Thursday, December 17, 2020
There’s nothing like getting the one long day in the car over with. By now, the route was quite familiar to me. I-75 South to Macon, I-16 East to Savannah and then south on I-95 towards the Florida state line. Just over the line, Hwy 17 and 200 would bring me out to Amelia Island, my first stop.
There's no fast way out to I-75 from Fayetteville, so I've been experimenting with various state highways and routes. Some have been more successful than others. The experimenting is fun, and let's face it, state highways are generally more interesting.
However, here in Georgia, they do tend to take right angles, seemingly at random. So, the moment sometimes hits you and suddenly you have no idea where you are. After pulling into the parking lot of a store specializing in animal feed, I found the problem and headed east twenty miles or so to Macon and I-16. That's where I saw this long abandoned convenience store. I circled back to read the caption spray painted on the front, "We repeat what we don't reuse."
The drive to the Florida state line was uneventful. Just over the line is the turnoff for Hwy 17. Shortly after turning onto Hwy 200, traffic stopped as crews moved some large construction vehicles around. While waiting, I noticed something humorous. I had assumed state and local road crews had their own construction barrels. Who knew you could rent them.
My first planned stop of the day was actually only one block ahead in the town of Yulee, named after former Florida Senator and railroad tycoon, David Yulee. Microbreweries have been popping up all over. I've visited a bunch over the last few years and enjoy the wide variety of flavors. So, when I saw the SJ Brewing Company on my route, I checked their hours and they were open. This seems to vary wildly from place to place.
The sign on the door says masks are mandatory to enter. The staff was wearing them correctly the whole time and the handful of customers were nicely spread out. I did see a few places on the trip where this wasn't happening.
I chose the Comfort Suites for one reason only, it's one short block from the beach. It's so much easier to motivate yourself to get out for sunrise this way. At check in, they give you a placard, much like the Do Not Disturb ones you'd hang on the doorknob. Due to Covid-19, no member of the staff will enter your room until you check out. If you need anything, just check the appropriate box on the placard and hang that outside your room. I really liked this idea.
The room was great and my window pointed west. By now it was late afternoon and time to think about sunset.
The historic district was a short drive, so I ditched the car and walked out towards the waterfront...
By the time I had walked out to the end of the public dock, the clouds had thickened , leaving only a strip of colors on the horizon.
Christmas on the water...
Walking back towards the car...
I hadn't realized it when I parked, but I was one block from the Palace Saloon.
The saloon opened in 1903 and is the oldest bar in the state of Florida. That's the only reason I went in. Perhaps it was the long drive but the whimsy of the place seemed lost on me. The food was okay, but standard bar fare. The beer selection was decent, but after one, I knew I was done and called it a day.
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