November 8, 2013

Travel day from Destin, FL

To Eastbank Campground, Bainbridge, GA

We really liked our site at Henderson Beach State Park but unfortunately we had to leave because our site (and every other site in the campground) was reserved for the weekend.  According to the clerk at the entrance gate the campground is almost empty during the week but fills up on the weekend, mostly with locals.

After checking on Reserve America I discovered that every State Park, with in a 150 miles of our location, was booked for the weekend so it was on to Plan B.  I found an Army Corp. of Engineer Park located just over the State line into Georgia.  Eastbank Campground, located on Lake Seminole, has 65 tent and RV sites.  The amenities include picnic tables, lantern posts, fire rings and electrical and water hookups.  There is a communal dump station and restrooms with free hot showers.

We were packed up and ready to leave at 9:30.  After a short delay due to a line at the dump station we didn’t actually leave the campground until 10:30.  The 125 mile trip was uneventful and we arrived at Eastbank Campground at 2PM or was it 3PM?  Well, actually it depends on what part of the campground you are because the park is right on line that divides Central from Easter time.

The regular camping rate of $22 would be good but using Monte’s senior pass we only paid $11/night.  When asked how many nights we planned on staying we replied that it depended on our satellite reception.

Our choice was limited because it is a holiday weekend.  We were given site 15.  We paid for one night and said we would be back to pay for an additional 6 nights if, after setting up, we got a good satellite connection. 

 

There is a very steep hill leading down to the sites along the lake.  Monte backed into site 15. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before setting up we turned on the satellite and could not get a connection because of an overhanging branch.

 

 

 

 

  

Luckily the site was wide enough to allow Monte to move over three feet and the satellite worked fine. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After setting up we drove back up to the entrance booth and paid for the additional 6 nights.

 

 

 

 

We also were able to receive several channels with the TV Antenna.  The funny thing is that the satellite stations coming out of Tallahassee are on Eastern time and the TV stations coming out of Panama City are on Central time.

 

 

  

 

 

There are a few sites closer to the lake but they were all reserved. 

 

We walked down to an empty lakeside site that is reserved beginning tomorrow and enjoyed a spectacular sunset.

According to the park brochure, Lake Seminole has 37,500 acres of water, 376 miles of shoreline, and over 22,000 acres of surrounding land. 

 

It was originally authorized as the Jim Woodruff Lock and Dam Project by the River and Harbor Act of 1946.  Jim Woodruff Lock was the first of three locks and dams constructed for navigation, hydro-power, recreation and related purposes on the Apalachicola, Chattahoochee and Flint River systems. 

The area around Lake Seminole is rich in history, having been occupied by man for at least 10,000 years. 

 

Among other Native Americans, the Seminoles lived here until around 1825, and it is they for whom the lake is named.