Camak Railroad Day

George was looking at the schedule for one of our favorite bluegrass groups, Little Roy and Lizzie. He saw they would be playing at the “Camak Railroad Day” on April 6, which we had never heard of, but since it combines trains and bluegrass, it sounded like something we should attend.                                                                                                                                                                                   The Little Roy and Lizzie Show at Camak                                                  

Camak is about 35 miles west of Augusta and a little south of I-20. Some very nice ladies were in charge and when we called ahead they allowed us to park at a church near the festival that is now owned by the city. We loved camping there next to the magnolia trees, and it was so quiet right next to the cemetery.  There’s something to be said for quiet neighbors.      

                                                                                                                                                       Our Overnight Stop in Camak

Camak is a tiny town with municipal facilities not much bigger than Carrabelle FL. Previously it was home to three railroads, but all have been acquired by the CSX system. We took a motor coach tour of a rock quarry operation in the town. A locomotive ride was available within the limits of the quarry but we did not do that. George gave in to temptation and had a funnel cake despite the fact that he is a member of Funnel Cakes Anonymous.     

                                                                             Downtown Camak            

One of the original railroads was the Georgia Railroad that connected Atlanta with Augusta. George used to see the trains go by when he was teaching in Decatur, GA, in the seventies. At that time the freight train had one passenger coach attached to the rear. On our return to the Atlanta area we basically followed the Georgia Railroad. We headed back west and decided to visit Madison where we biked downtown and saw many historic downtown buildings and homes.  We also saw the Georgia Railroad station and the sign that alluded to General Sherman’s destruction there.    

        Historic Railroad Station in Madison, GA   

  Downtown Madison, GA

After having lunch in the Walmart parking lot in Madison, we headed on down the line to George’s old college, Emory at Oxford, where we rode on the Oxford trail. The only comment and featured photo were submitted by us at Trail Link. 

                    Biking the Oxford Trail                  

After riding the Oxford trail, we cruised through the Oxford campus. George recognized only one building and thought it was a replica of the original because the brick had been cleaned.

        Seney Hall, Emory at Oxford                

After cruising the campus, we returned to the coach which was parked at the Oxford City Hall where we had previously been given permission to park.                                                                                                                                  Oxford City Hall
Upon departing Oxford we parked in a Kroger Grocery in Decatur, GA, detached the truck, and visited Irene’s sister nearby. We then reattached the truck and drove to the Sandy Springs Walmart until George’s doctor’s appointment in the area  on Monday. We did a lot in three days – railroads, bluegrass, biking, reminiscing, visiting family, patronizing Walmart, and going from tiny town to big metro.