Dixie Highway for Sure and Maybe
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Day 7: December 28, 2012 Dixie Highway for Sure and Maybe Comment via blog |
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Departure from Atlanta consisted of heading northwest a few blocks to pick
up the Dixie Highway Georgia Connector at its western end and heading
east. At this point, US-41 is the Dixie Highway mainline and US-29 carries
the connector. I was surprised when "The World's Largest Drive-In
Restaurant", The Varsity, appeared and barely got a picture. Had I
been thinking clearly and not intent on escaping the city, I'd have
stopped for breakfast. I should have. I'd soon regret it.
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The Waffle House Museum was another surprise but one that
the Roadside
America Garmin app alerted me to. The app had actually alerted me to
The Varsity but I was too busy driving for it to register. The very first
Waffle House opened in this building in 1955. The building has been
restored and now serves as a museum though it is generally open only by
appointment. The website gives the next scheduled opening as January 13
so, if you're in the area...
I learned about the "open by appointment" status of the museum from an operating Waffle House just a block or so away. I should have eaten breakfast there, too, but, having blown off The Varsity, I was doubly determined to find an independent. When I did, it was pretty bad and I doubly regretted skipping the Waffle House and triply regretted skipping the Varsity. |
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I did break free from the city and did find some two-lane. The first
picture shows the Old Atlanta Road running along the railroad just west of
Covington, Georgia. The second is from the Alcovy Road just east of town.
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A few miles east of Social Circle the road still bears the name Dixie
Highway although signs saying so are not common. There is one at the left
side of the third photo which was taken near where the town of
Dorsey once stood.
Here's a better view. This stretch ends in
Madison at a five-way intersection with Walton Street and Old Post Road.
There are several Dixie Avenue posts in Madison. This one is at the
eastern end where it meets Walton.
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A hydroelectric plant was built on the Oconee River in 1954 and Lake
Sinclair was created. Its waters covered what had been the Dixie Highway
although I imagine the Highway was a pretty dim memory by then, anyway. I
should have studied some old maps before leaving home but I didn't and
hoped to find the old road from
hints at Robert Droz's site. The first two pictures
are of Dennis Station Road on the north shore and I believe there's a
pretty good chance that the former route of the Dixie goes through that
driveway. What looks like fairly recent development has made reaching the
lake without trespassing pretty much impossible. The other two pictures
are from the south shore where Avant Avenue ends. The points sort of line
up but the narrow pavement of Avant Avenue is hardly a match for the
yellow striped two-lane of Dennis Station Road. There is some brick at the
end of the asphalt but it looks more like the remnants of someone's
chimney than some old time pavement. I can't swear to the Dixie Highway
being in any of these four photos.
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