12/15/17

Magnolia Springs State Park, Millen, GA

We arrived at Magnolia Springs State Park around mid-afternoon yesterday. There is no wi-fi, but we do have a pretty good cell phone signal, so yay!


We had reservations here, but they were not site-specific, meaning we had to stop in at the visitor center to register officially. They also gave us a partial refund because of our, um, advanced years. We'd read about the park before making our reservations. What we knew is that the park is known for its crystal clear springs flowing 7 million gallons per day. A boardwalk spans the cool water, and we're hoping to see alligators, turtles and other wildlife near the springs. A small lake is available for fishing. There are also paddle boat and canoe rentals here.

During the Civil War, this site was called Camp Lawton and served as “the world’s largest prison.” Today, little remains of the prison stockade; however, the earthen breastworks which guarded it can still be seen. In 2010, Georgia Southern University archeology teams uncovered the stockade wall and numerous personal articles from soldiers. Their discovery has been heralded as one of the most significant finds in recent history. Artifacts are currently on display at the university and at the Camp Lawton museum located here at the park, and so we'll probably check that out.

As we walked up to the visitor center, we found this sign:


Also, this monument.


Just outside the door was this tree covered in Spanish Moss. We've seen Spanish Moss adorning trees everywhere in the south. This was the first one with enough to show up in a picture.


Also inside, I saw this t-shirt that gave me a chuckle. The marshmallows glow in the dark. It was tempting...I might still go back for it.


We have water and electricity here at our campsite, and it is lovely. The kitties could see right away that this was a place they were going to like.


I always set the catio at the door so that Mike can hang it on the outside wall as he finishes getting us hooked up. Sadie could barely wait for that and she sat inside while it was still inside the RV.


Nothing would do until we got Smitty out for a walk.


And he seems to be getting his land legs under him because he walked, and walked, and walked.


He walked way far away from the trailer and down by the lake.


He would have taken off on one of the hiking boardwalks, but Mike noticed the "Alligators Present" sign and decided it was a bad idea to go walking across with bait on a leash. He curtailed their water-side hike and brought the two of them up closer to the trailer. As a point of interest, the sign also said that American Alligators are not aggressive, nor are they fast on land. However, they can climb trees. (I swear I am not making this up.) It caused Mike to take a look overhead when he read that.

As for me...I had such an urging to bake a pecan pie for two. I'd been looking days earlier for something to bake for our Christmas dinner dessert. I have something else in mind, but in my wanderings, I found this recipe on a new-to-me blog called In the Kitchen with Kath. Just now I read a little more about her, and she lives in Seattle. Geez! We're practically neighbors!


So anyway...I found several recipes for a pecan pie for two, but I liked this one because it uses only natural sweeteners in the form of honey and maple syrup. We're so limited for space in the RV kitchen cupboards, I really didn't want to add a partially used bottle of corn syrup. And I'd never baked a pecan pie of any size before, so what did I know about how this combination would perform. Happily, I'm here to tell you that it was delicious! ("Was" being the operative word in that sentence, because we've devoured it already.)

The recipe includes a pie crust recipe, but in the RV, I'm keeping it simple by using Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts. Also, in my baking adventures I used the heels of some used loaves of bread to make up some croutons. In my packing before leaving home, I made sure to include a small bottle of Penzey's Sandwich Sprinkle and one of garlic powder, and I've been making these croutons on the road. They're so tasty, but mainly, I'm just happy for a way to use the heels of my bread. I didn't take a picture this time around, but here are some I baked a while back.


You can read how to do it on the Penzey's website right here. I simply spray them with no stick and then sprinkle them with sandwich sprinkle and garlic powder before baking. I don't even bother with the turning part. You have to decide how crispy you like them, but I let mine bake about 10 minutes before taking them out. Yummy.

So we're camped here for the next three nights. There are plenty of hiking trails, and there's another state park just down the road. We'll probably head down there to take a look and see what's up while we're here. I'm also hoping for a sewing day while we're here. You might have noticed we've slowed our pace significantly. We're well south now...almost as far as we can go without leaving the country...and so we'll be doing a lot more moseying as we go. The most important thing on our minds right now is having a place for Christmas, and we have that whole weekend reserved near Savannah. In between, there is plenty of relaxation on tap.

We got sad news yesterday morning that our dear friend and neighbor had passed away suddenly from a heart attack, and that has been weighing on our minds. She was in her 80's and she'd been in poor health for some time. We had them over for dinner before we left on this trip, worried we might not see her again. She's the same neighbor who picked our plums for jam. The plums seemed always to ripen after we left, and she was happy to get them and always shared a jar of jam with us. We're sure going to miss her. Rest in Peace, dearest Betty.

14 comments:

Vroomans' Quilts said...

After getting pricklies in his paws the one outing, it probably was a deter. But those cushy pine needles look for comfy walking. Bait on a leash - I almost spewed my coffee! The pie looks delish. Enjoy your slow down days.

QuiltShopGal said...

Looks like another wonderful place, with the exception of gators. Glad Mike saw the sign (no bait on a lease teasers). So sorry to hear about Betty. She sounds like a wonderful woman and great neighbor. Loved the photo of Sadie in the Catio, before it was setup. They are such good travel/RV kitties.

QuiltShopGal
www.quiltshopgal.com

Cheryl's Teapots2Quilting said...

Always sad to lose a friend. Sorry for your loss.

Doreen said...

