Page 261 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - USA

GEORGIA  259

y Okefenokee
Swamp National
Wildlife Refuge
Hwy 121, Folkston. @ n (912) 496-
7836. Open sunrise–5:30pm (7:30pm
in summer). Closed Thanksgiving, Dec
25. & 7 exhibits. ∑ fws.gov/
refuge/okefenokee
In the remote southeastern
Jekyll Island Club Hotel, one of many historic buildings on the Golden Isles corner of the state, the
Okefenokee Swamp is an exotic,
E Ships of the Sea Park in downtown St. Simons has primeval landscape of black-
Maritime Museum the 1872 St. Simons Lighthouse. water and cypress that harbors
41 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Tel (912) Lying across Bloody Marsh from alligators, softshell turtles, otters,
232-1511. Open 10am–5pm Tue–Sun. St. Simons, Sea Island is home and all kinds of birdlife. The
& ∑ shipsofthesea.org to the luxu rious Cloister Hotel. Seminole name “Okefenokee,”
E Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil At the turn of the 20th century, loosely translated as “trembling
Rights Museum Jekyll Island was the exclusive earth,” characterizes the peat
460 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. preserve of the nation’s premier moss hammocks that bubble
Tel (912) 231-8900. Open 10am–4pm industrialists, such as the Vander- up from the water as a natural
Tue–Sat. & bilts, Goodyears, and Rockefellers. part of swamp ecology. Boat
With the advent of World War II, tours provide a close-up view
P Fort Pulaski National
Monument however, this vulnerable island at three sections of the swamp,
Hwy 80 E. Tel (912) 786-5787. was deemed unsafe and the including the Okefenokee
Open 9am–5pm daily. Closed Jan 1, families moved elsewhere. Swamp Park near Waycross,
Thanksgiving, Dec 25. & Today, its his toric district and the wildlife refuge
∑ nps.gov/fopu comprises the “cottages,” headquarters at Folkston,
as the millionaires’ which provides details about
mansions were known, overnight paddling trips into
t Golden and the Jekyll Island the swamp. Fargo, near the
swamp’s western entrance,
Club. The cottages have
Isles been restored and is the nearest town to the
operate as museums or Stephen C. Foster State
* 68,000 (Glynn County).
@ n Hwy 195 S between inns. Another highlight is Park, 18 miles (29 km) to
exit 42 & 38, (800) 933-2627. St. Simons Faith Chapel, with its the northeast. This section is
∑ goldenisles.com Lighthouse Tiffany windows. The hist- perched on a peninsula in
oric Jekyll River Wharf, next the deep recesses of the
The Spanish called the barrier to the Jekyll Island Club Hotel, swamp. Camping facilities and
islands off Georgia’s southern has a popular seafood restaurant. cabins are available here.
coast “the Golden Isles” – possibly There are a selection of franchise
after lost treasure or in reference motels and restaurants, offering O Okefenokee Swamp Park
to the golden hue of the marsh- family lodging and dining, on Hwy 177, Waycross. Tel (912) 283-
lands in fall – a term that tourism the ocean side. 0583. Open 9am–5:30pm daily.
promoters revived. While they Closed Thanksgiving, Dec 24 & 25. &
are primarily beach resorts, P Fort Frederica National 7 exhibits only. ∑ okeswamp.com
the islands retain a number of Monument O Stephen C. Foster State Park
historic sights. Fort Frederica Frederica Rd, St. Simons Island. Hwy 177. Tel (912) 637-5274.
National Monument, located Tel (912) 638-3639. Open 9am–5pm. Open 7am–10pm daily. &
on St. Simons, along a scenic & 7 ∑ nps.gov/fofr ∑ gastateparks.org
stretch of the Frederica River,
holds the ruins of a fortified
village built by James Oglethorpe
in 1736. Another significant site is
the expanse of marsh off Demere
Road, south of Fort Frederica,
where the Battle of Bloody Marsh
was fought in 1742. This battle
between English and Spanish
forces determined which Colonial
power would control this part
of the American continent. Near
the island’s southern tip, Neptune Suwanee Canal Recreation Area, Okefenokee Swamp Refuge

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