Gone With The Wind Tour - Day 2

Saturday, April 2nd – F.D. Roosevelt State Park – Day 53 

The kids woke up and instantly went to find Amos and Tallulah. They were obsessed. We were afraid they would wake everyone up but Amos and Tallulah seemed to pop out pretty quickly. Gen and I laid in bed for a while and opened up our window to another amazing view. The lake was mirror flat and reflected stunning stone cabins on the opposite side. These cabins, like most stone structures in the area, were probably built by the Civilian Construction Corps in the 1930’s as part of Roosevelt’s New Deal which put people to work building parks after the depression. 

 Gen and I were pushing slowly to get out early. Rachel had gone to pick up Josh from his race, so the kids were unoccupied. They kept moving towards Rachel and Josh’s campsite to play with toys that were left out and we kept telling them to leave their stuff alone. Charlotte said they were told they could play with the toys but I was still uncertain. Mary took Charlotte and the car to go to the camp store but ended up taking off to see the visitor centre and the stables as well. We were ready to go but stuck waiting, so we made breakfast and the whole departure was delayed. Josh and Rachel were back and the kids resumed playing. Finally, we were all ready to go. 

 We stopped by the visitor centre to get junior ranger books and see the view. The visitor’s centre was on one of the highest points in the area and the view from the back was stunning. There were also stone cabins for rent nearby and it would be so nice to come back and rent one without the kids. 

 This was the Gone with the Wind tour day 2! Our first destination was south of Atlanta at a home called Stately Oaks. Margaret Mitchell, the author, had family nearby and frequently passed by the house. It was debatably the inspiration for Tara. We walked the grounds and saw the outhouse, the boarding house, and the outdoor kitchen. We signed up for the guided tour of the main house. The tour featured local family history of Margaret Mitchell and the subsequent relationship to characters in the book. The lovely tour guide, in full period garb, also gave history of the house and how the civil war impacted the residents. Apparently the Union army camped across the road, soldiers scavenged in the house, scaring the grandmother and the few slaves who stuck around, but then they got an apology from an officer and a guard to ensure it didn’t happen again. You could also see the life of people of that era from the possessions in the house. I have little interest in Gone With the Wind but the tour was neat to see. 

We then travelled to the nearby town of McDonough. After a brief shopping excursion and Mary and I buying food from a fast-food place in the same plaza. Mary was in love with the snow crab combo she got. We visited the central square which was very pleasant with shops and restaurants around the outside. The McDonough’s in our group also took a bunch of pictures in their namesake. 

 The next debate was whether to add an hour of driving to visit 12 Oaks. A current Airbnb in an Antebellum mansion that once inspired Margaret Mitchell’s mansion in Gone with the Wind. It was a spectacular house. We couldn’t go inside but the outside was massive columns and beautiful features. Mary and Gen were thrilled and couldn’t say enough about it. 

 The two-hour drive back to the campsite was long but everyone was very satisfied with their day. When we finally reached the campsite Josh and Rachel had the North Carolina-Duke NCAA semi-final on a tv outside their RV. We cheered on North Carolina because Rachel was raised in North Carolina and Josh would get bragging rights by winning his family’s NCAA bracket competition. North Carolina won, the kids went to bed and we stayed up chatting late into the night. It was an absolute pleasure to meet Rachel and Josh and we hope one day to host them in Ontario.