Island life, what could be better? The drive out to Tybee Island alone is worth the visit. Scenic wetlands as far as the eye can stretch, such a very beautiful sight to see.
Our first stop on the island was Fort Pulaski National Monument [U.S. 80, Savannah, GA 31410]. Entrance fee is $7 per person, but if you have the America the Beautiful pass you can get in for free. The park ranger handed us a map and told us the last cannon firing was coming up. Cannon firing? Bonus! I didn’t even know there was going to be one. So we got down to the fort, parked, and scurried over the moat.
There was a glorious gilded cannon sitting in the field, front and center.
We chatted with a volunteer dressed in period clothing, who answered questions for the group and explained the history of the Civil War fort. When the time was ready everyone was told to stand back, plug their ears, and ba-BOOM.
The gun crew fired off two cannons, to everyone’s delight. After the display we were free to explore the depths of the fort.
Informational signage was plentiful.
A really neat feature was the ability to climb the walls of the fort.
You get spectacular views of inside of the fort and out over the surrounding land. There are hiking trails accessible from the fort, including one that overlooks the Cockspur Island Lighthouse.
After our exploration of the fort we headed into town and made a quick pit stop at the Fish Art Gallery [1207 US-80, Tybee Island, GA 31328], a real roadside attraction.
Art and doo-dads are for sale, but really it’s just a crazy place to witness. Then we were off to Savannah Beach. We pulled down a side road and paid for parking. Walked over the boardwalk and onto the sand. It was that easy.
The beach stretches for quite some length. On a windy day we chose to sit up on the swings beside the dunes instead of laying on the sand. We looked out to the popular pier, and watched for dolphins. It was a perfectly relaxing way to spend the rest of our afternoon on Tybee.