Jekyll Island Club

The Jekyll Island Club was an island retreat built in the late 1880's for the wealthy who could afford the $600 / year membership and the means to get to the island resort.  With no roads or railroad to the reclusive island, the only way to get there was by boat.

The favorite past time of early members and their families was hunting.  A gamekeeper kept the island well stocked with pheasant, turkeys, wild boar and deer.

Among the members included William Rockefeller, Henry Hyde, Marshall Field, J.P. Morgan, Joseph Pulitzer and William Vanderbilt.  The accommodations began with the large hotel, then a 'condominium' was built, followed by some large homes on the property.

The hotel is still in use today and is quite magnificent.

The historical wharf has a little cafe and gift shop.

Tourists can view one of the homes on the property with a ticket on the tram tour, but we declined and just walked around the grounds.

Sans Souci ("Without Care") was built by J.P. Morgan and was large enough for six families.

William Rockefeller lived here for a time, then built his own "cottage" which he named 'Indian Mound'.

The grounds are well manicured and they have carriage rides which adds a nice touch.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Until next time...

Jekyll Island - Sea Turtle Center

Last week after we left Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, we went over to the Georgia Sea Turtle Museum.  We learned from our time in Key West that sea turtles used to be a big cash crop and the fishing industry almost wiped them out in the early 1900s.

The Georgia Sea Turtle Center was recently opened in 2007.  It is a facility dedicated to the preservation and education of turtles, the emergency care of sick sea turtles with activities in long term care and research.  It appears well funded, well organized and very much worth the time to visit.

The museum is geared to the younger folks which makes it more understandable and easy to follow for guys like me.  They have a self guided tour of six areas with interactive videos and displays.

It takes about two months for a sea turtle egg to hatch. After they hatch, they move toward the bright lights.  So coming upon hatchlings at night (if you are on a turtle walk or hunting turtles) with a flash light throws them off.

They migrate out to the Atlantic and take long trips but eventually return to the same areas if they survive.

Some of the kinds of turtles in the region are:

• Hawksbill Turtle
• Kemp's Ridley
• Loggerhead
• Leatherback
• Green Turtle
• Diamondback Turtle

From the displays, we went outside and over to the hospital tanks.

The center gets all kinds of turtles with injuries or sicknesses.  Often times the turtles are covered with barnacles which are detached after spending time in regular water.

I find turtles very interesting.  They are such strange lovable creatures.  For more information no them, you might want to visit the Georgia Sea Turtle Center web site.

Thanks again for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  We appreciate you stopping by.  Until next time...

Jekyll Island - Driftwood Beach

We went to see Jekyll Island and took a drive around the perimeter before we stopped at Driftwood Beach for lunch.  What an interesting place.  Of all the beaches we have been to, we've never seen driftwood like this.

After a quiet picnic we walked over the foot bridge to the beach.

It wasn't a real big beach but it had lots of twisted, contorted trees and wood.

 It was a little coolish so we wore our coats.

 Fishing pier not far from the parking lot.

It is really worth the stop to see this.

After the Driftwood Beach, we drove through the Jekyll Island Campground.

 It has a canopy of trees through out the campground and is very convenient to everything on the island.

There is lots to see and do here.

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles.  Feel free to leave a comment - we always love those!  Until next time...