Ride & Rally: Cross Country MN to FLA Ep 5

Cross Country Sportster Ride Charleston to St Augustine

After a day off in Charleston, I was itching to get back on my bike. With a little over 500 miles left, my goal of crossing the country on my Sportster was right around the corner.

Heading out of Charleston I took SC-17 headed south towards Savannah. Savannah is a great town to swing through to stretch your legs and grab a bite to eat with many dining options that surround the historic squares there. One square in particular put Savannah on the map worldwide gracing the silver screen with a gentleman waiting at a bus stop. Chippewa square was the filming location for the famous bus stop narration and scene in the 1994 film Forrest Gump. While there isn’t actually a bus stop there and the one used in the movie was a set placed in the middle of the road in front of Chippewa Square, you can see the square and then head over to the Savannah History Museum a few blocks away to see the infamous bench used in the movie on display.

Between Charleston and St Augustine there are a ton of small islands with quaint small southern towns. I chose to park it for the night at St. Simons Island, Georgia. It is a great ride off the freeway over saltwater marshes to a quintessential American town. On the southern tip of St. Simons Island is the lighthouse and the town center. One of the main drags, Mallery St., is lined with family owned restaurants and bars that were perfect for visiting after parking the bike at a nearby hotel to spend the evening mixing in with the locals and hearing about the town.

The next morning while prepping for the ride to St. Augustine I checked the weather and St. Simons was surrounded by purple thunderstorms on the doppler. After making it this far in beautiful weather I knew my luck was about to run out. With no end to the storms in sight between St. Simons and Jacksonville, I zoomed in on the doppler and found a tiny opening that would be my best option to make it back to the sun on the other side of Jacksonville. After waiting for the small break in storms I hopped on the Sportster and jetted to Kingsland on the Georgia/Florida border to check the doppler again to see if I needed to adjust my route. A quick squirt of gas into the peanut tank and I was making a beeline towards St Augustine. Luck was on my side as I made it to St Augustine only getting hit with a few drops of rain. It was a miracle considering the forecast that morning and I couldn’t have been happier to not have to huddle under a bridge for hours on end.

The short distance from St. Simons to St. Augustine gave me the afternoon to explore around St. Augustine. St. Augustine is the oldest town in the US and that is celebrated within the community. I started the afternoon out visiting Castillo de San Marcos National Monument. An old stone Spanish fortress built over 340 years ago that protected the town against the British army for many years. The gun deck offered great views of the inlet. From the Castillo de San Marcos I headed to the Colonial Quarter. The Colonial Quarter was built with the support of the University of Florida Historic St. Augustine as a site where visitors can experience the feel of colonial Spanish history, architecture and the rich heritage of the area. With multiple stores and restaurants, one could spend a better part of the day and evening there, and I did just that. With live music at most of the venues after dinner, it was easy to get lost into the experience after a year of no live music. It was a welcomed return to chopping it up with locals and tourists alike, enjoying some honky tonk, and kicking back.

With the elation knowing that my goal of riding across the country would be completed in less than 24 hours it was hard to sleep. The next day would bring a short but scenic ride down the A1A along the beach overlooking the ocean heading into Daytona Beach and finishing my cross country ride.