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upe 1977 75

George Busbee
Governor
Joe D. Tanner
Commissioner
BOARD OF NATURAL RESOURCES
Donald J. Carter Chairman
Gainesville--9th District Lloyd L. Summer, Jr. Vice Chairman
Rome--7th District
Leo T. Barber, Jr. Secretary
Moultrie-- 2nd District James F. Darby
Vidalia-- 1st District Dr. Robert A. Collins, Jr.
Americus-- 3rd District George P. Dillard
Decatur-- 4th District Mary Bailey Izard Atlanta-- 5th District James A. Mankin Griffin-- 6th District J. Wimbric Walker
McRae-- 8th District Walter W. Eaves
Elberton-- 10th District
Sam Cofer
St. Simons Island Coastal District Leonard E. Foote Waleska-- State-at-Large James D. Cone Decatur-- State-at-Large A. Leo Lanman, Jr. Roswell-- State-at-Large
Wade H. Coleman
Valdosta-- State-at-Large
DIVISION DIRECTORS
Parks and Historic Sites Division Henry D. Struble, Director
Game and Fish Division
Jack Crockford, Director
Environmental Protection Division J. Leonard Ledbetter, Director
Geologic and Water Resources Division Sam M. Pickering, Jr., Director
Office of Information and Education David Cranshaw, Director
Office of Planning and Research J. Clayton Fisher, Jr., Director
Office of Administrative Services James H. Pittman, Director

OutdOOrS ii? Georgia

Volume 6

June, 1977

Number 6

TABLE OF CONTENTS

.... Training Bird Dog Puppies

Bill Morehead 3

The Bateau

Mike Gillen 8

Cumberland's Magic

Jingle Davis 12

Buggies

18

Covered Bridges

Susan K. Wood 22

Ogeechee Fisherman

Dick Davis 27

Outdoors Inventory

32

Letters to the Editor

33

On the Cover: Whitney Lake on Cumberland Island. Photo by Bob Busby.

Bill Morehead Rebecca N. Marshall
Dick Davis
Bill Hammock
Jingle Davis
Susan K. Wood

Phone-656-5660
MAGAZINE STAFF

David Cranshaw

Editor-in-Chief

Aaron Pass . Writer Writer Writer Writer Writer Writer
Priscilla C. Powell

. Managing Editor Liz Carmichael Jones . . Michael Nunn Bob Busby Edward Brock Bill Bryant Jim Couch
Circulation Manager

Art Director Illustrator
Photo Editor Photographer Photographer Photographer

Outdoors in Georgia is the official monthly magazine of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, published at the Department's offices. Room 714, 270 Washington Street, Atlanta, Georgia 30334. Publication Number 217140. No advertising accepted. Subscriptions are $5 for one year or $9 for three years. Printed by Williams Printing Company, Atlanta, Georgia. Articles and photographs may be reprinted when proper credit given. Contributions are welcome, but the editors assume no responsibility or liability for loss or damage of articles, photographs, or illustrations. Second-class postage paid at Atlanta, Georgia. 31,000 copies printed at an approximate cost of $16,500. The Department of Natural Resources is an Equal Opportunity employer, and employs without regard to race, color, sex, religion, or national
origin.
Change of address: Please allow 8 weeks for address changes to become effective. Send old address as well as new address (old mailing label is preferred).

Editorial

Shrimpers' Crisis

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DNR In January of this year,

biologists be-

gan to report dead shrimp near Georgia's shore.

There was no mystery; the reason the shrimp

were dead was obvious. January was in the

middle of the most severe winter ever recorded

in Georgia. The waters were too cold for our
shrimp to tolerate. They died. And with them
-- died this year's crop of shrimp bringing to a

halt local shrimping.

By April it was clear that emergency mea-

sures had to be taken by Joe Tanner, Commis-
A sioner, and the Board of Natural Resources.

sequence of emergency measures went into ef-

fect: first, a postponement of opening the inside

waters, then a banning of shrimping inside the

three-mile limit, followed by a banning of any

kind of power drawn nets. The white shrimp

was almost gone. The pitiful few remaining were

extremely important as brood stock for the fu-

ture. Finally even hand drawn beach seines

were banned. "It is to the point where each roe

white shrimp, each one, is important to us," said

Commissioner Tanner.

But banning beach seines and such actions do

little to pay grocery bills, insurance premiums,

or boat loans. Georgia shrimpers and the shrimp-

ing industry were in a disaster. Hundreds of in-

dependent, hard working seamen were faced

with bankruptcy.

Governor George Busbee proposed to Presi-

dent Carter that the six coastal counties of Geor-
-- gia be declared a major disaster area qualify-

ing the shrimpers and certain others for long-

term loans and additional unemployment com-

pensation benefits. Commissioner Tanner and

others met with the Federal Disaster Aid Admin-

istration to explain the details of the shrimp

crisis. Governor Busbee sent Jack Burris, a top aide, to work with the White House in the devel-

opments.

All the while, government geared up. With the instructions of the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources and the University of Georgia pooled their shrimp experts to monitor the situation. Commissioner Tanner met with
shrimpers, bankers and others who felt the
crisis most severely. Other state departments, Labor, Civil De-
fense, Human Resources, Office of Planning and
Budget, all teamed their efforts to attack the crisis. Biologists, planners, information officers, all worked with policy makers day and night to understand the situation and to give the shrimpers a helping hand.
On Wednesday, June 1, at 11 p.m., President
Carter declared the shrimp crisis a major disaster. Aid went into effect immediately; some 16
-- million dollars not a welfare project, but a
series of enlightened business loans to business-
-- men with full expectations of paying such loans
back were set aside as aid.
But the crisis continues. And the crisis teaches
us daily that, for all of our modern technology, we are totally, completely dependent on nature. It is good that governments, acting cooperatively, can partially relieve economic disaster. It may even be better that government scientists,
acting in concert, will at last learn something about the nature of that gourmet's delight Panaius setiferus, the good ole Georgia White Shrimp.
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Jui>e 1977

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TRAINING
BIRD DOG
PUPPIES

By Bill Morehead Photography by Bob Busby

"You know, I think the best way to

get a good hunting dog these days is

to get a pup and train him yourself,"

said my friend as he finished his third

We cup of coffee.

had spent the better

part of the morning cussing and dis-

cussing bird dogs.

If you are a bird hunter, you've

heard these discussions all your life:

"There aren't enough birds around

any more to train a dog," followed

by, "I've spent more money on dogs

than I have on the house mortgage,

and I still don't have a decent hunter,"

which is inevitably followed by tales

of bad dogs getting worse, good dogs

-- going bad, and always, always Ole

Nellie

Granddaddy's dog who

pointed, backed, retrieved and sau-

teed quail.

