Celebration – Page 5 – Wandering Dawgs

The morning after our anniversary celebration, Henry slept in while I got up early to watch the sunrise at Driftwood Beach.

Sunrise at Driftwood Beach, Jekyll Island, GA

A Brief History of Jekyll Island and the Jekyll Island Club:

1886 – The island was purchased for $125,000 by wealthy American industrialists to create a hunting retreat, the Jekyll Island Club.
1888 – The Jekyll Island Club opened.
1896 – The San Soucie (meaning ‘Without Care’) was built with six units. It is one of the earliest condominium buildings in the United States. William Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan were two of the owners.
1910 – A plan was made for the Federal Reserve Banking System during a secret meeting of the Jekyll Island Club.
1915 – The first transcontinental call was made by one of the club members.
1947 – The State of Georgia purchased Jekyll Island for $675,000 and the island became a state park.
1972 – The Jekyll Island Club was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
1985 – 1986 – The Jekyll Island Club was completely restored and opened in 1986 as the Jekyll Island Club Hotel.
Today, Jekyll Island is a popular beach destination on Georgia’s coast with several hotels, a campground, easy access to miles of beach, and many activities to enjoy.

Here are a few images from around today’s Jekyll Island Club Resort. Click on an image for a closer look.

We took some scenic drives around the 7 1/2 mile long and 1 1/2 mile wide island. At the fishing pier on the north end of the island we had a great view of the Sydney Lanier Bridge and the Golden Ray cargo ship.

We came across some birds as we wandered around the island.

Tri-colored heron on Jekyll Island near Driftwood Beach

On September 8, 2019 the Korean cargo ship the Golden Ray left the port of Brunswick loaded with cars shortly before it ran aground in the St. Simons sound. The ship caught fire and thankfully, all of the 24 crew members were rescued. Since then, a special response team has been working to remove the ship. Recently, the team has put the efforts on hold because of COVID-19 and hurricane season. For more information go to St. Simons Sound Response.

One afternoon during our stay at a delightful Bed and Breakfast in Killarney, we took a jaunting car tour through parts of Killarney National Park. Our guide Mark and his horse Susie took us through the forest, beside the lakes, and we had our first view of Ross Castle.

20190508-Day-8-Jaunting-Tour-Killarney-National-Park-Sony-(40) — Killarney National Park, Ireland

20190508-Day-8-Jaunting-Tour-Killarney-National-Park-Sony-(27) — Red Deer in Killarney National Park, Ireland

20190508-Day-8-Jaunting-Tour-Killarney-National-Park-Sony-(53) — Ross Castle on Killarney’s lower lake

On our way to our next destination near Cork, we drove to Ross Castle for a close up view. I was fascinated by all the fishermen unloading their fishing gear in the parking lot so I looked around to see where they were going. Boats were lined up on the banks of a stream which led to the lake on the other side of the stone bridge.

20190510-Day-10-Ross-Castle-Killarney-to-Blarney-Sony-(1) — Fishing Boats in Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland

Ross Castle is in a beautiful setting on the banks of Killarney’s lower lake inside Killarney National Park. We wandered around the castle before driving to County Cork,

20190510-Day-10-Ross-Castle-Killarney-to-Blarney-Sony-(36) — Ross Castle, Killarney National Park, Ireland

At the end of the day we arrived at our next bed and breakfast near Blarney. The gardens and views from the B&B were stunning.

20190510-Day-10-Ross-Castle-Killarney-to-Blarney-Sony-(52) — View from our B&B in Tower, Ireland

On Henry’s birthday we visited Blarney Castle to join the millions of others who have climbed the steps to the top of the tower to kiss the Blarney Stone and gain the gift of eloquence.

20190511-Day-11-Blarney-Stone-Henrys-birthday-Sony-(48) — Blarney Castle

Kissing the stone sounds easy. However, actually doing it isn’t so easy. First you must get in line and then go up a series of steps before arriving at the parapet walk at the top of the tower. Once it’s your turn to kiss the stone, you must lie on your back, hold onto an iron railing, lean backwards over a crevice, and hope you can reach the stone to kiss it! I needed help, but I did it!

20190511-Day-11-Blarney-Stone-Henrys-birthday-Sony-(8) — At the top of the Blarney Tower

20190511-Blarney-Stone-(2) — Me kissing the Blarney Stone

20190511-Day-11-Blarney-Stone-Henrys-birthday-Sony-(10) — After kissing the stone it’s time to go back down the stairs

20190511-Day-11-Blarney-Stone-Henrys-birthday-Sony-(25) — Do you see the person who is leaned back to kiss the Blarney Stone at the top of the tower?

Our next stop on Henry’s birthday was the pretty seaside town of Cobh which was the last place the Titanic picked up passengers before beginning it’s maiden (and only) voyage in April, 1912. We enjoyed a tour of The Titanic Experience Cobh before wandering around the waterfront and watching the activity in the harbor from a waterfront park.