Incredible!
Incredible!
Just went camping for 9 days. Stayed in S.E. Georgia. Went to through Okefenokee Swamp on a boat and then a train ride. Stayed three days at Dayââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s Inn (OK) in downtown Atlanta, saw Wolf Bitzer live on CNN, toured Cocoa-Cola and ate bison twice at Ted Turnerââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s Montana Grill (much nicer and better tasting than Durango, same price).
As the worldââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s largest aquarium, with 8 million gallons, more than 100,000 animals and 500 species, the new-born Georgia Aquarium has got to be one of the worldââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s best, if not the best. With 4,574 sq. ft. of viewing windows, a 100 ft. long underwater tunnel, 185 tons of acrylic windows and the second largest viewing window in the world at 23 ft. tall by 61 ft. wide and 2 ft. thick, the view is fantastic.
What really distinguishes it however, is that it is not merely a collection of the largest fish, but each display is decorated with lots of smaller fish and seem to have a color scheme. One of the first tanks you spy is a pink and gold undulating school. The aquarium does not have many large gorgeous soft and hard coral displays.
The aquarium both broadcast and target feeds the fish population. A tunnel bisects the main figure eight display tank at the bottom. Off to one side is a bubble, where exciting children allowing, you can see up into the main tank. The only time my girlfriend has ever been this close to the teeth of a shark!
After going behind the scenes, we kinda knew what to look for the target feeding pipes. We spent a half hour in the bubble off the tunnel just watching the fish sneak down our canyon to feed. Each exhibit provides room for the crowds to move through and for you to sit and enjoy the scene at your leisure. Near the top of the gigantic main tank, we spent another half hour determining the difference between male and female circulating sand bar and sand tiger sharks (look at the dorsal, not the tail fins).
The immense Whale Sharks with a gang of Golden Travalli riding their bow wave is incredible. There are schools upon schools of jacks, rays and Tangs. We toured the exhibits once in three hours, had lunch, went behind the scenes and toured them again until the six oââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢clock close. Sitting inside a bubble inside the giant tank is a rare treat, almost as good as my 120 foot submarine dive in Cozumel.
Although the scale is immense and the facilities sparkling clean, the Behind the Scenes tour is pretty the same as what I saw at Mote Marine, and the Florida and New England Aquariums. The normal entry ticket price is a bargain compared to Mote Marine, but the extra $50 surcharge for Behind the Scenes is certainly not (although the whale shark feeding is kinda neat!)
Georgia is home to 900 waterfalls. Camped at Tallulah Falls and hiked the deepest gorge east of the Mississippi (1,000 feet!). Then went to Chattanooga, and saw what is now the second best aquarium in the world, the Tennessee Aquarium. Although certainly smaller at 1.1 million gallons and 12,000 animals, the Tennessee Aquarium definitely makes a much better impression than any others, except the Georgia Aquarium. It is smaller, if possible, I would try to see it before the incredible Georgia Aquarium takes your breath away.
On the way back, we diverted over to St. Augustine, staying at the best Dayââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s Inn I ever saw (during a PT Cruiser convention). Our trolley ride showed the old fort and jail, shopping street and Spanish village.
Although Chattanooga is only 600 miles north of Tampa, we went about 1900 miles round trip.