Most of the guys around the table

were similar. That is, all loved quail/

woodcock hunting, none were landed

gentry, and all had jobs that took

them away from their sport most of

the time. All paid good money for

dogs, guns and hunting opportunities, and none was satisfied with what he was getting in return.
I thought of my own situation. There were times last year when my
three-year old female Brittany didn't
seem to know her name. There were times when she didn't hold her point. There were times when she didn't come when called and seemed to hunt
-- on her own for herself. There were
times when she didn't seem to want to
hunt at all.
But my dog, for all her faults (and
most of her faults have to do with her owner, and not her) hunts well most of the time. There is no question
-- about the reason for that my dog,
unlike her owner, has a certified pedigree, comes from champions, was bred to hunt and, in general, carries on well under the burden of having an amateur (me) as a master.
And before you turn up your nose at me and my confessions, ask your-
self, does your bird dog always obey

commands, does he or she always

hold staunch to point? I didn't think

so.
Scene Changes: We are no longer

in a small coffee shop with a bunch

We of average guys.

are now in high

We cotton.

are sitting in the eating

room of the South Dougherty Recrea-

tion Center, having lunch with pro-

fessional dog owners, trainers and

handlers.
We are barely sitting, though, for
we have been riding horses two days in the Sixth Annual Open Shooting Dog Classic Field Trial, sponsored by

the Southern Field Trial Club in Al-
bany. While we are eating, waiting for

the afternoon braces to run, there is a

national quail seminar going on at the Holiday Inn in downtown Albany,
Georgia. Also while we are eating, the news is coming in from the National Championship being held at Grand Junction, Tennessee.
We are being virtually bathed in
the heady nectars of moneyed sport

Jut>e 1977

in this apogee of quail heaven. Handlers are here from all over North America, more arriving each day from another field trial in Alabama and from the big one in Grand Junc-
tion.
The field trial judges are clad in tweed coats and high top boots. Most gallery members have had their own mounts trucked in. Some visitors (including me) were nonchalantly loaned horses from one of the 20,000 acre
quail plantations adjoining.
Quail season ended yesterday. To-
-- day, the plantation superintendents
are busily burning off tracts man-
aging these plantations strictly for quail with equal or greater ferocity than foresters use for pine trees. Be-
hind me as I eat lunch are framed
and signed photographs of President Dwight Eisenhower quail hunting. There has been some discussion as to
whether the peanut farmer down the road a ways will have time to bird hunt. Seems he's taken up a new
residence and job in Washington, D.C.
As I say, I was in high cotton. And
the highest cotton was in the kennels, where 61 sure-fire birders were poised, eager to win their owners part of the $3500 total prize money.
In the first day and a half of the trial, some dogs had "done good," some had not. Most were waiting their turn. The conversation around lunch turned toward raising puppies. The people doing the talking were professional dog trainers and handlers. They make their living at it, from the Canadian steppes in the summer to the Georgia quail field in the autumn. These people are dog people, and the money they put in the bank depends not on their performance but on the performance of their
dogs. You better believe I listened.
Topic: Should you have a kennel dog? Comment: Only if you want to
turn a fine potential into a fair per-
formance, or a good dog into a lousy
one.
Topic: How to care for a puppy?
Comment: Love him, take him everywhere with you. Only when you hear, "Here comes Joe with that damn nuisance puppy," are you doing an ade-
quate job.

Topic: How to train a bird dog?
Comment: Put him on birds, birds, birds. Wild birds are best, pen-raised
birds are next, then pigeons, bird
wings. Work him, work him, work
him.
Topic: How to have a fine bird
dog? The same way you have a fine bank account: find out how to do it right, then do it! There is no easy
way. These comments, from average
Joes at the coffee shop to the intense

competition at the high cotton field
trial, intrigued me the most. O.K.,
let's set out to find the right way, and then try to put it into effect.
One of the handlers at Albany that impressed me was Harold Ray, train-
er and handler of Smith Kennels,
Waynesboro, Georgia. Harold Ray was born in Pennsylvania and reared on a dairy farm in Maryland. For 16 years he has been a dog trainer and handler in Waynesboro. He and his
wife, Sherry, ride the circuit from

Outdoors \t) Georgia

Canada in the spring and summer to the southern trials in the fall and
winter.
I interviewed Ray concerning this business of finding out how to do it right, then doing it. Here are his
answers:
OIG: What should I look for in a puppy?
HAROLD RAY: Good breeding,
good blood; conformation brightness, not necessarily hyperactivity. Look for "smarts," intelligence, style. Look for tail placement. The tails should not be placed too high or too low on the dog; tail placement will affect the
dog's gait.
OIG: What is the best time after whelping to pick out a puppy?
HAROLD RAY: I would not at-
tempt to select a bird dog puppy before he or she is four months old. Picking a puppy who is only six weeks old is really grabbing in the dark. Picking one who is at least four

months old permits the buyer to check the puppy out on pen-raised birds and to tell something about nose and
style.
OIG: Should I pick a male or female puppy?
HAROLD RAY: It really doesn't
matter, but for the average hunter, I
would recommend a male puppy. There is a reason for this; if a female comes in heat during hunting season there could be problems, and not just
A with mongrel mating. dog's normal
temperature is 101 degrees, but during ovulation a female's normal temperature is around 102 degrees. If the weather is hot, the female's tempera-
ture could zoom up quickly and hurt
the dog. This must be watched, and the average guy just doesn't have the time or inclination. Also, when a fe-
male is in heat, she may become very
erratic and not want to hunt at all. For pure convenience, I would rec-
ommend the average guy buy a male

puppy.
OIG: What are the seller's responsibilities in the sale of a puppy?
HAROLD RAY: Certainly the
seller should document the puppy and should provide full and complete documentation on the pup's ancestry. Further, I wouldn't buy a puppy
from a seller who wouldn't or couldn't provide me with a full disclosure on the shot record and worm
treatment.
OIG: What are the buyer's responsibilities in the sale of a puppy?
HAROLD RAY: Let the buyer
beware. He should know what he
wants before he goes looking and shouldn't change his mind at the kennel. If he does, he should not blame the seller. Buying a puppy from a reputable seller is always the best bet. Most of the real agony in buying a
puppy who gets sick and dies really
comes from buying a "country dog"
--a dog who is allowed to run loose,

Jtipe 1977

whose owner doesn't know how to care properly for her. Her puppies may look good but may really be damaged. The most important thing in buying a puppy is: get good stock; get it when you can tell something
about it; get it in a healthy state.
OIG: Speaking of puppy health, should the average owner care for his puppy himself, or should he rely heavily on a veterinarian for such
care?
HAROLD RAY: Some health care
you should leave to a licensed veterinarian. Rabies shots, de-worming a heavily infested puppy, things like that. But there is a tremendous amount of health care you can give
your own dog. For example, I firmly
believe in giving dogs stereocaricides
with meals. I do this with my dogs
1 2 months out of the year. This really

-- protects against worms I haven't
had a worm problem with our dogs

in three years.

OIG: What are the proper feeding

techniques and times for a puppy?
HAROLD RAY: Up to six weeks

old, we feed our puppies three to

We four times a day.

select a good

puppy chow, add condensed milk

with water.

From six weeks to five months, we

feed them three times daily, and we

feed them 'what they eat,' that is, we monitor how much they consume and

are careful not to over feed them.

At or around six months we drop

the feeding periods to once a day. I

prefer to feed our dogs in the eve-
-- ning especially in the hot summer

months. Other people say to feed

them in the morning, but I prefer eve-

ning feeding periods.

