Fort Gaines, Georgia

Fort Gaines, Georgia

Weather: low 70 degrees, high 91 degrees, clear skies until noon, then mostly cloudy, showers in the afternoon

Our excursion today was to explore the little town of Fort Gaines, located about six miles south of where we’re staying. In some ways, we saved the best for last. Fort Gaines was built by the government in the early 1800s to provide protection from the Indians for the early settlers in this area. At that time, this was considered the western frontier of the US. It’s name came from the first commandant of the fort. The fort consisted of a stockade 100 feet by 100 feet, with walls eight feet high. It also had two blockhouses, and overlooked the Chattahoochee River, about 100 feet below.

The town is the headquarters of the Army COE for Walter F. George Lake, the 45,000-acre lake we are staying near. There are many old homes here, ranging from plantation style to federalist. It seems that there is an attempt being made to refurbish many of the old homes. One of them that we looked at is listed for sale at $180,000. If it was located closer to a larger population center, the price would probably be double that.

Fort Gaines is the county seat for Clay County. The courthouse is built of brick painted white, and is about 150 years old. From what I could see, it is still being used.

On our way back to the RV, we stopped at Bagby State Park to check out their RV facilities. To our surprise, they did not have any facilities for RVs or camping. The park is located on Walter F. George Lake, and is centered on a championship golf course. They have a lodge, much like a nice hotel, and cottages for rent. A boat ramp seemed to be busy, and a marina was full of nice boats, including sailboats. This is a little different concept in state parks for us, but it seems to work.

We will be leaving here tomorrow, moving on to Tuscaloosa, Alabama. We plan to be there one to two weeks while visiting Terri and Thomas. Then, we plan to go to the mountains of Tennessee, seeking cooler weather. Along with looking for cooler weather, we’ll be checking out the different areas we visit.

More later, be safe.

Today’s Town – Fort Gaines, Georgia: The Home Of Walter F. George Lake

Not all who wander are lost.