Do not bypass St Marys Georgia. Close to the Florida border, the charm of its Victorian homes, the nearness of both the seashore and the wilds of the Okefenokee Swamp combined with a variety fof outdoor sport and fun makes it a destination worth exploring.
Take some time and stop by the Cumberland Island Visitor’s Center for friendly advice and comprehensive maps. Whether you are in the area for a few hours or a few days coming here, and talking to the experts - first - allows you to make the most of your time.
Stretch your legs as you meander up Osborne Street. A diversity of shops selling items from antiques to books, cigars and a moon pie or two invite browsers and shoppers alike. It is small town Americana at its best.
Along the historic area visit the Doric columned Orange Hall Museum. A one-time grove of sour oranges gave the Greek revival mansion, circa 1838, its distinctive name. Thanks to an active collection of local volunteers, and its inclusion onto the National Register of Historic Places, the house and grounds transport visitors to the antebellum era.
Along the nearby waterfront you will come to the largest submarine museum in the South. With Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base, the Atlantic homeport for ballistic missile subs, a few miles away -it is no wonder such an interesting facility, like the St Marys Submarine Museum is here. Over 20,000 artifacts, photos and other memorabilia can be found here. The proud history of submarines, and the men who sailed in them is heralded. You will understand the close, often claustrophobic, conditions under which sailors have lived and worked. WWII buffs pay special attention as almost 100% of all previously classified patrol reports can be found here.
If you like your water fun in a different way – St. Marys can provide more thrills. Kayak the St. Marys River and byways during the day or at night under a moonlit sky. Catch fish either in shore or off shore with a plethora of charter boats. Scuba diving is a sport offered for both beginner and advanced from a variety of companies, and for a real easy cruise try the water taxi down to nearby Fernandina Beach just across the state line in Florida.
Perhaps the lure of ghostly spirits lurking around windswept sea grasses, lonely sand dunes or an old house is more your idea of fun. Green Elephant tours offers chills for all on the weekends.
If experiencing Mother Nature at her best is your calling then the region delivers with a diversity of topography. Less than an hour away lays the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Said to have been inhabited since 2500 B.C. the National Refuge offers visitors a modern look at a prehistoric place with plenty of wildlife and creatures from possums to deer to of course alligators and as a strange albeit beauty abounds from spindly trees covered in wispy spanish moss.
From alligators to wild horses and loggerhead turtles the National Seashore of Cumberland Island offers spectacular beach vacations.
The largest barrier island on the Georgia coast can be reached via the ferry, which departs throughout the day from St. Marys. With its picturesque setting among ancient live oaks the Greyfield Inn has welcomed the famous, infamous and the average citizen for decades. Once a private retreat, in the early 1960’s the structure was converted to the romantic inn it is today.
The southeastern Georgia area is perfect for anyone during any season.
Linda J Bottjer - I have wanderlust! It began, at the age of five, when my mother gave me a National Geographic map, and said, "become a citizen of the ...
