States – Page 3 – Wandering Dawgs

Sunday Stills – World Animal Day

October 9, 2025Posted in Birds, Nature, North Carolina, Photography, Texas, WildlifeTagged Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Bugling Elk, Cataloochee Valley, Photo Challenge, Sunday Stills, Whooping Crane, World Animal Day18 Comments

Terri’s latest Sunday Stills challenge is World Animal Day which was celebrated on October 4, 2025. Two animals that were on my bucket list were Whooping Cranes in Texas and Elk in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Seeing these animals in the wild was an amazing experience.

Whooping Cranes

According to the International Crane Foundation – North America, Whooping Cranes were near extinction with fewer than 20 individuals in 1941. Today, over 849 Whooping Cranes exist in the entire world.

We traveled to the Texas Gulf Coast one year hoping to see some of the Whooping Cranes who winter in and around the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. These birds breed at Canada’s Wood Buffalo National Park and migrate to Texas every winter. Today there are more than 500 of these beautiful birds.

We found these magnificent Whooping Cranes near Goose Island State Park, south of the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. I posted about this amazing experience at Magnificent Endangered Whooping Cranes.

Pair of Whooping Cranes, near Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Texas

Cataloochee Valley Elk

One fall we traveled to Waynesville, North Carolina in search of Elk in Cataloochee Valley on the eastern side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I posted about our Elk viewing adventure at Cataloochee Valley Elk.

In February, 2001, the National Park Service began an experimental reintroduction of elk into Cataloochee Valley by releasing 25 elk from the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area on the Tennessee-Kentucky border. Another 27 elk from Canada were released in 2002. Today there are approximately 200 elk.

Bugling Elk, Cataloochee Valley, North Carolina

The breeding season, also known as the rutting season, is in the fall. During this time the bull elk make their bugling calls to attract females and challenge other bulls.

Female Elk, Cataloochee Valley, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina

Female Elk, Cataloochee Valley, North Carolona

Many thanks to Terri for her Sunday Stills challenge World Animal Day

Every Day is a Gift

Cellpic Sunday – Good Morning from Coastal Georgia

October 5, 2025Posted in Georgia, Photography, SunriseTagged Cellpic Sunday, Coastal Georgia, Morning19 Comments

Every Day is a Gift

Shared with John’s Cellpic Sunday

Cellpic Sunday – Gulf Fritillary in the Garden

August 31, 2025August 31, 2025Posted in Butterflies, Flowers, Georgia, PhotographyTagged August blooms, Cellpic Sunday, Coastal Georgia garden, Gulf Fritillary21 Comments

Every August and September the late summer blooms in the garden are covered with Gulf Fritillary butterflies.

Shared with John’s Cellpic Sunday

Every Day is a Gift

Anniversary Celebration in Darien, Georgia

August 9, 2025July 10, 2026Posted in Celebration, Georgia, Historic SitesTagged anniversary, Buc-ees, Coastal Georgia, Darien Georgia, Fort King George, Georgia on my mind, Shrimp boats31 Comments

We’ve driven through Darien many times over the years and have previously stopped there for a seafood dinner on the Darien River. We had never taken the time to explore the area so for our anniversary this year we decided to spend the night in a hotel on the Darien river.

After taking the scenic drive south on Highway 17 we checked into our room before having a delicious flounder sandwich for lunch at a popular local restaurant.

The first place we explored was the Fort King Georgie State Historic Site close to our hotel. The fort was was built by the British in 1721 at the mouth of the Altamaha River to protect the area from the Spanish and the French. Fire destroyed the fort in 1727 and the fort was decommissioned.

Reconstruction of the fort began in the 1970’s and still continues today. We toured the interesting history museum before wandering around the reconstructed fort.

The rest of the afternoon we enjoyed the pool and for a while relaxed on our balcony overlooking the river. After a delicious seafood dinner and a walk along the dock we ended the evening back on the balcony enjoying the view.

The next morning I strolled along the Darien Waterfront Park before breakfast.

On our way home we made a slight detour to visit a recently opened Buc-ees on I-95 in Brunswick. Imagine a huge gas station and a huge store with souvenirs, hot food including Texas brisket, a wall of jerky, groceries, clothes, and even fresh made fudge. It was our first ever visit to a Buc-ees. Now we can say we’ve been there, done that.

Celebrating my Birthday on Daufuskie Island, SC

July 27, 2025Posted in Celebration, Historic Sites, South CarolinaTagged beach, birthday, boat ride, Bull River Marina, Daufuskie Island, day trip, Old Daufuskie Crab Company, Pat Conroy, South Carolina30 Comments

We celebrated my June birthday with a day trip to Daufuskie Island, South Carolina.

Daufuskie Island is one of the South Carolina sea islands located near Hilton Head Island, South Carolina and Savannah, Georgia. The island can only be reached by water. You can take your own boat or take a water taxi from either Hilton Head or Savannah. There are tours available on the island but we chose to rent a golf cart and see the island on our own.

Our day trip adventure began with a water taxi ride on the Bella from Bull River Marina in Savannah. We felt like we were on a private charter when we discovered we were the only two passengers on the boat. Henry and I both love boat rides through our beautiful coastal waterways. It was wonderful to watch for birds and dolphins as we traveled the 45 minutes to our destination.

The captain dropped us off at the public dock on Daufuskie where we hopped in our rental golf cart and began to explore the island. The roads are mostly dirt although there are a few paved roads. As we headed in the direction of Bloody Point Beach we saw a few houses but most of the ride was through undeveloped woods. We took a walk on the almost deserted beach. A logger head turtle nesting area was marked off for protection and we could see Tybee Island off in the distance.

As we rode along we stopped to explore some historic sites on the island. The following gallery includes the old Silver Dew Winery, the Bloody Point Lighthouse and former living quarters for the lighthouse keeper and his family (the building is now a museum and gift shop), and the former Mary Field School where the author Pat Conroy once taught. His novel The Water is Wide is based on his experience there.

It was time for lunch so our next stop was the Old Daufuskie Crab Company and Scrap Iron Bar at the Freeport Marina. This is a popular place for boaters and some of the water taxis stop here. I was a little disappointed when I discovered they didn’t have any of the famous deviled crab but my locally caught fried shrimp was delicious. The Scrap Iron Bar is known for it’s Scrap Iron cocktail.

Our last stop was back at the public dock where we waited for our water taxi at D’Fuskie’s Store. I saw a sign for Deviled Crab behind the cash register. I asked if they had any frozen to take home for my birthday dinner and bought the last three they had. They kept them in the freezer for me while we waited for our boat ride home. We enjoyed sitting on the porch talking to some of the locals who live on the island. When it was almost time for the boat to arrive we sat under an oak tree by the water and enjoyed talking to some other locals.