Prohibitive gas prices and unfinished projects for the upcoming shows have kept me off the backroads WAY too long!
So between needing a countryside fix, and doing some pickin' and (my favorite) dereliction spotting, I took a much-needed break to wander the country roads around the Lake Oconee area.
And those amazing Georgia backroads never disappoint! Look at this beauty!!
Somewhere east of Greensboro she sits in all her dereli-cious splendor......just waiting for someone to stop and admire her for awhile!!
You can tangibly feel the history of a once glorious past....of generations of lives, loves, and losses that reach out to draw you closer!
She wants to tell you the stories, but she needs her people....oh where have all her people gone?
I'll never know the history of her, although I could probably find out some details in the record books if I had the spare time, but they wouldn't tell the real story....
......the story of the children, and their families, who played here, dreamed here, and grew up here....
....and hold those memories in their hearts.
It was hard to drag myself away, but when I did, I eventually ended up in a quaint town I had never even heard of before called Sparta (I only knew of the one in South GA off I-75).
Which turned out to be such a delightful surprise, with so many unusual old homes.....and my favorite courthouse to date. (I really have to go back when I have more time!)
From there I wandered back up toward Madison and came across the little town of Buckhead.
It's hard to imagine that at the turn of the century this town was once home to "4 general stores, 2 drug stores, 3 eateries, a hotel, corn mills, a cotton gin, a livery stable, barber shop, cotton buyers office, and a blacksmith shop" (according to some historical info I saw online).
And then the boll weevil and the Great Depression arrived.
There's some good photo-ops here......and I think this town borders the lake, because the price of land here is surprisingly exorbitant!! 
There are also some wonderful stories of a stately old home around this area that is haunted and I SO wanted to get pictures, but I draw the line (most of the time) at getting shot at and snake bit, so I'll wait until I find someone connected to the place who will get me permission and maybe machete the brush and snakes out of my way to get back to it.
Onward to Madison which never disappoints!!
I've done several posts on the amazing homes in this historic town so I didn't take many pictures here.....but I did find a NEW treasure.....
.....the oldest business in Morgan County! This original hardware business was established in 1836, in a landmark building still standing in Madison, before moving to the present location after 126 years.
Hardware being one of my most favorite things to find made this stop totally delightful....
......and the owners even more so!! What nice folks run this cool place! Sammy and Debbie couldn't have been nicer, and also gave me lots of leads and suggestions for my travels. I found all sorts of things I need for my projects and could have spent all day digging through their treasure trove!
Check out this fabulous old gas lantern! There are 2 of the them hanging above as you walk in the door.
I loved these bunches of old zinc buckles, but just couldn't think of what to do with them at the time.
Pickin' was slim this trip, but it was sheer joy to get back on the road again!!