OIG: What are the necessary housing requirements for a puppy?
HAROLD RAY: A decent kennel
house that is tended to. If you can't clean out a doghouse, get rid of your
dog. You don't care enough about
your dog to have a good one, anyhow.
This may interest you. I prefer to have my dogs have a dirt run. If you
give your dogs stereocaricides, you
really solve the worm problem. There
is a good reason for using a dirt run.
We have learned through hard ex-
-- perience that any other type run
concrete, linoleum, or wood can
and does cause deformities in dogs' feet. This can really cause you trouble when the puppy grows up and begins to hunt.
Dirt is natural to a dog's feet, and once you've solved the problem of

Outdoors ip Georgia

worms through stereocaricides,
you've no reason to let the dog not run on dirt.
OIG: What are the necessary emotional requirements for a puppy?
HAROLD RAY: It is very impor-
tant that a new puppy be handled by his trainer or master as much and as often as possible. One way I do this is to tie the puppy out near where I
am working all day. That way, when-
ever I come near him, I pet him, call him by name, stroke him, give him
plenty of attention.
For the average hunter, there is no

way to give a new puppy too much
attention. There is no danger at all in
'spoiling' the puppy. What you are doing is making the puppy love you,
crave your affection, be relaxed and happy with you. It also gives you the
greatest opportunity to get to know
the puppy.
I don't mean that you should tie the puppy and leave him tied, I mean you should put the puppy in a place
-- where he daily several times a day --receives a lot of attention. There is
nothing wrong with playing with the
-- puppy letting him loose around the

yard, walking with him, on or with-
out a lead. This should be done as often as
possible, but never, never let the
puppy go off in the woods to self-
A hunt, hunt alone. puppy can learn
more bad habits by hunting alone for a month than you can correct in a
year.
During this period, from the time you get this puppy until he's six months old, you should teach him his name, the meaning of "no," to come
and to sit. These commands are vital
to any future training of your puppy. For the first six months, you'll get
a lot further down the road by letting the puppy associate you with love
and fun than with any other tech-
nique.
OIG: One final question, what puppy books can you recommend?
HAROLD RAY: Puppy books are
fine things to read, but I'd rather suggest that you don't spend your time reading, but playing with your puppy.
For the first six months, remember, the finest thing you can do for your dog is to give him an environment in which he can grow as fast and as healthy as possible. The second thing is to provide optimum exercise for your puppy, but not too much exer-
cise. You can give him too much, and this will hurt him, now and for the
future.
The first six months is a time for
-- childhood for the puppy you should
do everything possible to make certain that the puppy associates you
with fun, that he understands the
basic commands, and that he gets ready to spend his second six months
learning field techniques. (Harold Ray's address is Rt. 2,
Box 133-A, Waynesboro, Ga.) ()

Jtipe 1977

Crashing Utility Boa
By Mike Gillen Art by Michael Nunn

. he bateau, or riverboat as it was sometimes called, was a long, narrow, flat-bottomed craft designed primarily for use on rivers, as it was good for navigating through rocky shoals.
The bateau was in its prime from before the
turn of the century until as late as the 1930s. But as time changed, and needs changed, it
slowly vanished from the scene. And it vanished
almost without notice. The bateau, which served men well in Georgia for perhaps a hundred years, simply outlived its usefulness. Fussell Chalker, author of Pioneer Days Along the Ocmulgee, summed it up well when he
wrote to me recently:
"I was . . . surprised that you are having trouble in locating them. Time has a way of slipping up on us and changing our ways so
that I had not realized how non-existent they have become, for I have known them
and taken them for granted all of my life. It
is hard to realize that still another era has passed so unobtrusively. I had not realized it until you mentioned it, but it has been a
number of years since I have seen a bateau." The bateau should not be mistaken for its wider and stubbier cousin the jon boat. Jon boats, though still made occasionally out of wood (and plywood, at that), are now mass-produced for the most part. Such boats
have been a factor in the downfall of bateaux. In contrast to the jon boat, which is usually
four to five feet wide in the middle and nearly as wide in the ends, the baetau was usually only three feet wide. This was because of the
common use of three rough-cut l'x 12' boards,
placed side by side, for the bateau's bottom. Most bateaux were just a foot deep since one l'x 12' was used for each side. Pine was the
most commonly used lumber, but cypress was preferred if it was available.
The bateau's front end was very narrow; this gave it its characteristic look. While being three feet in the middle, it was usually no more than 1 8 or 20 inches wide in the front. The stern was not quite as narrow, being roughly 26 to 30
inches. This width in the stern, coupled with its greater depth, contributed to its stability on the
water. Once built, as one old gentleman put it,

IT IS BEST TO DRIVE END Of STAPLE INTO BOARD

THE FINISHING TOUCH
A HAND -WROUGHT IRON STAPLE

COTTON CORO BETWEEN IX I2'S (SOMETIMES USED Z TO MAKE IT MORE ''.{ WATERTIGHT)

3 ROUGH- CUT X I I 2'S USED FOR BOTTOM

WEOGE

END OF CLAMP

"You cain't hardly sink the d--- thing." The bateau could be as long as 20 or 22 feet,
though most were between 1 5 and 1 8 feet in
length. Some were as short as 12 feet. Its length
and narrow width gave it a sleek and graceful
appearance. Using a homemade paddle, sometimes hewn out of a V x 6' board, a man
could easily negotiate the river in his bateau.
A true bateau is rarely seen these days,
mostly because the uses for it are gone. Its main
uses were for ferrying and for fishing. When baskets, trot lines and traps were common

means of fishing on rivers like the Ocmulgee, they were tended from a bateau. The decline of such means of fishing led to the decline of the
bateau.
Ferrying was also a common use of the bateau for many years. All up and down the
rivers in Middle Georgia were "bateau landings" where folks kept their bateaux for crossing back and forth. Oftentimes bateaux were loaded up on one side with farm produce to be sold to customers on the other side.
The Jarrell family from Jones County had a

bateau landing between Juliette and Dames
Ferry on the Ocmulgee. Besides using their bateau for fishing, they would use it on occasion for hauling potatoes to quarry workers on the opposite side of the river. It was also used for hauling coal, found along the railroad tracks,
back from the Monroe County side. And forays were sometimes made to the other side of the
river during blackberry-picking time.
Some people who lived about a mile above Dames Ferry used their bateau to get back and forth to their church at a place known as "The Rock" located in Monroe County. Most of the
ferry operators themselves had bateaux handy. But when the bridge came, the ferries went, and
this spelled doom for the bateau.
Bateaux were heavy boats which were meant to be left in the water. It was expected that they would eventually rot out, to be easily replaced by another. After all, lumber was a lot cheaper in those days, and a bateau could be built in one afternoon. But the bateau's sheer weight was another strike against it. It simply could not be put into the back of a pickup truck and
hauled around, at least not easily. In this
respect, it was not practical. And recent trends in lumber prices make it doubly impractical.
And then there are the stories old timers tell
about the use of over-sized, over-powered bateaux during Prohibition days. I have heard of bateaux during those days that were equipped
with inboard Model "T" engines. There was one, supposedly, as far north as Juliette on the Ocmulgee and another down the river at
Lumber City. Who knows how many there
might have been on the river in between? They were designed specifically for hauling, and
speedily, at that.
I recently taped a story told to me by
J. C. Hadden of Hawkinsville, one of the last, if not the last, of the Ocmulgee freight boat
pilots. His story concerns a run-in with a bateau during Prohibition days:
"Yeah, we saw some of 'em. I remember one tied up down here in a bend. It was tied up in a "bight" out there. They was makin'
whiskey out in the country there on the riverbank. Out, you know, in the swamp.
And we come around there that night
well, I'd seen the light out there before
-- where they was operating the still and we

come around there, and we slammed into

We this boat. Accidentally!

didn't do it on

purpose. And just busted it to pieces. And

that man he got mad, you know. He was

all upset. 'Course now he didn't say nothin'

to us 'cause we went on up the river. And

we heard what he had to say. So I was engi-

neer on there; I wasn't cap'n on that boat at

the time. So this cap'n told him, says, T

been seein' ya out there all the time. If you
have too much to say about it, I'm gonna

tell the sheriff where you at.' So that was

that, never did hear no more from him."

The river freight boats would come upon a motorized bateau every now and then during

Prohibition days. They usually had a pretty

good idea what they were being used for, but

they would often ask anyway. Invariably the

answer would come, "Oh, we're just . . . just

fishing." But the funny thing was, they usually

noticed that there were never any fishing poles

or gear to be seen.

