St Simons Island

We had visions of visiting several of the barrier islands off the coast of Georgia. St Catherines is off limits to tourists and serves as a home for endangered species. One guidebook described an anchorage where we might view zebras. But it was off the beaten path and shallow, so we passed it by. We were more hopeful about Sapelo Island with a lighthouse and a nature preserve. But again we found it to be approachable only by a ferry and not private dingy. Little St Simons is privately owned. Fort Frederica's dingy dock we heard was damaged. So on we went to St Simons anchorage. We found a marina that would let us leave the dingy all day with access to a bike path. We were able to spend most of the day touring by bike: beaches, piers, a lighthouse, a museum, lunch, ice cream, a farmer's stand, a stained glass shop, a long-lost cousin. The cousin part was a surprise. Lee remembered his aunt and uncle had retired here years ago. He called his mom who called his cousin who called us and said he was around the corner and would walk over. We sat on the bench in front of "Pain in the Glass" and waited. Half hour later when we had just enough time to bike back before dark we gave up, after several phone calls. Evidently he didn't see us and we didn't see him. That was remedied the next morning when we docked at Brunswick, he came to the boat for a 30 year reunion.