Photo: Fort Morgan, which played a significant role in the Battle of Mobile Bay, offers guided tours, or you can explore on your own.
Full speed ahead on Mobile Bay
Most everyone knows the famous battle cry, “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!” What’s less known is the who, where and when. Union Admiral David Farragut bellowed the command (or a variation thereof) on Aug. 5, 1864, during the Battle of Mobile Bay in the waters off Fort Morgan (110 State Highway 180, Gulf Shores, Ala. 251-540-5257, fort-morgan.org).
These days, instead of protecting the bay, Fort Morgan welcomes visitors to tour the site. Most visitors to this area come primarily for the white sand beaches on the Fort Morgan Peninsula and in nearby Gulf Shores, but the fort is well worth a visit. A ferry service connects Fort Morgan to Fort Gaines on Dauphin Island on the other side of the bay, carrying pedestrians and vehicles. On the ferry, you’re actually crossing the waters where Farragut said his immortal words.
Point Clear, on the Eastern Shore, is home to another historic treasure where you can spend an entire vacation, the Grand Hotel. This resort, now operated as a Marriott property (rates start at $209; 1 Grand Blvd., Point Clear, Ala. 251-928-9201, marriottgrand.com), has been in operation since 1847, except for when it served as a hospital during the Civil War and an Air Force training facility in World War II. This strong military heritage is honored every afternoon with a ceremonial procession and canon firing over the bay, one of many longstanding traditions at the Grand.
A few miles north, the small, eclectic town of Fairhope stands as another Eastern Shore treasure. Founded in 1894 as a utopian single tax colony, where every citizen would have a “fair hope of success,” today it’s known as a haven for artists and writers who settle there for the laid-back, old-school coastal charm.
A short drive around the top of the bay, the port city of Mobile awaits like a smaller version of New Orleans. The city has a vibrant downtown area, especially around Bienville Square. There, it becomes evident why Mobile is called “the Little Easy.”
Photo: Anglers enjoy some downtime on the shore of Black Rock Mountain Lake inside Black Rock Mountain State Park. The Firefox Museum and Heritage Center is adjacent to the park.
Folklore in Rabun County
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Foxfire, a magazine produced by high school students in Rabun County in the mountainous northeast corner of Georgia. The success of the magazine, which chronicles the folkways and history of Southern Appalachia, led to a popular book series and then the Foxfire Museum and Heritage Center (admission $8. 98 Foxfire Lane, Mountain City, Ga. 706-746-5828, foxfirefund.org).
The center sits on 106 acres of land in Mountain City, with original pioneer log cabins and other structures built using construction tools and methods from the pioneer period. If you want to know what it was like to settle and live in the Appalachian wilderness 180 years ago, this is the place. You’ll see the toys kids played with and the housewares used back then. There’s a grist mill on-site, as well as a chapel with pews made out of split logs. Hike the nature trail, take a self-guided tour of the structures and observe craft and amusement demonstrations of how everyday life was lived in the mountains when this part of the country was still frontier land.
Next door to Foxfire, Black Rock Mountain State Park rises even higher, as the winding road takes you up to Georgia’s highest state park. The eastern Continental Divide runs through the park, which contains some of North Georgia’s more jaw-dropping vistas from its overlooks. Don’t miss Black Rock Lake, a 17-acre lake ringed by mountain peaks and an easy .85-mile loop trail providing great views of the emerald water and evergreen trees.
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