Even though the bateau is now a thing of the

past, we can still remember it for what it was,

and acknowledge it for the role it played in

Georgia's river history. At the Jarrell Plantation

historic site in Jones County, we will go one

step beyond remembering this summer. During

the month of July we will be demonstrating

how the bateau was built, and we'll de doing

it the old way.

(For further information on Jarrell Plantation, or on the bateau building demonstrations, call Mike Gillen at 912-986-5172. Or, better yet, visit the Plantation Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., or Sunday afternoon
from 2 to 5:30. Take 1-75 to the Juliette Road
exit near Forsyth. Follow the signs going east
on Juliette Road out of Juliette.)

Michael Gillen is curator at Jarrell Planta-

DNR tion, a

historic site just outside of Juliette

in Jones County. Gillen holds a masters degree
in history from St. Johns University in New

York and, prior to coming to Jarrell Plantation,

worked at the Chattanooga-Chickamauga Na-

tional Military Park.

While visitors can now see Gillen's 18-inch

model bateau at the Visitor Center at Jarrell

Plantation, he will be making a full-sized model

this July.



By Jingle Davis Photography by Bob Busby
Cumberland's
Magic . .
how long will it last?

L he natural forces of wind and wave, sun and rain
were the first to work their will and their magic on Cum-
-- berland Island, largest of Georgia's Golden Islands.
Cumberland is an island of superlatives tallest trees; longest beach; loveliest freshwater lakes. Gigantic dunes sweep relentlessly toward the island's wooded interior, drowning trees and even houses in undulating waves of sand. Gnarled live oaks and pine trees and magnolias climb skyward, forming endless shadowy cathedrals beneath the canopy of their branches. Between the island and the distant mainland, vast fields of marshgrass unroll like bolts of green-gold fabric, embroidered with dark olive ribbons of rivers and creeks. The 18-mile long crescent of pristine beach curves like a shining scimitar up the coast, vanishing into the hazy distance.
Cumberland Island is more than a rarity. It is unique;
a one-of-a-kind treasure. Man appreciated the island and
its bounty at least 4,000 years ago, a fact evidenced by archaeological finds dating back to 2000 B.C. Even
though many more people will enjoy the island now that it has become a National Seashore, everyone who knows
and loves Cumberland is determined that its magnificent loveliness will not fade away under the footprints of too many admiring visitors.
Deciding how best to use a treasure such as Cumberland is the job of the National Park Service. On the one hand, NPS is charged with the task of opening the islands to the public whose tax dollars pay for it. On the othef hand, the Park Service must insure that Cumberland does not suffer. Even with the most sensitive planning, though,
the island will change.
Cumberland was once claimed by coastal Indians of the Guale and Timucuan tribes. The Indians called the island Tacatacoru, their name for the nearby St. Marys * River, or Missoe, meaning sassafras.
The Spanish, bent on civilizing the eastern coast with Roman Catholic missions, occupied the island in the sixteenth century and renamed it San Pedro.
Oglethorpe gave the island its present name. He jour-
neyed to Cumberland in 1736 with his Indian friends, Chief Tomochichi and the Chief's nephew, Toonahowie. Stunned by the island's beauty, Oglethorpe nonetheless saw strategic possibilities in Cumberland as a military bulwark against Spain's colonies to the south.
Toonahowie, noticing Oglethorpe's enchantment, suggested the island be named for the Duke of Cumberland, William Augustus, then the thirteen-year-old prince of England.
Oglethorpe first built Fort St. Andrew on the north end of Cumberland and in 1740 established Fort William on
the island's southern end.

Once the forts outlived their usefulness, coastal settlers began to apply for land grants. One settler, Jonathan Bryan, later advertised his holdings for sale in "The South Carolina Gazette." His enticing ad read, in part, "This
-- Island is well watered, and very fine Range for the
Stock the North End very pleasant, with Pine of the
-- best Sort for cutting Lumber from the Middle to the
South End, the land is very good for planting Corn, Cotton or Indigo, and great Conveniency for setting up In-
digo Vats upon the many Springs which vent themselves through the Island. The Navigation will admit Vessels of
any Burthen from one Inlet to the other within Land; and the Island abounds with great Quantities of Live-Oak, of the best kind for Ship-building."
Beautiful mansions were built on the island, where distinguished visitors came to enjoy the island's loveliness and solitude. Eli Whitney, credited with the invention of the cotton gin, was a frequent guest at Dungeness Plantation on Cumberland's southern end, and General Lighthorse Harry Lee, father of Robert E. Lee, died there in 1818. General Lee, returning from a trip to the West Indies, became ill on board ship and asked to be dropped off at Cumberland so he could be with his close friends there. Despite their efforts to nurse him back to health,
Lee died on the island about a month later. He was buried on Cumberland, but his grave was later moved to Virginia where his famous son was buried. Lee left his mark on Cumberland, though. He is credited with starting Cumberland's luxuriant stands of bamboo from a single
sprout brought from the West Indies. The resident population of the island in 1846 was
about four hundred and thirty-nine; four hundred of
which were slaves who worked in the fields growing cot-
ton, potatoes, corn, citrus and indigo. Cumberland's plantation era ended with the Civil War,
and the cultivated fields were quickly reclaimed by the island's lush growth of young pines and sweetgum.
Thomas Carnegie bought the lion's share of Cumberland in 1881, building several huge homes and employing as many as 300 workers who journeyed from the mainland
to build the various structures.
The Hotel Cumberland was built in about 1878 at High Point on Cumberland's northern end. The Hotel was a popular resort until St! Simons Island, more easily accessible, took Cumberland's tourist business.
In the 1960's, several property owners on the island began to sell portions of their holdings to private developers. At about the same time, the National Park Service, looking at areas with National Seashore potential, found Cumberland to be one of the most desirable in the United States.

Georgia Congressman Bill Stuckey introduced the bill signed by President Richard M. Nixon in 1972 which established the Cumberland Island National Seashore and

placed the island in the hands of the National Park

Service.
At present, the Park Service has acquired about 80 per

cent of the privately-owned property on the island and has
opened Cumberland on a limited basis to visitors who travel there from mainland St. Marys on a boat called

the Cumberland Queen.

But the Park Service, with help from the public, still has to make firm decisions on a number of issues about

Cumberland, including the location and acreage of wil-
derness areas on the islands; the number of visitors who

will be allowed to go there each day; the permanent

mainland access point; and what facilities will be allowed on Cumberland itself.
The Park Service asked for comments from the public

and various agencies in 1975, prior to preparing an environmental assessment of the island. The assessment
was sent out in May 1976, and more public meetings were held in June of that year. On the basis of comments

received, the Park Service has prepared an environmental

review of the Cumberland Island National Seashore and is planning to present its overall management proposals

for the island to the public in June.

Hans Neuhauser, director of the coastal chapter of the Georgia Conservancy, is a man who has kept an eagle

eye on the Park Services' proposals for Cumberland. "Most of their recommendations are excellent," Neu-
hauser said in a report to Conservancy members last

December.

Though the general public seems to be somewhat lack-

ing in faith in regard to the responsiveness of bureaucracy,

Neuhauser seems to feel public involvement in planning

for Cumberland has paid off handsomely.

"The (Park Service) recommendations reflect the con-

tributions of the public over the last two years, and are

vastly superior to the in-house plans drafted prior to the

1972 enabling legislation (which established the National
Seashore)," he wrote. "The NPS recommendations are

subject to further public review, as will be the general
management plan, the wilderness study and the Environ-

mental Impact Statement."
On the issue of maximum daily visitation to the Seashore, Neuhauser commented, "The NPS plan sets a maximum of 1 ,000 people at any one time. This is a
great improvement over previously mentioned figures of

5,000 or more."
On wilderness: "The NPS is proposing that some

20,000 acres (about two-thirds of the total highland on Cumberland) north of Stafford Place be in wilderness.

