Some writers, artists, and photographers frequent exotic places to write and be creative, whether with pen on paper, art brush to canvas, or with a camera lens capturing pristine scenery. Yellow Bluff is one of those places and is also known as God's country. Throw in a fishing expedition with a writer friend of mine, Captain Wild Bill Jarrell, and suddenly, all kinds of ideas begin to mesh, especially when looking at the Atlantic Ocean through a break in a sand dune covered with wild oats on a sandy piece of terra firma called Blackbeard's Island. Yes - the same lair where the notorious pirate used to hang out! And the only way to get there is by boat or parachute.

Based out of Yellow Bluff, an old fishing camp south of Savannah, Georgia that is now a residential development co-partnered by Fred Shore, Ren Keel, Allen Brown and his wife Debbie - another writer friend of mine - Captain Wild Bill writes fishing stories and fishing reports to keep enthusiasts up-to-date on where the Spanish Mackerel are biting. If you're not looking for mackerel, he can help you find black sea bass, seatrout, or red drum for your next fish fry. Captain Wild Bill can teach you how to "fish the rip" - an artesian well in the middle of the river - where the ships used to anchor for energy efficiency. While dumping rock used for ballast, they took on fresh water at the same time.

If the fish aren't biting, Wild Bill will pull up anchor and put you at the right spot within no time so you'll "feel like a little kid on an Easter egg hunt tearing up the eggs." He'll teach you how to "rattle the cork" trying to imitate the clicking sound shrimp make.

If fishing's not your thing, he also offers an Eco Tour for bird watching, alligator sightings, and a cruise past "The Boneyard" on the ocean side of Blackbeard's island. You'll be sure to spot Clapper Rails, Sandpipers, white Great Egrets and Royal Terns and a dolphin fin or two.

Joyce, Captain Wild Bill's wife, enjoys photographing the area and has already garnered a name for herself with her black and white rendition of "Blackbeard's Boneyard" seen here framed in Debbie Brown's new home previously featured in Coastal Living magazine.


The original Company Store is still standing and was a place open for business where a serious shopper could buy fishing bait, bubble gum, and ice cold drinks to quench the thirst on a hot summer's day. And of course, there's a rocking chair where an afternoon could be whittled away close to the old pot bellied stove while waiting out a winter's frost. Down the street are beautiful cottages - some wrapped with porches, some graced with balconies - where a growing community gathers every now and then for a picnic or barbeque or an update on who caught the biggest fish. As you can imagine, some of those stories just keep getting bigger and bigger, turning into novels before you know it. I'm waiting for Captain Wild Bill to write The Fish Whisperer.


With fabulous scenery and a place in history where the Guale Indians used to live, Yellow Bluff is an artist/photographer/writer's haven and a lovely place to visit or an even better place to call home. Sit on a bench and dream about the Ashley River and other fertile inland waterways on Georgia's barrier coast rocking you along with their currents for a visit over to Sapelo, Ossabaw, or St. Catherine's Island. Then, let Captain Wild Bill take you there while pointing out the local history and reeling in supper.

He's always ready with a long line and a tall tale.



Visit Yellow Bluff's website - www.yellowbluffcompany.com
Captain Wild Bill's fishing blog http://www.facebook.com/captwildbill
http://www.yellowbluffcompany.com/blog/fishingblog/
News events blog http://yellowbluffcompany.com/blog/Myyellowbluff/
Joyce Jarrell artwork - joyfulmoments@coastalnow.net