Exploring the Islands
Yesterday we drove into South Carolina – barely. It was barely enough to carve another notch on our steering wheel (States that we have visited). It may be only a “qualified” notch because we only drove the car and not the RV.
We wanted to see Hilton Head Island (just north of the Georgia State line). The island oozes wealth and exclusiveness. It was a rare community that didn’t have controlled, gated access. It has beautiful beaches. Access points are frequent, but it is nearly impossible to find a place to park. Consequently, I didn’t find the beaches convenient to those of us in the masses. It was likewise, too far to walk or bicycle. It was sort of like Laguna Beach or Malibu, but with less parking.
There is only one road leading to or from the island. I can only imagine how traffic might be in the event of a hurricane evacuation.
Driving south, back into Georgia, we passed through Savannah again, and onto Tybee Island. Parking is still at a premium and controlled by meters 24/7. The streets and roads were just not designed for our current population. If I were to make comparisons, if it had more parking, Tybee might “feel” more like Ocean Beach in San Diego. It ‘s more comfortable, as if “real” people lived there.
Today we went to St Simon Island near Brunswick, GA. It even had parking lots near the beach, and without meters. We were shocked. We liked the “feel” of this island, too. That is, until we decided to return to the mainland. It was about 6:00 PM, evening rush hour. On the road to the mainland, I could see that the traffic was stopped for a long way in front. I, being an impatient sort, detoured. I would rather be hours late than sit in stop and go traffic for an extended time. The detour was going smoothly, - until, - yes, we came to the next traffic jam. I measured approximately two miles of slow stop and go traffic on two lane surface roads that lasted at least 30 minutes. When we eventually reached the intersection, I could see similar backups coming from at least two other directions. From the intersection, we proceeded on a four-lane road back to Brunswick. We saw the traffic going to the island was backed up an estimated two or three miles. This experience cured forever any dream we might have imagined about living on any of these coastal barrier islands. Perhaps if we could manage our commute times to completely avoid travelling during the normal rush hours.
I think this answers my questions about single-road access to an area.
It turns out that the back-up was caused by a five car wreck. It doesn't change my mind about the single access road.
We wanted to see Hilton Head Island (just north of the Georgia State line). The island oozes wealth and exclusiveness. It was a rare community that didn’t have controlled, gated access. It has beautiful beaches. Access points are frequent, but it is nearly impossible to find a place to park. Consequently, I didn’t find the beaches convenient to those of us in the masses. It was likewise, too far to walk or bicycle. It was sort of like Laguna Beach or Malibu, but with less parking.
There is only one road leading to or from the island. I can only imagine how traffic might be in the event of a hurricane evacuation.
Driving south, back into Georgia, we passed through Savannah again, and onto Tybee Island. Parking is still at a premium and controlled by meters 24/7. The streets and roads were just not designed for our current population. If I were to make comparisons, if it had more parking, Tybee might “feel” more like Ocean Beach in San Diego. It ‘s more comfortable, as if “real” people lived there.
Today we went to St Simon Island near Brunswick, GA. It even had parking lots near the beach, and without meters. We were shocked. We liked the “feel” of this island, too. That is, until we decided to return to the mainland. It was about 6:00 PM, evening rush hour. On the road to the mainland, I could see that the traffic was stopped for a long way in front. I, being an impatient sort, detoured. I would rather be hours late than sit in stop and go traffic for an extended time. The detour was going smoothly, - until, - yes, we came to the next traffic jam. I measured approximately two miles of slow stop and go traffic on two lane surface roads that lasted at least 30 minutes. When we eventually reached the intersection, I could see similar backups coming from at least two other directions. From the intersection, we proceeded on a four-lane road back to Brunswick. We saw the traffic going to the island was backed up an estimated two or three miles. This experience cured forever any dream we might have imagined about living on any of these coastal barrier islands. Perhaps if we could manage our commute times to completely avoid travelling during the normal rush hours.
I think this answers my questions about single-road access to an area.
It turns out that the back-up was caused by a five car wreck. It doesn't change my mind about the single access road.
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