But, incredibly, they are also proposing that a road run
right through the middle of it! In addition, the NPS is

proposing to provide jitney transportation into the wil-
derness area so that two historical enclaves, Half Moon
Bluff and High Point, (on Cumberland's northern end)

can be visited by people unwilling to walk. These sites,

my while interesting, are not, in

opinion, of such spec-

14

Outdoors it? Georgia

Visitors to Cumberland find an
enchanting island of pristine beauty all too rare along the coast. Visitation to the National Seashore has been
limited by the NPS in an effort to
preserve this naturalness.
The ruins of Dungeness are a specter of Cumberland 's fascinating history.

16

Outdoors ip Georgia

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tacular nature or importance as to warrant slicing the island's prime wilderness area in two. Let a visit to Half
Moon Bluff or High Point become a part of the reward of
the back country wilderness experience. Visitors interested in being transported to historical features have ample opportunity to do so in the southern part of the island. Maintenance of the buildings in the enclaves could be allowed under Department wilderness management
provisions which allow minimum management necessary
to protect the resource."
The issue of mainland access to Cumberland Island has been a hot one, especially in Camden County, where the three small municipalities of Woodbine, Kingsland and St. Marys would all like to see the mainland access
point located in or near their territory so they can reap the benefits of Cumberland-bound tourists.
The Park Service has recommended as its first choice a site known as Point Peter, due east of St. Marys and one of the closest points of land to the island. St. Marys, now
serving as the NPS temporary mainland headquarters, is not too happy with this recommendation. Nor is the owner of the Point Peter property, who vows he will not
relinquish his land without a struggle.
The choice of Point Peter as the mainland access is one supported by most conservation organizations who say the natural beauty of the Point Peter site would, among
other things, help attune visitors to the lovely tranquility of Cumberland.
Another debatable issue is that of concessions. NPS, though not recommending facilities for horseback or bike riding on Cumberland, is in favor of vending machines on the island which will dispense soft drinks, snacks and so on. Some conservationists worry that the sale of such items would lead to a litter problem and might encourage the vending company to lobby for expanded operations. At the moment, only water is available on Cumberland and visitors must bring any food or

snacks they plan to eat while there.

The Park Service is proposing a total of five primitive

campgrounds, each limited to 20 visitors at a time, which

will require advance reservations. Three of the primitive
-- campgrounds are already open to the public at least, to

that portion of the public willing to rough it. Hickory
Hill, closest to the NPS visitor center, is over four miles

on foot and has no fresh water, while the Brickhill Bluff

site is a 20-mile round trip hike. The only campground

with fresh water available is Yankee Paradise, and out-

landers are warned about the strong-tasting sulfur water

which comes from the artesian well there.

For campers a little less daring, Cumberland has a

small, 16-site campground with water and restrooms

about half a mile from the dock. Confirmed reservations

for this campground and for the Cumberland Queen are

required, and campers must bring whatever food and

supplies they will need during their stay.

Although it is fairly certain that some will be displeased

with final plans for Cumberland, no matter what those

plans entail, the National Park Service seems to be mak-

ing a supreme effort to make the best decisions possible

for the island.

President Jimmy Carter, who visited Cumberland dur-

ing his days as governor of Georgia, recently instructed

his newly-appointed Secretary of the Interior, Cecil

Andrus, to get to know the island.

Secretary Andrus, who made his Cumberland visit this

April his first trip outside of Washington since his ap-

pointment, said the Department of the Interior has every

intention of preserving the island's historic resources and

sheer beauty.

"The President told me Cumberland was absolutely

beautiful," Andrus said, adding that plans for the

National Seashore should come to fruition by 1982,

when as many as 1 ,060 people a day will be able to enjoy

one of the most magnificent islands in the world.

@

Jupe 1977

17

Buggies

-- Those horse
and buggy days the good oV days they were. The late 19th century. The conveyance of the time was, of course, the horse and carriage. Over dusty red clay roads, crossing so
many covered bridges, past acres and acres
of cotton, the fashionable Georgia family spent
many a Sunday afternoon visiting relatives in their
horse-drawn buggy.
The Carmichael Buggy Company in Jackson, a family operation as most were in the good oV days, made some of the loveliest of these graceful "Sunday" buggies. For years, the
Carmichael brothers, J.R., A.H. and J.B., provided countless Georgians
with their most advanced mode of transportation. Ash and yellow poplar body with wheels and gears of hickory, the Carmichael Buggy was elegance supreme at what seems now a very modest price of $40. Today the Carmichael buggies are all but forgotten. If one could be found, it would be a valued treasure. For the Carmichael Buggy
Company was a victim of progress . . . and Henry Ford. Now only a
vivid memory remains for us to treasure.

Catalogs furnished by Mr. J. R. Carmichael, Jackson, Georgia

18

Outdoors it? Georgia

No. 16 Phaeton Top Buggy, Slick Body, Side Spring

The Home of the carmlchael ftuocjy Company, Jackson, (la.

Jupe 1977

19

No. 6 End Spring Buggy, Panel Back, Wood Hangers

No. 39 Farmer's Double-Seal Buggy, with Canopy Top

20

Outdoors it? Georgia

Screwed Rim

Oval Edge Clip
Jac^ffCa

No. 32. Extension Top Surrey.

1000 Mile Axle

Jui)c 1977

21

By Susan K. Wood
Photography by Bob Busby

Covered bridges have led something of a schizophrenic existence, it seems. For some of us, they have a certain mystique, for they are antiques, relics of a horse and buggy past, relics which are in danger of extinction.
But to others, a covered bridge is just one means of getting to the other side of the river. It happens that the conveyance has a roof and smells old and musty. But artistic? Valuable? Hardly. "These old bridges must have
been here forever and a day. My grandpa said they used
to have picnics down here all the time. But they're noth-

ing special."

Covered bridges, though once numbering 250 or more

Now in Georgia, used to be just a way of life.

they're

a reminder of that way of life, a time-honored piece of
-- -- Georgia's and America's past.

But covered bridges are not just a Southern legacy,

though we, ethnocentric that we are, would probably

claim it. Actually, the first covered bridge in the country

was built in 1805 in Philadelphia. And to this day, Penn-

sylvania probably has the greatest number of wooden

covered bridges. But some of the country's longest and

most unusual ones were built south of the Mason-Dixon

line.
Today, however, the rate of disappearance of such
time-honored edifices has soared in the South. Where once upwards of 250 covered bridges graced Georgia's streams and rivers, now only about 20 remain in 18 or so counties. While this is more than in any other southeastern state, the number continually diminishes. In 1972, the last of ten original covered bridges in Troup
County burned; officials felt arson was involved. On
March 19 of this year, Steel's Bridge near Dawsonville was also burned by arsonists. The South, it seems, never

