Greg & Camille Go Bike

Today was a long, but very pleasant and memorable day. With a 95 mile day looming ahead of us, we made an effort to get on the road early and managed to get rolling by 7:30. The route started out for a decent stretch just as the previous day had ended, biking in comfortably wide shoulders alongside US-17. Over time, the traffic progressively became lighter and the hotel dead zone we'd noted yesterday was also largely devoid of any traffic. Our original planned route would have had us detouring off US-17 on a couple occasions, but we felt comfortable with just staying on US-17, shaving some mileage from the day.

At Eulonia, we briefly stopped for snacks and and to send mail before, before turning off onto backroads. There were some decent views and nice, lower stress biking. Just before reaching Darien, the day really started to shine. There were some dedicated off road trails running parallel to the road and nice views of nearby waterways. We stopped for snacks and scenery at the picnic area outside the Fort King George Historic Site. The bugs seemed to be enjoying the meal too though, so we moved after only a short break.

Continuing into Darien, there were houses to our left lining a hill with clear views to the marshlands and river beyond. Combined with the huge trees hanging over the road covered in spanish moss, this area really felt like it had a very unique character. Eventually we turned left onto a bridge crossing the river and stopped to enjoy the scenery. This was the first of many bridges we'd cross in the afternoon.

A bit further along, two bridges ran parallel one carrying automotive traffic while the other seemed to be an old bridge repurposed for pedestrians. It was crowded with recreational fishermen/women.

Much further down the road as we approached Brunswick, we stopped off for some groceries and lots of snacking. Even the grocery store here was right by the water and had a surprisingly pleasant view. We followed some back roads through town passing by preparations for a parade. On the way out of town, we crossed the Sidney Lanier Bridge, an absolutely massive suspension bridge. It was probably the steepest climb since we left Delaware heading south, but the spectacular views at the top made the climb well worth it.

After descending from the bridge, we turned onto the causeway leading to Jekyll Island. There were two large pillars at the entrance and then a long stretch of well maintained plants on the left. To our right there were clear views of Jekyll Sound and the setting sun. Once on the island we passed through a shopping district before biking a mile or so along the beach. There were Christmas decorations everywhere with golf cards covered roof to wheel in ornaments and christmas displays propped up along bikeway. We cut across to the west side of the island and were treated with a beautiful woodsy trail and more nice views of the setting sun over water.

We reached the campground just as it was getting dark. It was surprisingly packed and pretty noisy. We setup camp, ate dinner and thankfully just around the time we were getting ready for bed the commotion seemed to settle down.