Beaches, wild horses, a secluded island, historical ruins, naturalist tours, all inclusive meals, picnic lunches, daily social hour, a full honor bar, dolphins, bird watching, a mostly 1st edition library, the most comfortable front porch ever, and endless relaxation! Yes, this place truly exists and it is every bit as heavenly as you'd think!
Join me on my journey to the
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| Private boat ride over from Fernandina Beach, FL There is also a daily ferry from St. Simon's, Georgia for campers and day visitors. Free parking for inn guests at the marina as well. |
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| Spotted our first of many horses during our stay while approaching the main inn, just a 3 minute walk from the boat dock. |
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| Some of the ruins just at the old inn, built by the Carnegie's for their Granddaughter. They give great history lessons here, for example John F. Kennedy Junior was married at the church here and they rented out the whole island! |
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| My favorite place to relax on the front porch, 2 huge swings adorned each end and plenty of rocking chairs in the middle. |
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| Yes, that's hand stitched and says Greyfield! |
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| We took an included naturalist tour via truck out to the Dungeness mansion ruins, spotted plenty of horses, deer and armadillos along the way. There were several tours a day offerred we will want to try next time like the fully furnished plum estate (which is on the national park part of the island, so if there;s a government shut down be aware). |
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| Dungeness Mansion Ruins, huge and beautiful - the interior photos are amazing too! |
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| Plenty of deer- we kept searching for elusive albino one! |
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| The massive trees were simply incredible! |
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| Relaxation - time for wine and social hour! |
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| Fires lit for the 50 degree evenings! |
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| Appetizers with cocktails |
DAY 2 Garden Tour & biking
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| Bee hives- they sell their delicious honey here too! |
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| edible flowers - very delicious! |
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| I took this on the boat dock looking for the alligators we kept hearing, this is 2 lights on a pillar but the shadow speaks about casting "light" versus casting fishing lines. |
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| Picnic lunches at your leisure for lunch. Their homemade salads were fantastic and they were accommodating about special requests. |
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| Look who is coming right up to the main house! They definitely don't have a fear of humans, but no feeding or riding around here. You can pet the adorable dogs that will greet you on the porch though! |
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| Dog day afternoon on the porch after a bike ride |
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| A rattlesnake plant - those leaves are stunning! |
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| Honest John Bar - they had every mixer, wine, and cocktail ingredient you can imagine - even bitters and syrups! You could self-serve anytime and they had a mixologist with a daily specialty drink during social hour. |
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| The library was full of 1st and 2nd edition books- you were welcome to read any of them! |
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| The Harpers Collection was the only thing hands- off. |
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| View of the porch inside the library |
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| This sitting parlous had a beautiful fireplace and lots of games and original furniture pieces. |
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| Sunset over the water from the parlour |
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| I made it into the dining room downstairs before the other guests so you can see the beautiful room |
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| A tasty Barbera was our choice and their homemade bread was melt-in-your-mouth |
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| We enjoyed a beautiful steak |
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| The most un-gamey Pheasant was prepared |
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| Cheesecake our second evening, their famous lemon pie was served the first night along with fish - I forgot to bring my camera (phone lol). FYI there is no wi-fi here but data works if you really must, also no TVs. It was SO nice to get away from news and socialize with new friends. |
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| TOMATO PIE! Omg it was every bit as good as their recipe, which I am including here taken from their website blog. Thanks to the Chef and staff for accommodating my request- it was outstanding! |
TOMATO PIE
Yields 1 Pie, 8 slices. You can use any pie crust recipe or one that is pre-made. There is a great receipe located on their blog as well.
Pie Filling
2 Heirloom Tomatoes, medium sized
¼ cup Olive Oil
1½ teaspoons Kosher Salt
1½ cups Sharp White Cheddar (Cabot is a good starting point), shredded
4 Egg Yolks
6 Eggs
½ cup Heavy Cream
¼ teaspoon Dried Harrisa (If you don't have this no worries)
¼ cup Parmesan, grated
1 teaspoon Parsley
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Slice the heirloom tomatoes to around ¼ inch thick. Lightly oil a sheet pan with olive oil. Lay tomato slices on oiled pan in a single layer. Use a ½ teaspoon of salt to season the tomatoes. Roast for 40 minutes. Set aside.
Reduce oven temperature to 350 F. In a bowl whisk together egg yolks, eggs, heavy cream, and 1 teaspoon salt. Whisk well, until slightly frothy.
To assemble pie, layer 1 cup of shredded white cheddar into the pie shell. Add in a single layer of roasted heirloom tomatoes, around half of the tomatoes. Next, add remaining ½ cup of shredded white cheddar. Top with remaining roasted tomatoes. Sprinkle dried harissa over the top tomato layer. Pour egg and cream mixture over the tomato and cheese filling. Top with parmesan and parsley. Bake for 45-55 minutes. The pie filling should be set and the top, golden brown. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.
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| We so enjoyed celebrating our 21st wedding anniversary and the Greyfield sure knows how to make each guest feel special! |
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| Greyfield Inn photo credit WSB-TV |
Be sure to reserve early, we enjoyed the south porch room on the 3rd floor. I recommend the master bedroom by the library on the 2nd floor or if you don't mind walking stay in one of the cottages.
I hope you get to go and be sure to request that tomato pie in advance!
