I Can Drive Twenty-Five
Day 1
A Dark Beginning
Day 2
Six in a Day
Day 3
Island Cottages
Day 4
Saint Simons Island
Day 5
Merry Christmas
Day 6
Island Hopping
Day 7
Grits, Chairs, and Grits
Day 8
All the Way Home
December 28, 2017 (day 8)
It was basically an expressway scoot back to the cold but I did manage a
couple of side trips.
December 27, 2017 (day 7)
Rain altered some plans so that, instead of looking over forts and towers,
I looked over chairs and cabinets.
December 26, 2017 (day 6)
I delayed leaving the Brunswick area in order to take that Saint Simons
trolley tour and that put me in position to make Tybee Island an
overnight.
December 25, 2017 (day 5)
I like Christmas Days that aren't busy and this one was even less busy
than I thought it would be. But it was just as merry as it ought to be.
December 24, 2017 (day 4)
Today I got to see some Tree Spirits and an 18th century fort; Neither of
which I even knew existed.
December 23, 2017 (day 3)
After reaching the end of US-25, I headed over to Jekyll Island for a
pre-arranged tour. One man's cottage is another man's mansion.
December 22, 2017 (day 2)
I re-photographed six rocks, ate at a restaurant for the second time, and
stopped at a park I'd stopped at before, but I also visited a new-to-me
brewery and saw a couple of theaters lit up for the first time. Anyone
interested in better pictures of the rocks (actually DH/Lee markers)
should check out that time I did Eight in a
Day.
December 21, 2017 (day 1)
I was on the road before dawn even thought about cracking and snagged a
blurry view of the sign as I hit the start of US-25. None of this was new
territory but I did find some new places at day's end.
Prelude - December 15, 2017
I was thinking about another state park for Christmas and was beginning to
get serious about one in northern Ohio when our unseasonal weather became
chillingly seasonal and reminded me why I try to avoid heading north in
the winter. There are always a few trip ideas bouncing around in my mind,
and I quickly turned to one that had been bouncing a long time: US-25.
US-25 was one of the original Numbered US Highways established in 1926. At that time it ran from Port Huron, Michigan, to North Augusta, South Carolina, following the route of a piece of Dixie Highway. Over the years both ends were extended, then, in 1974, the north end was chopped off at the Ohio River. As a result, I find myself living not too far from what is now the northern terminus of the 750 mile long highway. Because I've driven the Dixie Highway, I have more or less driven US-25 to its original terminus in North Augusta. In fact, I've driven it a little farther along what was once the Dixie Highway to Waynesboro, Georgia. That means that less than 200 miles of the southbound drive will be through new-to-me territory. Even the end point, Brunswick, Georgia, is someplace I've driven through while following the Dixie Highway, though it seems not to have made much of an impression on me.
So, with so little new to offer, how did this route make the cut for the 2017 Christmas Escape Run? Well, as I said, because it begins so close, I've thought about driving US-25 for some time. Then, when I started looking into Brunswick, I found it had some history and nearby Jekyll and Saint Simon Islands even more. I think it will be OK. I'll drive south a few days before Christmas, spend the holiday near the Georgia coast, then head home on a yet to be determined path.