In the past couple of years,Tom & I have been traveling a lot more and have experienced the 'loss' of dear friends while away. It is a heart breaker for sure. So sorry about Betty.
I just checked the pie recipe out and YUM!!!! I/we love maple syrup & honey and making a smaller version of anything is always welcome (we do NOT need a whole pecan pie!!!!!). Your location looks idyllic for your travels. Snow in our forecast will whiten the sparsely covered grass/fields and possibly add to a Holiday feel (I don't have to drive anywhere, so I think it's ok..ha!). Gaters in trees!!!! Really???? Not sure I like that idea at all!!!!
LOVE Savannah!!!! Happy travels.................hugs.........

WoolenSails said...

I am sorry to hear about your friend.
The camp looks nice, but alligators? LOL
With Bean, he would probably want to play with it, haha.
Can't wait to see the area.

Debbie

piecefulwendy said...

Alligators can climb trees?! Why on earth do they need to do that?! It was good to see Sadie. Both cats look like they are doing well. I think you should get the t-shirt; life's too short to pass up the things that make us smile. Sorry to hear about Betty's death; it's hard to lose people dear to us. Saw that pecan pie on Instagram. It looks like it was yummy.

Brown Family said...

Interesting history of the park. It looks lovely there! I hope Smitty had several walks!

So sorry about your friend.

Robin said...

Sorry about your friend. The Y chromosome in Klein's need to prove nature signs. Alligators can run on land. Their favorite food are small dogs(in FL). If you pick up baby alligators their mothers come after them. Scorpions do live in Spanish moss(if you keep some wash then dry in micro see Google for recipe). Coyotes love to eat cats. Gators mainly eat at dusk & dawn. There will be no ducks on the water at those times. So listen to what the signs say do not feed,tease or play with wildlife. Wear something on your head under trees. Think of Southern belles, they always wore big hats-- now you know why. Be careful of snakes in trees if it is hot or if cool-- any sunny rock :) per the Klein males.

Robin said...


Sorry to hear about your friend. As I'm sure you know always wear something on your head in the woods. Up both it was because of the ticks, down south due to the scorpions rthat live in Spanish Miss. If you keep any wash it and the micro it(google recipe) Alligators eat primarily at duso + dawn. The ones in FL can run quickly not as fast as humans. Their favorite food around here are little dogs. The coyotes love cats. Such horrors at Andersonville Prison too bad this one did not open sooner. If you see a baby gator, mom is nearby. The Klein Y chromosome do not trust signs so we learn all kinds of nature facts are TRUE.

juliehallfeldhaus said...

I so enjoy following you guys on your adventures!! I saw this right before I read your post and thought you would love it. https://www.equilter.com/product/236756/cattitude-i-like-you-24-x-44-panel

VickiT said...

I'm sorry about your friend. I'm sure that will weigh on your mind/heart during the rest of your trip. I'm guessing given you said she'd been in bad health, this was not the one you go walking with around your property and surrounding area?

Oh, you must go back to get that t-shirt. LOVE that.

I'm SO glad you showed the croutons and said what you did to make them. I have 2-3 jars of the Sandwich Sprinkle from Penzey's and never grab those to use. I never thought to look at their site for any 'recipes' to use it on. After a lot of trial and error, at one of the holiday type family meals earlier this year (Father's Day possibly) I used a new crouton recipe. You'd have thought I made some sort of crack or something. Everyone was eating them like popcorn and didn't even bother with the salads. LOL I'll have to take a peek at that recipe now and see if using the Sandwich Sprinkle might include the same spices I had used for the croutons. That would be great if so, then I'll just need to pull out one jar from the drawer.

When you mentioned the gators in the area and how close you were to the water, the first thing I thought of is whether you'd be putting the catio out or not. Right away I worried the gator would smell new bait watching them from your camper and wander up to investigate. I would think they are long enough and have such strong tails that maybe they would be able to crawl/stand using the camper side to get to the catio. OF course, I have a hugely imaginative mind sometimes that my husband laughs at me about because then in my mind if the gator did use the side of the camper to get up there, would the also be able to pull that off and somehow climb into the camper? I mean, if they can climb trees, why not, right? HA
Besides, when you said they can climb trees, I did a search right away for videos showing this. I found a couple but they weren't very good. I did, however, find this one showing they also climb chain link fences. ACK.
It's Ninja Gator https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qp_bUYPrTg

It does look like a beautiful park though.

kc said...

So sorry to hear of your friend and neighbor's passing. I'm sure she treasured your friendship as well.

Yup, true dat....gators CAN climb trees. Thankfully, not as far up as kitties can. And yes, they can too run as fast as people, especially people (like me) that are more used to eating pecan pies (looks YUMMY, btw) than running for their life. Good thing is that they will warn you off with a hiss and great big Grand Canyon of a mouth, with lots and lots of teeth. Back off if you see a baby; mom is nearby. (thankfully, not very likely this time of year - come back in April for that adventure!)

Luckily for you all, they're pretty slothful around this time of year. They're not hungry, and due to the cooler weather, they really are pretty sedate about now. But no need to prove it!

quiltzyx said...

I sure hope you went back for the shirt!

I never thought about climbing alligators, yeesh!
Good that Smitty got out for some exercise though.

Although poisonous, the peeecan pies lookly lovely. I think I will be making some Crack for our potluck at work on Friday. (Trisha Yearwood's "Sweet & Saltines" recipe) Can ONLY make it if I am taking it somewhere or I would eat it ALL!

Terri said...

Sorry for your loss!

I've really enjoyed following your travels!