photo essay – Page 2 – Wandering Dawgs

Category 2 Hurricane Matthew passed offshore close to our coastal Georgia home in the early morning hours of Saturday, October 8, 2016. We were safely evacuated in middle Georgia and we returned home to find our house in good shape with no damage. We were among the lucky ones. Many houses had some damage, mostly roof damage and flooding. Some residents had to move out of their homes so repairs can be made. Many other homes, like ours, were spared. Everyone we know was safe.

Many thanks go out to the volunteers who gave their time and/or money to help out those who needed it the most after the storm. There are many volunteer stories throughout the areas affected by Hurricane Matthew but these are a few that I personally know about in our area.

A huge thank to our neighbors who rode out the storm and immediately started clearing the roads as soon as the storm had passed.
Friends who evacuated to a motel in a small Georgia town and waited out the storm by volunteering in one of the shelters housing fellow evacuees.
The owner of a moving company in Atlanta who brought some of his moving trucks and crews to help people move out when they were unable to remain in their home while repairs are being made.
A couple who drove down from Indiana to help people move out while repairs are made to their home.
Volunteers from churches and organizations such as the YMCA who helped clean up yard debris for those who were unable to do it themselves.

Roof from a neighbor's deck landed across the street from our house — Roof from a neighbor’s deck landed across the street from our house

Big trees were blocking roads in our neighborhood

Neighbors walkway to dock landed in the marsh

A familiar site in the neighborhood — A familiar sight in the neighborhood

Downed power line in a neighbor's yard — Downed power line in a neighbor’s yard

Cranes were brought in to lift the giant trees

What's left of one of the giant trees — What’s left of one of the giant trees

Its been more than two weeks since the storm and there is still a lot of work to be done. The sound of chainsaws and nail guns will be around for a while and it may be weeks before the debris can be cleared from the sides of the roads. Blue tarps on roofs is a common sight while the homeowners wait their turn for their new roof.

Our wandering has taken us to many of our wonderful national parks across the United States. We loved each one of the parks that we visited.

The national parks, national monuments, national historic sites, and other national areas are managed by the National Park Service which celebrated it’s 100th anniversary in August, 2016. To celebrate this anniversary I am sharing pictures of the national parks we have visited throughout the years.