22

Outdoors ip Georgia

Jui?e 1977

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24

Outdoors \t) Georgia

held much esteem for its bridges. They were nice to have, made fording much easier, but were built, used, and torn or burned down, if the need arose. Apparently some
Georgians still hold that attitude.
Just why did old-timers go to all the trouble of building a roof over a wooden bridge anyway? Many thought
it was to provide refuge in bad weather, or to help skittish horses over the bridge, but that wasn't the idea at all. Neither was it their idea to build a combination barn (for storing hay) and bridge, or to protect the planks which formed the actual walkway. The reason was, of course, very practical: to protect the main structural timbers, and so add years to the life of the bridge.
Timothy Palmer, a master bridge builder whose bridge design was patented in 1797, estimated that by adding a roof and walls he could add forty or so years to the span. It was, obviously, much easier to replace a tin roof than to replace a 100-foot wooden span. So, the covered bridge, or more romantically the "kissing bridge,"
evolved.
Typical of covered bridges in our state was the Watson Mill Bridge, spanning the South Fork of the Broad River which is the border between Oglethorpe and Madison
counties. Now the focus of the newly reopened Watson
Mill Bridge State Park, the bridge was restored by the Department of Transportation in 1973 at a cost of
$87,214. W. W. King, one of a family of noted bridge builders, built the four-span bridge of Town lattice design in 1885 for a mere $3,228. At 236 feet long, this is
-- -- the longest covered bridge in Georgia. An old grist
mill hence the name, Watson Mill was adjacent to the bridge, as was often the case with covered bridges in this state. In fact, Watson Mill predates the bridge by close to 100 years. Later a flour and corn mill, a wool factory and, by 191 1, a power plant were built here. The power plant furnished power for Jefferson Cotton Mills, 12 miles away in Crawford.
The grist mill, the remains of which are all but obliterated, was originally owned by one Smith, Bush and Co. but was sold in 1871 to Gabriel Watson who gave the mill its name.
In the late 1890s and early 1900s, the mill floor was the community dance hall, of sorts: square dancing and other social activities echoed from the banks of the
Broad River on many a Saturday night. And the second Saturday of May was a big day for the folks of north-
east Georgia. People from Winder, Athens, Crawford, Lexington and Elberton flocked to the bridge at Watson's
-- Mill for their annual picnic games, lots of conversation,
good food and, chances are, a lively square dance after sundown.
W. W. King was the son of perhaps the most famous covered bridge builder in the Southeast. Horace King built an enviable reputation in Georgia and Alabama, a remarkable feat in itself. The time was the early 1 800s. Horace King was a slave, of Negro, Indian and Cau-
casian lineage.
King was born in 1807, a slave on a South Carolina plantation. It's said that he built at least one covered
Jupc 1977

bridge in South Carolina before he left there at the age of 23.
Acquired by a builder, John Godwin, young Horace obviously displayed extraordinary talents. So extraordinary, in fact, that Godwin sent the young black "up North" for a decent education. In 1832, builder Godwin
and craftsman King both moved to what is now Phenix City, Alabama where Godwin secured bridge-building contracts and King successfully plied his trade. This was
the beginning of a 40-year career for Horace King. In 1 848, Godwin freed King, an act which could have
doomed King had he not earned such respect and recognition. But King had been successful and he had made friends, and these friends in Georgia and Alabama got
an act passed in the legislatures of both states which would permit an ex-slave to conduct business on equal footing with other contractors. Again, remember the
-- year 1848. King had obviously made some influential
friends.
Horace King settled in LaGrange and built the very first covered bridge in Georgia, spanning the mighty
Chattahoochee in Columbus. He went on to supervise the
construction of at least a dozen others over that same river. His sons, William, John and Horace, Jr., carried on the skills of their father. It was William who built the bridge at Watson's Mill as well as the one which is now at Stone Mountain Park. That particular bridge originally spanned the Oconee River in downtown Athens; the College Avenue bridge had been trod by many a University of Georgia student before being moved to Stone Mountain and restored by the Department of Transportation. Yes, the King family legends and legacy remains with us
today. Georgia bridges were built primarily during the latter
half of the 1800s, a period of great reconstruction in the
South. Since many of the original covered bridges were
burned by Confederate troops as they fled the onslaught of Sherman's army, replacements by the score were built.
Cutting and fitting of the oak and pine planks and the oak and maple pegs was usually accomplished high and dry, in a nearby field. Builders numbered the planks, then disassembled their works and rebuilt their bridges over stone piers. While working on a bridge for the Oconee River in Milledgeville, Horace King received an urgent request to, essentially, drop what he was doing and hurry
to Albany to construct a bridge over the Flint. No one
knows why the request was so urgent, but King complied. Ingenious that he was, Horace King loaded up his Milledgeville chords and lattices, put them on a train bound for Albany, then built the Oconee River bridge over the Flint River. So the early days of pre-fab bridge construc-
tion began in the 1 800s.
In Georgia, the Town lattice truss design was the most common used by the King family and other bridge builders. Designed by Ithiel Town of the Carolinas, this
type provided a strong bridge that was cheap and easy to
build. The Town lattice bridge resembled a long garden
trellis when viewed from the side, since it was a series of overlapping triangles with no arches like the Palmer de-
25

-- Watson Mill Bridge the focal point of the state park
bearing its name.
sign and no uprights like the kingpost and queenpost
designs.
The only other types seen in Georgia with much fre-
quency were the kingpost and queenpost. Kingpost design was the earliest formal bridge truss design and, when viewed from the side, was essentially one large triangle spanning the river. The queenpost evolved later when a horizontal crosspiece expanded the kingpost's peak.
Old covered bridges have enjoyed a romantic, though perhaps legendary, reputation. "Wishing bridges" they were called: if you dropped a bright shiny penny through a crack in the floor and made a wish very quickly, then your wish would come true. While this sounds more like fiction than fact, the "kissing bridge" name was likely
well-earned. And another old custom is altogether too in-
triguing to be ignored!
Young girls often nervously spent most of a summer's
day weaving a chain of daisies to stretch over the entrance of a nearby covered bridge. Then the girl would wait behind the nearest rock or clump of grass because the
26

first to break her chain of flowers would be her new beau.

In his book on covered bridges, Covered Bridges of the

South, Richard Allen Saunders related the story a Ken-

tucky lady recalled for him. One particular summer day,

she waited for most of an afternoon for someone to come

to break her chain, only to have it rudely destroyed by a

silly boy on a bicycle. Much later she explained with a

twinkle in her eye, "I was mad as hops then, but I've been

married to him now for over fifty years."

Watson Mill Bridge is one of only three covered bridges

in Georgia that have been restored on its original site.

One hundred acres surrounding the bridge were given to

the state in 1969 by Morris Bryan, president of Jefferson

Mills. About forty additional acres were purchased from

local landowners. The state park opened in 1969, was

closed in September of 1975, but reopened this past

spring. Visitors can once again picnic, camp and hike

within the shadow of Georgia's longest covered bridge.

Over the years covered bridges have suffered the rav-

ages of fire, flood and progress. Watson Mill Bridge and

the few others remaining in Georgia are our last vestiges

of a long-gone era. Let's hope the covered bridges don't

become long-gone as well.



Outdoors ip Georgia

Ogeechee
Fisherman

By Dick Davis Photography by Bob Busby

"Geech" is his monicker, and the river is his
life.
His real name is Charles Harden, Sr., and the
river is the Ogeechee as it flows southeastward through Jenkins, Screven and Bulloch counties.
Geech is a legend in his own time on this
-- river a master angler when it comes to red-
breast or jacks, a master artisan when it comes to boatbuilding, and a master of his own time and destiny as few men are.
Geech epitomizes a lifestyle that many long
for these days, but few attain. In a combination of Ogeechee River fishing, boatbuilding, quail and rabbit hunting, an occasional welding and steel fabrication job and a happy life with his family, he finds total peace and happiness.
And his happiness shows. His entire being
and demeanor reflect the inner peace he knows. Here is one who has found his niche in life and is enjoying each day of it.
Harden looks you in the eye as he emphasizes
Jui?e 1977

some point on the how-to-do-its of Ogeechee
River fishing. His hazel eyes piercing but
-- -- kindly mirror the confidence and decades of
experience represented here. You get the feeling
that the usual "fish story" is no part of Geech's
repertoire. He gives it to you straight and mat-
ter-of-factly, and the listener feels he is being privileged to read the pages of an encyclopedia on Ogeechee River angling.
Geech speaks of the river as one who has em-
braced it, been embraced by it, and seems to
have joined with it in an eternal partnership. He
knows this river, loves it, respects it, fosters it, and the flowing waters return their bounty in exchange. "I've fished all of them in this part of the
country," he says, his gaze reaching out over the almost-pristine beauty of the Ogeechee. "Yea, I've fished them all, but I wouldn't give this river for any of them."
And he loves to talk about the river and his life. From the moment we met him through
27

