Day 5 - Bluegrass Special - IBMA Bound

On Friday 9/12, we departed Eastbank COE campground heading to Pine Mountain Georgia. You can see the Woodruff Dam as we cross the Apalachicola River on US 90. The Apalachicola River runs from Lake Seminole, on the Florida-Georgia border at Chattahoochee, 106 miles south through the Panhandle to the Gulf, at the town of Apalachicola. US 90 runs parallel with Interstate 10 and it is never more than six miles from I-10 throughout the state. US 90 passes through the county seats of all the 16 counties it runs through. It is also the road upon which many of the county courthouses are located. US 90 was the first paved road in Florida.

In Marietta Florida, we left US 90 and took FL 73, as a cut-through to US 231 N. We unceremoniously arrived in Alabama. No welcome sign, but we did see the Alabama Rest Area and the infamous "peanuts."

Just before we hit the US 431 bypass around downtown Dothan, we passed the National Peanut Festival Grounds in Dothan. We have been here before for Alabama Good Sam rallies. Dothan Alabama is where peanuts reign supreme! Move over Florida and Georgia! In fact, Dothan is known as the “Peanut Capital of the World!” Dothan is the center of a 100-mile radius where more than half of all peanuts in the US are grown. Every Fall, Dothan hosts the National Peanut Festival, a two-week event to honor local peanut farmers and celebrate the harvest season. There is a Peanut Parade, rides, livestock shows, agricultural displays and, of course, lots of peanuts to munch on.

On our travels, we have seen many animals and other objects “on parade.” Horses in Rochester NY and Shawnee OK. Bulldogs in Athens, GA. Apples in Winchester VA. Bears in Hendersonville NC. Swans in Lakeland FL and Bucky Badger in Madison WI. 

In Dothan AL, you will find Peanuts around town! Giant peanuts are on almost every corner in Dothan! It was created by The Dothan Downtown Redevelopment Authority. Local businesses, civic organizations, and individuals purchased and decorated their peanuts according to their own concept. The 5-foot-high peanut sculptures are made entirely of fiberglass. Each sculpture is as unique as the individual organization itself. 

  

I only have a few pictures because I did not want to ask Charlie to drive us all over Dothan, towing our car behind the RV, to see the peanuts, like he did in Iowa. He unknowingly helped me create our own "Freedom Rock tour" to see the rocks painted by Ray “Bubba” Sorensen II! Want to read more about those rocks? Check it out here.

Our last town in Alabama was Eufaula. It is nestled high upon a bluff overlooking the beautiful 45,000-acre Lake Eufaula, along the Alabama-Georgia border. Eufalula Alabama is rich in history. Along the main street is a Confederate Monument. The shaft is of Georgia granite, beautifully polished so as to produce two shades of gray, and is thirty-five feet high.  On top of this, exquisitely carved in Italian marble, is the statue of a private Confederate soldier, with his accouterments, standing "at rest".  The presentation of the monument to the city, in the name of the Barbour County Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, was made by Miss Mary Clayton, the organizer of the Chapter and a daughter of Gen. H. D. Clayton. 

The historic Bluff City Inn, a 140-year-old hotel in east Alabama, is on track to receive guests once again in 2026, as part of a $25 million renovation project. It is set to become a state-of-the-art Marriott boutique hotel. The hotel, which will be named The Former House, will include 85 rooms, a restaurant, bar, pool and meeting spaces. Bluff City Inn was built in 1885 and, as one of the few remaining 19th-century hotels remaining in the state, has become an icon of the area. The three-story hotel, with its picturesque verandah, was once home to historian Anne Kendrick Walker as well as the late Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, Gorman Houston.

We passed a Carnegie Library in Eufaula, Alabama. Founded in 1904, Eufaula Carnegie Library is one of only two Carnegie libraries still operating as libraries in the state of Alabama. There are 800 Carnegie libraries still in use today as libraries. About 300 have been destroyed, and the remaining have either been repurposed for other public institutions or have become private property. We have seen Carnegie Libraries in Dublin, Georgia, Coshocton, and Conneaut Ohio. Carnegie Libraries hold a special place in American history and in the hearts of generations of Americans. Building them was the mission of Scottish immigrant, American steel magnate, and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie

Crossed the Chattahoochee River and we are back in Georgia and the Eastern Time zone. The Chattahoochee River begins as a tiny stream in north Georgia and flows all the way to the Apalachicola Bay. Near West Point Bay, it forms the border between Georgia and Alabama. The Chattahoochee River's name is derived from the Creek Indian word meaning "painted rock."

We skirted around Columbus Georgia, home to Fort Benning, Fort Moore, no Fort Benning. What? In May 2023, as part of the removal of names associated with the Confederacy, Fort Benning was renamed Fort Moore after General Hal Moore and his wife Julia Compton Moore. But, our GPS said "Fort Moore" all of the signs had the name back to Fort Benning!

We arrived in Pine Mountain Georgia.  Pine Mountain GA was known as the village of “Hood” in 1880, the name was changed to Chipley in 1882 at the official formation of the town, thanks to the extension of the railroad up from Columbus. In 1958, the name was changed to Pine Mountain with the opening of Callaway Resort & Garden. The town boosts colorful, well-maintained murals that flank rows of retail businesses. The town's fountain remains one of the unique focal points of the town.

We are staying at RCI Pine Mountain Resort. We are parked under their towering Georgia Pines. We are in the "older" section of the resort. The "newer" sites are in the wide open, with concrete pads, and no shade!

The amenities of this park include a swimming pool and soak up the sun in ultimate comfort and convenience. This area also includes a kids’ splash pool, hot tub, and steam showers.

 

Cute Yurts, Bali Tent, Java Tent and other ways to stay, if you don't have an RV. All of these are located under a canopy of trees with Pine Mountain Resort’s elevated glamping tent experiences. I could not get inside, but from the outside, they looked spectacular!

Stay tuned for more #TwoLaneAdventures