We’re on a 15-day trip visiting 3 Georgia state parks in south Georgia, and this first stop is in the southwest corner of Georgia where our state meets up with Florida and Alabama. We were so curious about this locale after learning that the Flint River we first saw during our last outing in Albany actually ends here. On this first stop, we explored Seminole State Park, the end of the Flint and Chattahoochee Rivers, and the towns of Bainbridge and Douglasville. At our park, Barney had a little chit-chat (stare down?) with a gopher tortoise.
Since the tortoise has thousands of years of DNA to stay still when it feels threatened, I think it will win the staring contest.
And here we are at the state park.
Every campsite had a flag on the numbered posts. So welcoming.
Since our goal in coming here was to learn about the Flint River on its way to the Gulf, let’s start just north of the small town of Chattanooga that’s across the state line in Florida. We knew we weren’t in Georgia any longer since the gas station required us to wear face masks to enter and use their facilities.
If you don’t live in Georgia, you may be interested to know that Georgia has no natural lakes, only rivers. All of our lakes have been created, such as Seminole Lake.
The best way to “see” the big picture of the waterways in this area is to think of the letter Y. The Chattahoochee River that runs between much of Georgia and Alabama after running northeast to southwest through Georgia is the left arm of the Y. The Flint River that starts at the Atlanta airport in the middle of the state and runs through Albany (our last visit) is the right arm of the Y. Where these 2 rivers meet is at the base of the left and right arms of the Y and there they become Seminole Lake, the location of the state park.
The foreground is Lake Seminole, coming in from the right around the strip of land is the Flint River, and the water on the left is the Chattahoochee.
This lake then spills over the dam behind me to become the Apalachicola River that eventually empties into the Gulf. The dam was planned in the 1940s and completed in the 1950, creating Seminole Lake. More about these dates later.
great overlook of the dam
The couple on the left is Steve and Kay who we met while having lunch overlooking the dam.
They’re from Florida and came up for the weekend to spend a couple of nights on a boat in Bainbridge’s harbor.
So glad we got to visit this Three Rivers area!
Bainbridge
The towns in this part of the state are pretty small with lots of farm land around them. Bainbridge has a population just over 12,600. It’s known for its large oak trees and has a 2-year college that’s part of the Georgia university system. The town has had the title of “Bass Capital of Georgia” since 2008.
Here are some of our pictures of this pretty little town that’s starting to wake up after the virus’ shutdown.
The downtown looks like it’s a great place to be once all of the shops can open up.
Often the county seat has a courthouse in the town square. In Bainbridge, however, the town revolves around its lovely central square, Willis Park. The high clock tower of the Victorian-era Decatur County Courthouse rises above one corner.
The surrounding blocks are lined with historic buildings, many of which are over 100 years old.
Here are some of the beautiful oak trees on one side of the square.
This could be one of the white gazebos that Hallmark uses for its Christmas movies, but I checked online and couldn’t find any movies filmed here.
love this colorful fire hydrant
history
de Soto and his army discovered the inland waters of the Flint River on Friday March 5, 1540. Leaving present day Tallahassee, Florida, (just south of us), the Spaniards marched northwest and arrived at the Flint River 2 days later near present day Bainbridge where they constructed a barge for crossing. Interesting.
During the time of the Spanish occupation, they named the trail that the Indians had used as El Camino Real, or the King’s Highway. It connected Pensacola to St. Augustine after crossing over the Flint River at a trading post near present day Bainbridge
We’ll learn more about the Spanish and English in the next town of Douglasville.
Douglasville
A town was founded here in 1874 because a railroad was constructed close by. John Earnest Donaldson laid out this town in 1897. In 1922 the name was changed to Donaldsonville. Now more than 30,000 people call it home.
One of the main streets with shops. Since this town supports the local farming community and has a few industries in town, this downtown area looks pretty good.
A block from main street is this newer gazebo, which was a great place for us to have a picnic.
