I have reached the age where I don’t have to travel to an exciting destination or have a big party to celebrate my birthday. Last year we enjoyed our anniversary celebration in Darien so much I wanted to return this year for my birthday.
We traveled south on U.S. Hwy 17 to our destination on the Darien River in Darien, Georgia. Our first stop was Mudcat Charlie’s at the Two Way Fish Camp on the Altamaha River in Brunswick. After some delicious wild Georgia shrimp for lunch we walked around the dock and looked down on an 11 1/2 foot alligator in the muddy water.
Boats at Two Way Fish Camp on the Altamaha RiverAlligator in the Altamaha River
Savannah is the oldest city in Georgia but did you know that Darien is Georgia’s 2nd oldest city?
Welcome to Darien, Georgia, Georgi’s second oldest city
For the next day and a half I swam in the pool, enjoyed the view of the Darien River from our deck at the hotel, watched young alligators swimming in the river, enjoyed seeing the huge Live Oaks draped with Spanish Moss as I wandered around the hotel, and ate some more delicious meals.
Boats on the Darien RiverDarien RiverShrimp Boats on the Darien RiverYoung Alligator in the Darien River
Live Oak
Relaxing and spending time with my husband in a beautiful setting was a perfect way to celebrate my birthday.
Egidio has given us a challenge to help us “unlock new inspiration in our photography.” His challenge is to stay in one place for 30 minutes to an hour. We can use the cameras, lenses and cell phones of our choice but we can only walk 10 or 15 steps in any direction to capture new images.
I’ve been in a rut recently with my photography so this challenge really motivated me to get out and have some fun with my camera. I’ve been watching the birds at our bird feeder from our deck but have not been inspired to take any photos until this challenge.
I chose a place in my back yard where I don’t usually sit. I had a great view of the bird feeder and the back yard. All of these photos were taken with a 400mm zoom lens. While I waited for birds I zoomed in on some random things.
Today is Memorial Day in the United States. Memorial Day is a day of remembrance to honor U.S. Military personnel who died in service to our country. In honor of this special day I will start with an American Flag from a neighbor’s back yard.
My neighbor always flies an American Flag. It’s especially meaningful this Memorial Day Weekend as we remember our fallen heroes.This time of year the Holly Berries are green, not red.At last I saw a Female Painted Bunting.Later, this Male Painted Bunting showed up at the feeder.
This Eastern Grey Squirrel was watching me watching him.
I’ve been wanting to get out to take photos and this challenge was just the inspiration I needed. Thank you Egidio!
I really enjoyed all of the different vibrant colors you showed us for Ritva’s Choose a Color challenge. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge.
Many thanks to Egidio for this week’s challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to his post Lens-Artists #399: Stuck in Place.
Be sure to check back on Saturday, May 30 at noon eastern time when Tina will be your host for the challenge.
John’s challenge is to feature places “where history still lives”. One of John’s suggested topics “Where the Past Still Stands”is the inspiration for this post. I chose to feature Fort Pulaski National Monument and Cockspur Island Lighthouse in coastal Georgia between Savannah and Tybee Island.
Fort Pulaski National Monument
Construction for Fort Pulaski began in 1829. During the American Civil War the Confederate army held the fort until they surrendered to the Union Army in 1862 after the Union cannons firing from nearby Tybee Island caused major damage. For more about the history of Fort Pulaski you can visit Fort Pulaski National Monument.
In addition to exploring the fort, visitors can attend Ranger talks or walk on several hiking trails outside the fort.
Holes in the wall are from Union cannons, Ft. Pulaski National MonumentThe North Pier Trail leads to this overlookRemains of the North Pier at Fort PulaskiCockspur Island Lighthouse, marks the south channel of the Savannah River and sits on a small piece of land that is covered by water at high tide. This view is from the top of Fort Pulaski.The Lighthouse Overlook trail at Fort Pulaski leads to a view of the Cockspur Island LighthouseOn some days visitors can see historic reenactors at Ft. PulaskiReenactors at Ft. Pulaski
Last week I enjoyed all of your responses to Sofia’s Lucky Shot. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge..
Many thanks to John for this week’s challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to his post Lens-Artists #394: History through the Lens.
Be sure to check back on Saturday, April 25 at noon eastern time when I will be your host for the challenge.
A marker buoy weighing around 13,900 pounds from Port Royal, South Carolina washed up on the beach at Tybee Island, Georgia this week. Thursday afternoon a Chinook helicopter lifted the buoy and carried it off.
Wandering Dawgs 