St. Simon's Island Caching 1/25/2008

We started our day about 9:30 and drove to St. Simon's Island about 15 minutes from here and we couldn't believe the traffic headed out to this little island and we kind of wondered where they put everybody and where they were all going. The first cache was a bushwhacking adventure through the woods, as there was no trails to the site, to what they call Gasconigne Bluff after Captain Gasconigne of the British sloop War Hawk. In 1736 he landed here and established the base for the naval defense of the colony of GA. The Spaniards landed here in the invasion of 1742. In 1794 live Oak timbers were cut on St. Simons, loaded from this bluff and sent to Boston to be used in the construction of the Frigate Constitution, better know as Old Ironsides.
Next we were on to a cache located outside an old cemetery on the island, then on to a cache called Wesley's Walk a garden and walkway leading to a 18'Celtic cross weighing 15 tons. Across the street was Christ Episcopal Church established in 1736 and Rev. Charles Wesley was the first minister. The first church built here in 1820 was almost destroyed in the war between the states and the present bldg. was built here in 1884. Also located there is Christ Church Cemetery. In the cemetery are buried former Rectors of Christ Church and there families, the families of early settlers and of plantation days, officers of the British Army, and soldiers of every war in which our country fought. The oldest tombstone is dated 1803 but it is believed that there were a number of burials here before that date. Outside the front of the church is a tree called "The Great Oak" under which Charles Wesley stood and had prayers and preached March 14, 1736, the first Sunday after his arrival. A wooden Cross made from wood of the Wesley Oak hangs on the wall of Christ Church near the pulpit.
Then it was on to John Gilbert Nature Trail part of the St. Simon's Land Trust Program. It is a preserved tract of 40 acres that allows visitors to experience the wilderness setting of the island. We took Muffy and Raggs with us to hunt out the cache, but all they wanted to do is sniff whatever dogs sniff in the woods.
Then on to a local restaurant for a cache out behind it in the palm forest, next a cache hidden on a walkway over a creek, another overlooking the marsh behind a tree, then another bushwhacking adventure through the woods as we didn't know where the trail was that was referred to in the cache write up, a cache in a bush on the end of the island overlooking the ocean and we might add a very very lovely spot, to another little park for a cache, a cache hidden out on the pier in St. Simons under a bench and the last one on our way off the island was located along a bike trail in the crotch of a tree.
It was a great visit to a very lovely island and we had a great lunch of great hot wings and great chili cheese fries at Brogen's Sports Bar and Pub. On back to the RV to write up logs, do the blog and eat dinner. We love you all and think of you often.



Picture list:1L-St Simons Pier, 1R-A tombstone of a Civil Engineer in Christ Church Cemetery, 2L-Wesley Oak, 2R-Christ Episcopal Church, 3R-Burial plot in CCC, 4 & 5-Wesley Walk and Cross, 6 & 7-Gilbert Nature Walk, 8-Mom & Muffy on Nature Walk, 9-Gasconigne Bluff Historic Marker.