Ferry to Fernandina Beach

After we went to the cemetery, I wanted to go back to the Amelia Island Museum which is in the old jail.

One of the lizards on the handicapped ramp

Museum entrance

Old bike at entrance

We got there about 2 minutes after the guided tour started and paid our $8.00 each. The guide was still taking about the original inhabitants

Original inhabitant

Timucua drawing by artist who had never been there

The women are French, and the bow is a European style.

Dubious Description

The drawings show metal plows, but the indigenous people had no metal tools

model old Fernandina and Fort San Carlos

Franciscan monk (painted in the wrong color cassock)

I was not too impressed with the guide, who was a retired GYN and an AF vet. He concentrated on taking us through the sequence of the eight flags that flew over Amelia Island but he really didn't know that much outside of what the docent tour information had given him.

Three of the eight flags

display of cannon ball

Cannon ball from Battle of McClure Hill

One of the 8 flags

Racially integrated election 1865

The guide asked Bob if I had been a teacher. So I stopped asking questions or adding tidbits that I knew about the area.

Selfie in the top of the antique soda fountain

Antique soda fountain

I was almost certain that our tour 15 years ago started upstairs (and my sister who did that tour with us confirmed it later), but none of the docents there have been there more than four years, so they do not know. Upstairs is now just offices. For some reason, we did not see the old jail cell on this visit.

Safe

Compensating Binacle

The museum is very interesting, but it doesn't have a lot of things to take photos of that are relevant to what the docent was telling us. The lady's gown, for instance, was not mentioned at all.

wedding dress

old wheel chair

There were three other couples with us. One from central FL. At least two of the other men were also vets. Several of the men on the tour quizzed Bob about his service. One of them thanked Bob for his service, which I thought was odd because I think he was also a vet. Or maybe it was his brother who served.

windows (old jail)

Then we decided to find a place to eat, and ended up at Timothi's

Timothi's

No shirt, No Shimp

where you give your order in at the counter and then they call you to come get it.

It was after 12:45 and there was a long line waiting to give orders. So Bob stood in line. I got a seat and took a photo of the menu so I could look at it on my camera and see what I could get.

menu

I got a Rice Box and tea,

and Bob got a shrimp po-boy.

Total $25.45. I ate the fried fish off the top and some of the rice and brought the rest home.

Then we drove around Fernandina and I attempted to take photos of the historic buildings.

hampton Inn

railroad station

Marina restaurant

We stopped and Bob got some fudge - that is kind of a tradition with us.

Bob coming back to the car with fudge

I waited in the car and took photos of some of the shops from where we were parked

And we ended up at St. Peter's cemetery and took some more photos.

I tried to get photos of the lists on the very shiny reflective sign, and switched my camera to manual focus. Then I forgot to switch back so some of the other photos that I took are soft focus

We drove down A1A to the ferry. The fees were not listed on the web site where I could see them, but eventually I found it was $6.00. On the weekend the driver and children under 5 are free but everyone else has to pay $1.00. But this was not a weekend, so I was free. The guy that collected the money didn't even count it. We got the 4:15 ferry, and were back on the Mayport side by 4:30. One of the guys who was directing cars had a Santa Claus beard.

White bearded ferry worker

We had chicken sandwiches, and grapefruit for dinner and I took some of the cheese and heated it up on the rice. We also finished up the ice cream.

May 10th
On the morning of the 10th there was a lot of news on the TV about the fire and areas that would be evacuated around Okefenokee Swamp and areas that there would be smoky. Plus a semi had overturned on I-95 north and when a state trouper stopped to help, another car hit his car (with him still in it) and the whole highway was shut down completely from the accident up to the Yulee exit and US 17 was the alternate route and that was completely slammed also.

So we decided to take the ferry back over and go up A1A which would be as far as we could get from the smoke and it was also far enough from I-95 not to be involved in that accident.

We still haven't eaten all of the whole roast chicken we got at the commissary. So Bob packed up the chicken and cheese and the other things we haven't finished in the cooler and put the bags in the car. I shut down the computer about 8:30 - the one problem with the Lodge (other than that the pool was not open except to active military) was that there were no convenient plugs and Bob needed the extension cord we were using back to put in his suitcase - and we checked out about 9. They are replacing the toilets but they didn't get to our room before we left. There were some out on the sidewalk as we were leaving.

We drove out along the perimeter road and exited through gate 5 and got in line for the ferry.

Lighthouse through the chain link fence on the way out

There weren't a lot of people in line with us. One of the ferry people asked to look in our trunk. Apparently they ask one random car to look in the trunk - they did this to the car behind us yesterday.

Using the ferry successfully avoided the accident on I-95 We were over on Fort George Island and driving north by 10:00.

I wasn't in any hurry because we couldn't check in to the hotel in Hinesville until 1400 and it was only about 200 miles. When we were at the cemetery in Fernandina, I had set the camera to manual focus in order to try to get the writing on a very reflective sign - the camera kept focusing on what was reflected. And I forgot to switch it back, so most of the photos I took of the town were out of focus. So we drove around the town a little and I went back to the museum to get a birthday present for our daughter whose birthday was yesterday.

But we were still leaving Florida for Georgia by 11:30. We saw some smoke on the horizon, but it didn't really impact our trip.

We are heading for Hinesville Georgia as a halfway point between Mayport and Summerville - so the drive to Summerville will not be as long.