Rangers Jim Hethcox and Dennis Haralson, we
were treated to the informative, sincere and
warm friendliness that characterizes Geech
Harden. Each of Harden's boats is meticulously hand-
crafted, and each is a prized work of art and superior utility. This unique design is made ex-
-- pressly for the Ogeechee waters the result of
decades of experience on the river, and a reflection of the skilled mind and talented hands that
build the craft. Low-profile, flat-bottomed craft are the ear-
mark of many Ogeechee River fishermen, but
two particular elements of Harden's boat design
distinguish the craft he produces from many seen on the river. His boats are actually more
narrow in the stern than in the bow. This is achieved with a sweeping flair of the sides and gunwales toward the stern. Geech says this provides improved maneuverability and control of
28

Outdoors ip Georgia

the boat when fishing the Ogeechee River with its typically slow-moving water, especially when weaving among the overhanging tree boughs and vegetation along the river banks and seek-
ing a likely spot to drop his fly for a redbreast.
An equally important facet of Geech's boat
design and construction is the addition of spon-
sons to the forward underside of the hull. The sponsons give added stability and actually con-
vert the flat-bottomed craft into a three-point hydro.
Harden's boats stand apart from mass-produced craft. Each is custom-tooled with the interior fashioned to the particular likes and tastes of its owner. Each is a work of beauty and a
showpiece. Mahogany is utilized for finishing on
seats, fish chests and control panels, with beautiful inlays that carry the initials of the owner or other chosen designs. The dark mahogany in the lighter-grained woods, or vice versa, provides a
Jiipc 1977

vivid contrast for the inlays. Ponderosa pine is utilized for the top rails of Harden's boats. Urethane paint and epoxy is used on the exterior of
the craft.
Geech says the art of boatbuilding has come to him through two families and three genera-
tions with the pattern evolving through 100
years.
Time and a production rate have no place in boatbuilding by Geech Harden. Utility, beauty and durability are the essence of his work, and no effort or time is spared. "In the last 15 years I've averaged 5 to 10 boats a year," Geech relates, "but when the good fishing season comes
in, that ends the boat business for awhile. I've
fished away many a good job." And when he says
this, it is evident he would have it no other way. The big fishing season on the Ogeechee begins
about the middle of May and continues through November. When the redbreast bed, Geech Har-
29

den is in piscatorial heaven. He and Charles, Jr. "move up and down the river, jumping from
bedding ground to bedding ground, usually making a good haul at each stop. But between bed-
ding spots we may go three or four miles down river before we can put some more in our fish
well."
"Redbreast," says Geech, "are like quail.
They gang up and bed in small potholes in the
side of the high, sandy banks. When they're feed-
ing, they lay looking back at the bank, and I fish about three feet out from the bank." As he
spoke, he looked down river and pointed out a
likely bass spot. "Ordinary times with the water at normal level and speed, I'll get several good ones there."
Geech's fishing crew consists of two. He sits
-- -- on the bow seat and does the angling while his
paddler often his son, Charles, Jr. uses the
oars in the stern. "You gotta have a paddler to do any real flyrod fishing," Geech explains. "That way you can really move in on the banks where the redbreast are." And son Charles puts the boat right where his dad wants it. They use an outboard to move up or down the river and shift to the oars when a bank area looks promis-
ing.
The "bug," Geech calls it, is his lure for redbreast. His own creation, the bug has a yellow body, rubber tails "with as much life as possible," and carries a forged flat hook that is feathered. To Geech's way of thinking, the forged hook is a must for redbreast, "because it won't straighten out like an ordinary hook
would."
Though the redbreast and chain pickerel are
-- his favored catches, Geech also gets his share of
redfin pike, "stocky bass" as he calls them "a
--12-inch keeper may weigh a pound-and-a-half," channel catfish and shad. And for those who say the chain pickerel
-- or jacks are not a good eating fish, Geech has
an answer. Fillet them and lay them on a flat surface with the meat up. With a knife, cut across
and lengthwise many times to break up the small bones, and then batter and fry. He rates it a
delicacy.
Partial to the flyrod for redbreast, Geech
switches to a light casting rod to fish the tributaries of the Ogeechee. "But a lot of people still fish with a cane pole," he says, "and they don't
30

hurt for fish to eat."

Geech and his son like to start in at daylight
with their fishing in the Ogeechee. "We taper off
in mid-morning and then start in again about two or three in the afternoon. Right at dark is a good time, too."

Either with a flyrod or casting rod, Geech works like a smoothly running machine. With a

seemingly effortless flick of the wrist, he puts his lure where he wants, whatever the obstructions,
and once in the water he keeps it moving. Even with a wind whipping the Ogeechee and the

creek, his casts fall true to the mark, almost as if he had a built-in wind correction.

To catch the jacks (chain pickerel) Geech
uses a bucktail spinner with a treble hook and a split-tail pork rind. The team of Charles Harden Sr. and Jr. moves up Buckhead Creek, and after a time without any action, Geech and son turn their craft downstream as the casting continues. As the bucktail plops on the water, a big chain pickerel hits, and Geech boats another fat and sassy 20-inch jack.

Geech Harden grew up with a fishing pole or
hunting rod in his hand. He started paddling on the Ogeechee when "I was barely 1 3 years old,
and there were very few paved roads to reach the river. I was born and raised in Richmond
County. We usually fished the Savannah River
until the first of May, and then we'd head for Briar Creek and the Ogeechee. Been living in
the woods and on the river all my life. There's no better life. When we get young people started
hunting and fishing, we don't have any trouble

out of 'em."

And when you hear Geech say it, you know that here's a man who is living the philosophy

he espouses.

"I've fed my family many days on rabbits, fish and quail, but I take only what I and my family
-- can eat, and I go by the 12-inch bass rule. No
use to waste any leave some for tomorrow and
next year and the other hunters or fishermen.
And you know, I believe more and more people
-- are beginning to do that way and that's good,

that's good."

It's good to hear Geech Harden say that, be-

cause you know he's speaking from the heart.

And you can almost hear the river echoing a

"Right on, partner!"

e

Outdoors it? Georgia

Jupc 1977

31

Outdoors Ipveptory

A Guide to

Fishing in

Georgia
This month we at Outdoors in Georgia turn our attention to freshwater fish camps on Georgia rivers and to public fishing areas. Fishing season by now is well underway, and most of
you have probably found a favorite place or two, but in case you're still looking, try these.

ALTAMAHA Adamson Hunting & Fishing
Camp, Mr. & Mrs. Parker Boat rental, motor rental, overnight facilities, launching ramp, camping. Altamaha Fishing Camp, Ed Tomville Boat rentals, tackle, bait, food, launching ramp, camping,
overnight facilities.
Deen's Landing, Grady Deen Launching ramp, bait, tackle, camping, boat rental, motor
rental, food.
Paradise Park, W. D. Burden, Boat rental, overnight facilities, launching ramp, bait, tackle, camping, food.
Two-Way Fishing Camp,
F. D. Culpepper Guides, launching hoist, bait, tackle, camping, overnight facilities, food, gas.
OCHLOCKONEE (no facilities)
OCONEE (See Crooked Creek Fish Camp, Lake Sinclair)
OGEECHEE Coleman Lake, A. J. Leonhard
Boat rental, overnight facilities, food, launching ramp, camping. Love's Fishing Camp, 0. F. Love, Jr. Bait, tackle, restaurant.
Ogeechee Fishing Camp L E. Sallettee
Launching ramp, camping.
SATILLA 3R Fish Camp, J. M. Davis Boat rental, overnight facilities, launching ramp, bait, camping. Satilla KOA Boat rental, cabins, camping, launching ramp, bait.
SUWANNEE Griffis Fish Camp
Mrs. Alice Griffis Overnight facilities, bait, tackle, camping.

