We had a great RV trip in late January and early February to Stephen Foster State Parks in south Georgia and north Florida. Would you believe that Foster never saw the Suwannee River, even though he wrote the famous song about it? Another bubble burst. Stephen Foster lived in the Philadelphia area and worked as a bookkeeper/accountant on the docks. Guess by being around the dock workers, he picked up on their speech patterns and longing for the South.
The Stephen C. Foster State Park in the Okefenokee Swamp in south Georgia near Tuggalo was 17 miles from the closest town—and the closest internet connection. It is designated as a certified Dark Sky park and boy was it dark at night! This park is close to the head waters of the Suwannee River. At the park, they have a sheltered area by the dock that the mamma alligator swims around protecting her babies from other predator alligators until the babies are around a year old. At that point, she switches from being a mamma to a predator. We probably saw 20-30 babies at different ages in the corner of the dock
Nights were so cold that we were glad we had our electric blanket with us. Since I’m so cold blooded, Barney put our electric heater by me as I roasted marshmallows. Such a guy!
We really enjoyed walking around the marshy area by the park headquarters and took a boat ride in the Okenfenokee Swamp. We are ready to get warm, though!
The Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park in White Springs, Florida, is so much more “civilized” than the park in Georgia since it’s in the middle of the town. The cultural center area has craft cottages featuring skills from the past—pottery, weaving, blacksmith, candle-making. I got to try my hand at three different ways of weaving; not something I was good at but was fun to try! Most of the workers at the cottages, the carillon, and the museum are retirees from northern states who work there every winter to pay for their RV sites.
While we didn’t get the pictures we could have at the park, I did purchase one item that I use all the time and have given as gifts: this curved cloth bowl to put under bowls when I microwave. With this cloth bowl, I don’t need potholders when removing food after heating. Love ’em!
time with friends
After staying in these parks, we drove to the Daytona area and spent a few days with Jay and Rhonda on their land. They had electricity and water for us, and we had a great time catching up with them.
