Georgia On My Mind

I apologize for the delay, this post was supposed to be added last week, but life intervened.  You all know how that goes.

On October 11, my wife and I threw on our gear and headed up to Georgia.

Initially, our plan was to ride to St. Augustine and enjoy the Atlantic Coast.  However, due to a late start, we decided to remain inland and travel up to Georgia.  Couldn't ask for better weather on our journey, high of 83 with a nice breeze, few clouds. 

To start out our trip, we had lunch in nearby High Springs at The Diner.  Throughout my childhood, this restaurant changed ownership a couple of times.  When I was in high school it was known as Floyd's Diner - a 1950's classic cafe.  It still maintains that 50's vibe today, with reasonable prices and a decent menu.

After lunch, we proceeded North on US HWY 441.  The plan was to take 441 all the way up to Georgia, passing through Lake City, White Springs, & Jasper.  The traffic was fairly light, especially for a Saturday.  Only ran into trouble as we entered Lake City, there's always that one driver who doesn't understand the concept of cruise control on their vehicle, and they continuously sped up & slowed down. This particular vehicle kept crawling up my back side and then dropping off.  I wasn't in a rush, nor was I going too slow or too fast.  Just kept going 65, but pulled off once I got into town to allow him to pass me.  I wasn't interested in having to deal with that.

The country side really opened up just north of Lake City, limited traffic allowed my wife and I to take in the sights.  I'm lucky enough to live just south of the Suwannee River Valley, and the geography of that region is very enjoyable.  Crossing the Suwannee & Ichetuknee Rivers almost makes you forget you're in Florida, as the topography gives way to hills and curved roads.  There aren't too many places in Florida like this, & discovering them is a real treat.

North of Lake City is the town of White Springs.  Founded at the turn of the 20th Century, White Springs gives visitors a great experience of "small town USA".  Massive Oak Trees line the roads, with the focal point of the town being the White Springs Bed & Breakfast, which was founded in 1905.  White Springs even comes complete with a volunteer fire department!  While we didn't stop, the sight seeing tour was enjoyable.

It seemed that every "wrong turn" I took lead us to better sights and better roads.  Couldn't go wrong with that trip.  It's a short 2-3 hour trip, but it's a nice way to burn a Saturday afternoon.  The road into Georgia was long and empty on this day, and as I stood there on the State Line, I found myself being drawn into Georgia.  While I didn't really venture across, I stood there looking down that lonely highway wanting to know what's down there.  Where would this road take me?  With nothing but swamps & fields as far as the eye could see, I wonder what was at the end of that lonely highway.  Perhaps one day I'll venture further North to see what lies ahead.

 

 

 



On the way back home, we stopped in Live Oak to stretch our legs & to give our butts a rest. A nice cold slushie from the local Burger King did the trick as we rested in the parking lot under some trees.  If you've lived in Florida as long as I have, you pretty much know where the most enjoyable places are.  Florida has an abundance of small towns, but the majority aren't worth the trip.  The Atlantic Coast is preferrable to the Gulf Coast (in my opinion), even though the Gulf does have a few hidden gems.  Just a quick shot north of Lake City opens up an area of Florida that I find most enjoyable. 

 

 

 

Thanks for reading.  Ride safe.

 

-James

Florida-Georgia Line

I want to take a break from the "world traveler" aspect of my blog and feel the wind in my face!

I recently took a fun ride to the Florida-Georgia State Line.  Initially, my plan was to drive some of the county roads and dirt roads in Alachua County and neighboring Colombia County.  However, once I realized how close I was to the state line, the rider in me couldn't resist the cruise.  I ended up putting a little over 120 miles on the DRZ at the end of the day.  I rode on various back roads until I reached Lake City.  I could not have asked for better weather for the drive!  Temperature around 85, nice and sunny with few clouds, no wind, along with little traffic.  For those who are familiar with Florida's summer weather, you know that those "perfect days" usually don't last all day.

I stuck mainly to US 441, so in the event I had motorcycle trouble or the weather turned against me, I would have a direct path home.  One of the towns that I traveled through was a little one called Like Oak.  The road through town had a lower speed, but a few nice curves and on a dual sport, it was a really enjoyable strip of road.  As the name leads on, Live Oak was full of beautiful Oak trees that lined the road.  As I ventured closer to the state line, population density decreased.  There was a 10-20 mile stretch of road that if something were to happen, I probably would have been in trouble because cell service was hit and miss.  

The ride home was mostly as pleasant as the ride up.  Mostly.  Like I stated previously, perfect Florida summer weather doesn't last.  A rain shower is 99% guaranteed to happen.  I did have lady luck on my side as the rain shower didn't hit until I was 4 miles from home.  However, I was in shorts and a shirt when I drove into a wall of water.  I had to pull off and wait an hour for the rain to let up enough for me to get home.  

Behind the Fallen Iron Curtain: Georgia

The Republic of Georgia-

Georgia was the most economically divided country I visited when I was in the Navy.  But it also had the most potential of any country I've seen.  Foreign investors were really driving the economic growth through out the country and that was most evident in the city of Batumi.  The "tourist" section of Batumi was a great distraction from the quality of life that the true Georgians were living in.  The most visible building was the Sheraton Hotel, a magnificently white skyscraper that drew visitors to that area.  It was right next to the beach, surrounded by beautiful walkways, water features, fancy park benches, public ping pong tables, and a small bamboo forest.  All of this ran parallel to a beautiful wooden walkway on the beach that stretched as far as I could see in both directions down the coast.  Further from the Sheraton (closer to where my ship was moored), the downtown square was the most beautiful section of town.  A massive sculptured water fountain stood in front of the Batumi Theater/Oprah House, which was highlighted with gold painted accents.  Foreign embassy's also made up the nearby streets.  All sorts of modern hotels, restaurants, and office spaces were being built.  I stumbled upon a restaurant in the shape of a wooden sail ship that was facing the beach.  I enjoyed Pear beer and cow tongue in a horse radish sauce.  Quite delicious, actually.  The horizon had beautiful hills and mountains with smaller towns dotting the landscape.  Georgia was just recently recognized as a European nation, and joined the European Union.  They are very proud of this fact, because economic support and opportunities for growth come standard with this recognition. However, just two streets behind the Sheraton Hotel, was the poor Georgia.  The streets literally went from concrete and cobblestone, to sand.  Shacks, shady businesses, poverty, hunger, crime.  I accidentally stumbled into this area with a few friends and we didn't want to stick around.  I refused to bring out my camera because I did not want to get mugged.  The diversity between "first world" and "third world" was truly frightening and very apparent.  I attribute this to the fact that Russia casts a looming shadow over Georgia (as it does all of its former Soviet satellites) and also attacked Georgia in 2008.  The good thing is that these poor regions of Georgia are on the decline.  The economy is growing, and as I explored further into the city (away from the Sheraton), I noticed corporations, small businesses, public transportation, city parks, parking garages, and LOTS of construction!  I know that here in America, all of those things are a given, but in a nation rebuilding from decades of Soviet control and trying to find their own identity, this was a wonderful sight! As I left, I remember telling a friend "This place was great, but I want to return in 10-15 years to see the growth".  I mean that, because Georgia was screaming with economic possibilities and I truly believe the Republic of Georgia could become a social powerhouse in Europe.