Freeman.

The house that Elvis was born in

Moving ever on-wards we stopped briefly in Tupelo, at the birthplace of Elvis Presley. The building is a simple "shotgun" style shack also now preserved as a tourist attraction. It was here that as a young boy Elvis first heard Blues music, and in later years his blending of Blues with Country, Pop, Gospel and Soul revolutionized popular music thanks to his unique sound.

So we've been pretty busy again, and next stop is Alabama to visit Huntsville, nicknamed Rocket City for its connections to the space industry. Watch out for another update soon !

Finally please click here for the latest Facebook photo album.