You know you’re in the South when you see a Piggly Wiggly grocery store. We actually came to town twice since we found the best place to buy diesel gasoline at 2.09/gallon.
off to Florida
On our area map, we saw a boat landing outside of Douglasville just on the other side of the Chattahoochee River in Florida. Thought we’d take a look at the river from another perspective. The Alabama state line is just a couple of miles north from this spot.
The river is called an Inland Waterway, just like the Intercoastal Waterway along the East Coast.
entering Florida
This used to be a campground as well as a boat landing. Hurricane Michael in 2018 roared through here and made a real mess. Lots of rebuilding has been done, but this campground is a no-go.
destroyed campsite
destroyed park office
destroyed “comfort station”
Here’s the boat ramp to the Chattahoochee; a number of fishermen were using it today.
history
An important Creek Indian town stood here during the latter half of the 18th century and the first 2 decades of the 19th. The English took over occupation beginning in 1763. Span lost control of the colony that year because of its alliance with the defeated French in the Seven Years War, known in America as the French & Indian War.
As the English arrived in West Florida, bands of Creek Indians migrated from north of here to settle along the river. The English soon cleared fields for planting, using the timber to build homes. The site by Bainbridge that we’ve looked at was on an important pathway that connected what were then the only 2 towns of any size in Florida: Pensacola and St. Augustine.
Just 15 years after gaining possession of East and West Florida, the British were threatened by American Patriots from Georgia in 1778. Florida had remained loyal to King George III, so Patriot forces tried to take the East Florida capital of St. Augustine by force. A call went out for reinforcements from Pensacola.
Col. James Stuart and his men from Pensacola arrived in this area on July 25, 1778, and were welcomed by the residents of the town, spending 6 days among them. A council of chiefs and leading warriors from around the area met with Col. Stuart and decided to join the expedition to defend St. Augustine.
The historic Pensacola-St. Augustine Road crossed the river here and runs approximately along the route of today’s State highway 2 if you know the area. The road was first used by American Indian hunters and is one of the oldest known transportation routes in the Florida Panhandle.
The chief who negotiated with the British in 1778 was named Cockee, but was better know to all as “The Bully.” The nickname came because he was such an excellent trader and businessmen that his customers often felt “bullied” by him. The British were forced to give him and his warriors so many presents that they ran out of items. The Bully solved the problem by selling the gifts back to the British so they could give them away again.
The American explorer and spy John Pope, wrote in 1792 that the Bully was one of the wealthiest 2 men in the Creek Nation owning Negroes, horses, cattle, hogs, as well as a store that sold all that everyone needed. He had a harem of 3 wives and as many children as Priam, the legendary king of Troy who fathered 68 sons and 18 daughters.
The Bully was a known associate of the man known on the Gulf Coast of Florida as the pirate “Billy Bowlegs.” His pirate ships preyed on merchant vessels all over the Gulf. His letters mention plans to send one of his ships with cargo to the Bully’s, and local legend holds that the treasure is still here, buried deep in the mud of a nearby swamp. Ready for a treasure hunt?
The Bully died during the first few years of the 19th century and was probably buried in this vicinity. His nephew succeeded him as chief and became well known on the frontier. He provided a place of refuge to the thousands of Red Stick Creeks who fled south after they were defeated by Andrew Jackson in 1814. This new chief was one of the most important chiefs who fought against the United States during the First Seminole War of 1817-1818.
In March 1818, having learned that a large force of creek warriors had enlisted in the U.S.Army to fight against the Red Stick and Seminole alliance in Florida, he took his village and secreted them in the swamps south of here. Their abandoned town was burned by one of the Creek chiefs.
After the town was burned in 1818, its fields lay fallow for only 1 year. American settlers soon arrived to stake a claim to prime land in Spanish Florida, which became part of the United States in 1821.
Eventually a ferry and then a prosperous steam boat landing were established here. Neal’s Landing was a vital port for more than 100 years, fading only when the last paddle-wheel riverboat ended its run in the 1940s as the dam was being planned by the U.S. Congress to create Seminole Lake and end the water route to the Gulf.