Phone

Location Nearest Town

654-2657 Ga. 261 Glennville

264-2342 off US 341

Brunswick

367-2949 US 1

Baxley

427-6139 Ga. 341 Gardi

265-8268 US 17 Brunswick

589-2637 Ga. 56 & Midville US1
925-3409 US 17 Richmond Hil
727-2443 Ga. 67 E. Richmond Hili

off Ga.
252

Waynesville

462-5317 US 84 Atkinson

Ga. 177 Fargo

32

OKEFENOKEE Okefenokee Swamp Park, Jimmy Walker Boat rental & guide service by
reservation only.
Stephen C. Foster State Park, Billy Thomas Boat rental, overnight facilities, launching ramp, tackle, camping, food. Suwannee Canal Recreation Area (Camp Cornelia) John Eadie Boat rental, launching ramp, bait, tackle, guides, motor rental.
HIGH FALLS
High Falls State Park, S. L. Letson Boat rental, motor rental, food, launching ramp, bait, tackle, camping.
ROCK EAGLE Rock Eagle Lake, F. W. Fitch
Boat rental, launching ramp, camping.
TOBESOFKEE
Tobesofkee Recreation Area, Clyde Walters Launching ramp, camping, overnight facilities, food, boat rentals.

Phone 283-0583

Location Nearest Town US 1 & Waycross Ga. 177

496-7509 Ga. 177 Fargo

496-7836 Ga. 121 Folkston

994-5080 I-75

Jackson

485-6980 US 441 Eatonton

746-7624

I-475, Ga. 74
US 80

Macon

Public Fishing Areas

ALTAMAHA

Altamaha Waterfowl Area, Gene Love

437-4569 US 17

Darien

ARROWHEAD
Arrowhead Public Fishing Area, Danny Roddenberry

295-6023 US 27N Rome

BALDWIN
Baldwin State Forest Public
Fishing Area, Tommy Wood

453-4200 US 441 Milledgeville

ELBERT COUNTY
Elbert County Public Fishing Area, Royce Harrington

595-1619 Hwy. 72 Elberton

EVANS COUNTY
Evans County Public Fishing Area, James R. Nix Boat ramp, picnic area.

685-2145 US 280 Claxton

Mcduffie
McDuffie Public Fishing Area, Ed Henderson Launching ramp, camping.

595-1619 US 78 Dearing

TREUTLEN COUNTY
Treutlen County Public Fishing Area, James R. Nix Boat ramp, picnic area.

685-2145 Co. Rd. S1912

Soperton

WEBSTER COUNTY
Webster County Public Fishing Area, Paul Loska Boat ramp, picnic area.

995-4486 Hwy. 41 Preston

WILLIAMS
Williams Public Fishing Area, Mercer Norton Picnic area.

273-1167 US 280 Cordele

Outdoors it? Georgia

Letters to tl?e Editor

I have read the "Letters to the Editor" concerning people not renewing their subscriptions, because the magazine is not what it used to be.
When the magazine changed its for-
mat a few years ago, I felt like they do. That you, the editors, were changing a fishing and hunting magazine to a National Geographic. After reading a few of the following months issues, I came to realize that there is a lot more to Georgia than hunting and

fishing.
I have used OIG as a guide in helping me buy backpacking equipment
and in deciding that I'm going to "discover Georgia first" this summer.
I'm sorry that the magazine lost those subscriptions, but I really feel sorry for those that chose not to renew their subscriptions. They are the ones that have lost.
Allan Willis Thomasville, Georgia
***

Have you ever considered putting
-- labels on back of magazine so

We cover isn't ruined?

receive many

other magazines like that, or they are

in plastic covers with labels on that.

I'm sure the plastic would be too ex-

pensive, however.

W. S. Obenshain

Atlanta, Georgia

***

That superb winter woods shot by Bob Busby on the cover of the February issue is one of the finest scenes of this kind I have ever seen. The cover, the backlight shot on page 23 and the double page wide angle on pages 2425 prompts the following questions:
1. What's Bob Busby gonna do
for an encore? 2. Whodunit on pages 23 and
24-25? Arthur F. Irwin Montgomery, Alabama
Editor's Note: Bob Busby should
have been given credit for the photo essay as well. Thanks for the compliment.

My wife and I have been given a
three year gift subscription to Out-
doors in Georgia, and we enjoy it very much.
Now we would like to share it with my wife's brother who is stationed in
Hawaii for two years on his tour of
duty in the Navy. He misses Georgia so much that maybe this will help
him get over it. Mr. and Mrs. David Thompson, Jr.
GA Jeffersonville,
$*$
You are doing an excellent job
with this magazine. I don't hunt or fish, but I thoroughly enjoy your other articles such as the ones on minerals and rocks, historical places, state parks, birds and others.
The pictures are beautiful.
This is one of the best magazines I take. Keep it going.
Willie Lee Moseley
GA Statesboro,
***
Last month before we left for our
vacation in Georgia, I wrote and asked for the October 1976 issue of
OIG which I never received. When
we returned on Saturday it was
-- there I can see why I never got it,
it looked so good with that Leonard Lee Rue photograph on the cover, it was probably "shortstopped.' 'Thanks for sending it.
Can you tell me if there are art
prints available of the excellent cen-
terfold painting by James R. Darnell

of the old Quail Wagon in the Feb-
ruary issue? I imagine by this time you have had similar inquiries about
the painting.
Joseph A. Nell Wormleysburg, Pennsylvania
Editor's Note: Yes, we have had many
inquiries about Jim Darnell's Quail Wagon. At last report, prints of the painting were being made. Contact Mr. Darnell at Route 1, Box 308, Oakwood, Georgia 30566.
I recently obtained a copy of your magazine, Outdoors in Georgia, at the "Georgia on Parade" booth you had at Atlanta.
I found so much pleasure viewing
my copy that I would like to have a
subscription to the magazine. Also, I
am enclosing a check for two extra gift subscriptions for two of my friends. I know they will appreciate the magazine as much as I will.
May I once again tell you what a
fine magazine you offer on Georgia.
I'm looking forward to my first copy. Dennis Garmon
Lilburn, Georgia
***
We have had a number of notes
and telephone calls which were highly complimentary of the story and photographs in Solo Hike of your Janu-
-- ary issue Robert Ottley is one of
our eleven grandchildren. John K. Ottley Atlanta, Georgia

ATTENTION FISHERMEN! Fishermen of all ages will have the oppor-
tunity to win a free weekend for themselves and their immediate family at one of Georgia's state park cottages by catching the largest bass, bream, catfish or longest trout at a state park on July 4, 1977. Simply make the catch and have it verified by at least two park staff personnel to be eligible to win. There will be one statewide winner in each of the four categories. Winners and their immediate families will be allowed to use one state park cottage for one weekend (Friday and Saturday Nights, normal check-in and check-out times) at no charge between November 1 and January 31. Each park office will have the necessary cards to be completed to report your catch. Catches must be made between day break and sunset, July 4, 1977. Georgia fishing laws must be observed.

Jupc 1977

33