Friends of the Flint

As a guy who's kayaked and canoed the Flint River more than once and as a guy who grew up on the banks of it, I have a great appreciation for those who've helped protect that beautiful, natural river that flows freely until it hits the dam at Lake Blackshear. When President Carter was governor, he prevented a plan to dam the the river near Sprewell Bluff, which is among the most beautiful natural sites in Georgia.

President Carter will be appearing in my hometown of Oglethorpe on Friday, June 27 for a celebration to mark the end of Paddle Georgia 2008, which will take 325 adventurers on a week-long, 95-mile kayak/canoe voyage down the Flint River from Woodbury to Montezuma June 21-27. The Flint is the only thing between Montezuma and Oglethorpe. I was told that God made the Flint River to keep Montezuma folks out of Oglethorpe, but I'll be danged if those Montezuma people didn't go and build a bridge. I was also told that the Flint River started when someone left an outdoor faucet running somewhere outside of Atlanta, so take that for what it's worth.

The event featuring Mr. Jimmy is a fish fry beginning at 6 p.m. at the old junior high school on Sumter Street. Tickets are $25 and very limited. Click here to get them or for more information.

The menu will include fried fish, french fries, onion rings, hushpuppies, fried vegetables, cheese grits, and cole slaw. The program will be followed with dancing and "foot stomping" along with a local bluegrass band.

To learn more about Paddle Georgia, click here.

Lake Blackshear

When I was a kid, we went to Lake Blackshear (between Americus and Cordele) quite a bit. There wasn't a lot to do at Veterans State Park then except for fishing, boating, swimming and camping. The place has changed a lot, though. And it seemed like an appropriate place to visit on Memorial Day weekend.

We took my son Saylor there on Saturday, and the place has changed a lot. It has a wonderful resort and conference center, a nice marina and a bar/restaurant called the Cypress Grill which presents a slew of pretty good musical acts through the year. (Granted, the June 14 show we'll be attending there is a Bon Jovi tribute band called Slippery When Wet. My wife and some female friends from back home are planning that one — go figure.) Most impressive is the updated museum of war history and the displays of tanks, planes, helicopters and artillery outside. When I was a kid, you could actually climb in a couple of the tanks, but that's a no-no now, though Saylor got to peek in a couple. And the golf course, which I haven't played in over a decade, still looks nice.

If you've never been, give it a shot. If you haven't been in a long time, give it another shot. Saylor gives the place a thumbs-up. Or rock on. Or something like that.