The landing is now home to a boat ramp and a destroyed campground that we’ve shown you.
another landing and downed trees
On our way back to the state park, we stopped at a couple of other landings along the river. Here’s one of these landings.
This area of water is a small offshoot of the Chattahoochee River.
loved seeing these waterlilies in the water
At the end of the parking lot, we saw all of these downed trees from hurricane Michael in 2018.
trees were blown over at their base
Some trees were uprooted at the base (left picture) and many were just flattened (right picture).
While walking around, Barrett drove in to see if we needed anything. We have no idea if he was just driving around or if he saw us on a screen somewhere, but he sure was nice and helpful.
He told us that this product is his favorite while working outside.
Driving back, we saw more acres of blown-over trees.
Seminole State Park
This park is divided into 3 sections. The first section is the open area by the lake for day-use visitors. Next are the cabins/cottages along the lake that visitors can reserve. Finally the campground hugs the lake and is across from the open area.
Spanish explorers tried to Christianize the local Indians along the Chattahoochee River without much success. A pro-Spanish Indian chief built a stockade at this site, but the town was abandoned after a raid by pro-English settles in 1724. This town is now underwater after the lake was created.
open area
Such a great, open area. Can just see it being used by groups of families and friends.
The cottages are on the other side of the lake.
The playground was taped off (so sad to see), and the boat ramp is just ready for visitors.
A closeup of the tortoise that Barney had a staring contest with.
cabins
About 10 cabins are lined up around the lake. All have heating and air conditioning, and we saw satellite dishes for each unit. They all looked new, probably built since hurricane Michael.
campground
As we drove to our campground, we saw this sign for Gopher Tortoise crossing. Glad they know where to cross!
Our campground had this little chapel structure, but the camp host said that services aren’t held here any longer.
A beautiful sunset graced us with its beauty one night.
nature walk
We had wanted to take this 2.2-mile loop but it was closed because of the hurricane damage.
Instead we took a nature walk that was set up along the road. The information on the signs were really informative, and then we’ll show you the wildflowers we saw along the way.
signs
Longleaf pines here in the park are fast-growing and fire-resistant. Their needles are 10-15 inches long, and the cones are 6-10 inches long and egg-shaped when open. The wood is used for building and construction; and its tar, pitch, rosin, and turpentine were used for boats and ships in early years. Native Americans used longleaf pine needles to make their baskets.
This hawk is the largest and most common in the area and can be seen soaring or perched in a tree searching for prey. Rodents and rabbits are its main diet, along with birds, snakes, and lizards.
This small native tree grows on sandy ridges and often near pine trees.
The leaves resemble a turkey’s foot. Wildlife love its acorns.
Interesting to see all of the animal tracks that could be found in the park.
Poisonous! Its dark brown or black diamonds on the back and its rattles warning us it’s around identify this snake. Its diet includes rabbits, squirrels, rodents, and birds.
These gopher tortoises have been around for thousands of years, but populations have dwindled because of habitat loss and some predictors that have come to the U.S. (next post).
2000 species of mosquitoes? No wonder they find me everywhere since they’re in the arctic and the tropics. At least some birds, fish, and other insects like them.
Wiregrass is a common ground cover in pine flatwoods and sandhills. Tolerant of fire, it springs back quickly because of its extensive underground root system. A perennial grass, it grows in thick bunches.
And then the American alligator. Adults average 6-12 feet long and feed on fish, birds, and even whole turtles. Females lay eggs in large nests made from marsh grasses and mud. Heat from the rotting vegetation incubates the eggs.
Here’s another view of the cottages along the lake as we were walking along.
And then some downed trees that have been moved to an area away from the visitors
wildflowers
Along the way were these beautiful wildflowers.
busy campground
As we came back to the campground on a Saturday, we saw that all the camping sites were reserved for the weekend. So glad this park is being used!
What a great time in this part of Georgia. So glad we got to visit, see, and learn. Now on to our next state park!
