Yellow Bluff Company Store, Circa 1924, Liberty County

The Yellow Bluff Fishing Camp’s iconic company store survives despite being surrounded by modern development. Such structures were once common at fishing camps throughout Coastal Georgia but nearly all of them have disappeared today, due largely to changing land use. The Yellow Bluff Company established the fishing camp here in 1923 and the store was operating within the first year.

Blackbeard Creek, Colonel’s Island

Blackbeard Creek is actually a network of tidal creeks and inlets located west of St. Catherine’s Sound. This view was made near the Yellow Bluff area of Colonel’s Island.

Public Wetlands Area, Colonel’s Island

This is a great natural area located on Lake Pamona Road.

Saint Catherines Sound

This view, made at low tide from Colonel’s Island, follows the course of the North Newport River as it merges with Saint Catherines Sound.

Lake Pamona, Colonel’s Island

This is located adjacent to Camp Viking.

Camp Viking, Colonel’s Island

The retreat community at Camp Viking features over a dozen of these cabins, generally identical in style and reminiscent to me of 1950s government architecture. They are built along the perimeter of Lake Pamona.

Cheryl Blount Donaldson relates the story of Camp Viking, started by her father Joe and Uncle Clayton Blount:

Joe & Clayton Blount bought the property in 1949. It was originally part of Blackrock Plantation, a grant from King George III in the 1770s. Clayton’s daughter, Carolyn and her husband Paul, were the ones who started the camp and they also raised sheep. There were 16 cottages/cabins and 4 latrines along with the mess hall and kitchen. The 105 acre lake was made from the marsh by forming an earthen dam and flooding it with fresh water. The lake was named for Joe’s granddaughter Mona and Clayton’s granddaughter Pam, hence Pamona Lake. (Cheryl’s father told her that the Minnesota Vikings held summer camps there at one time, hence the other name, Camp Viking. She notes that this is unverified.) When the “camp” was closed the cottages were rented out. Mr Norris did oversee it until Joe Blount became the sole owner in the middle 1980s. It is only available for private rentals, but anyone can fish there for $5/day per person. That’s a bargain for such an idyllic location! If you’d like to know more, please email Cheryl at honey831@coastalnow.net

Joel Heath wrote, on 2 May 2012: This is Camp Viking Cabin Number 1 where I lived about 2 years, 1981 to June 1983, while I worked as Chief of Surveillance at Fort Stewart Ammo Supply Point. I was amazed to find this as the first item on a Google image search for Camp Viking Cabin Midway Georgia. When I saw the number 1 on it I realized this is the exact unit (of about 15 very similar buildings) that I lived in with tidal flats and the North Newport River in the backyard scenery.

When I visited there years ago I heard that the Camp had been sold off as individual cabins with many having been fixed up nicely. It may have been a 100 dollar a month rental when I lived there managed by a proud self-proclaimed old cracker (though originally a Texan), Roy Norris.

One Saturday I ran an errand with Roy and his wife hauling something for them in my 1976 Ford F-100. After we had the business done we stopped in the Midway Café on Highway 17. I had eaten there a number of times because you could get a heaping plate of fried shrimp for a price that seemed most reasonable to me. Roy took one look at the menu and said, “This must be the Yankee menu. These prices look too high. They’re probably the prices they charge the tourists passing through.” He called across the room to the waitress, “Miss, I want the cracker menu. This must be the Yankee menu.” I was amazed when without a word she picked up the menus and gave us each a lower-priced menu.

Cy Johnson wrote, on 27 November 2015 recalled: I resided at Camp Viking when I was a flight student at Ft. Stewart, Summer 1968. I remember Clayton Blount and jumping off the rope swing. We had many parties here and used to water ski and watch the gators splash around.