Kicking back doesn’t have to be a hassle… or cost an arm and a leg
Let’s face it — although the economy is better than it was a few years ago, most of us are still a ways away from pulling the trigger on a blowout summer vacation. But just because we’re staying close to the nest doesn’t mean we have to suffer through the next few months hunkered down in air-conditioned misery, streaming Netflix and ordering pizza.
The Augusta area has plenty of fun and affordable things to do that will get you off the couch and into the action, and the best thing about it — many of them don’t require any of that pesky up front money that can keep us from having fun.
Take camping, for example. Wouldn’t it be great to experience all the fun of spending time in the Great Outdoors without the hassles that come with having an ownership stake in it? For a lot of people, the answer to that is really big yes, which is where Mike DeLaigle and his E-Z RV Rental comes in.
“With the state of the economy, people can’t afford campers, though they would still like to go camping,” DeLaigle says. “So we’re trying to provide a service to folks so people who are thinking about buying a camper can try it before they buy it.”
Focused on the camping opportunities surrounding Clarks Hill Lake, where the Corps of Engineers alone operates 13 campgrounds, customers simply reserve a spot, then call DeLaigle to reserve a camper. The camper will be set up and ready when the customer arrives.
“Basically, all the amenities are already in the camper,” he says. “Sheets, towels, pots and pans. All anybody needs to do is bring the food and meet with us for a little orientation.”
Best of all, when it’s time to go home, DeLaigle returns to break it down, clean it up and take it away.
Talk about pain-free camping.
“This way, customers don’t have to fool with ownership and having to have a vehicle large enough to pull the camper,” he says. “They don’t have to work with the ownership and insurance involved with the campers and paying taxes on them and making payments on them. All they’ve got to do is rent it.”
DeLaigle, who also supplies RVs for construction workers down at Plant Vogtle, says his rental camping operation is still in its infancy, but he’s excited by the feedback he’s received.
Rates for the 28-foot air-conditioned campers run from $395 for the weekend (Friday through Monday) to $695 for a Monday-to-Monday rental. An additional night can be purchased for $75, assuming the camper hasn’t already been reserved.
“They say they’ll sleep eight, but they’ll really sleep six adults,” he says. “The ones we’ve got right now are what they call bunkhouses. They’ve got a full-sized bed in the front, the couch folds out into a bed and they’ve got twin bunks in the back.”
Contact E-Z RV Rental at 706-466-3027.
For those who want to experience the thrill of cruising the Savannah River without the pain of buying a boat or the risk of getting wet, Captain Jim Bradshaw offers two different types of river cruises. The first boat, the 60-passenger, air-conditioned Patriot, has been running tours and charters out of Augusta for the last five years, while the second, smaller boat is especially designed for the more adventurous type of cruising — a one- or two-day trip all the way down the river to Savannah.
“It’s a one-way trip down,” he says. “Passengers spend the night in a hotel and the next day they do a tour of Savannah. That evening they catch the bus and we bring them back.”
The two-day trip utilizes a hotel about halfway down.
Despite all the beautiful homes across the river from downtown, Bradshaw emphasizes that the Savannah cruise is more about nature than houses.
“Once you’re passed that lock [about 12 miles down], there’s nothing down there but wildlife,” he says. “There won’t be any houses and there won’t be any people or fuel, so the cruise is for a person who likes the outdoors and is trying to get a feel for a natural experience.”
The boat, which carries about 18 to 20 people, is a 36-foot pontoon boat with an awning to protect the passengers from the elements.
Smaller than the Patriot, it is ideal for the Savannah cruise because it’s easier to manage in the tricky water downriver.
“When you get beyond the lock, the river is half as wide as it is downtown, half as deep and three times as fast,” he says. “The river down there is a different experience.”
Being able to float in 20 inches of water means that Bradshaw, who is licensed to pilot a 200-foot boat about 200 miles off any shore in the world, can avoid the snags and obstacles that sometimes occur along the Savannah. And because the flow of the river is regulated, he knows generally what to expect as far as the general depth goes.
“The worst scenario is about three feet in a couple of places,” he says.
What he doesn’t always know, however, is the functionality of the lock itself.
“That lock has broken several times in the last eight or nine years,” he says. “If that happens with the big boat — if it breaks while we are on the other side — we’ve got to take that big boat back down to Savannah, hire a crane to put it on a tractor trailer to bring it back to Augusta, then hire a crane to put it back in the water.”
With the new boat, he just puts it on a trailer and drives it back to Augusta, so if there’s a problem with the locks he won’t be stuck. Trailing the boat is something he would have done anyway, since the swiftness of the current would make a return trip costly and prohibitive.
One of the ways the informal cruise is kept affordable — he’s going to charge $200 a person for the trip down and the ride back, the passengers pay for their own hotel — is the self catering policy. While Bradshaw will have a big cooler with some sandwiches, he encourages people to bring their own coolers with food and drink.
He hopes the new venture, which will start up in September and run through November, will help supplement the winter months when the larger boat is not scheduled for operation.
“We do run the day after Thanksgiving and the day after Christmas, but generally speaking we’re pretty much out of business in December, January and February,” he says.
Locals don’t like to be on the water during the cooler winter months, and there just aren’t enough out-of-towners to make it worthwhile.
“Augusta, Georgia, is not a tourist town,” he says. “It’s not like Savannah or Charleston or something like that.”
Something new on the Patriot this summer is the Live Music Series. Starting this Saturday, June 23, the big boat will feature a music cruise.
“Instead of a regular, narrated sunset tour, we’re going to try live music,” he says. We’re going to try live music every Saturday night and see what happens.”
The Henrys will be the first to perform and passengers are encouraged to bring their own coolers. The cost is $25. For cruise times and charter rates, call 803-730-9739 or go to patriottourboat.com.
For those who like to have a little more direct control over their fun, a couple of businesses at Columbia County’s Savannah Rapids Pavilion offer bike and kayak rentals.
Gene Whitaker is the Bicycle Peddler, and he opened up his mobile business at Savannah Rapids last August.
“I’m kind of a one-man show,” says Whitaker, who worked for Chain Reaction bikes for 14 years before striking out on his own.
“I thought I could start a mobile business, and my first intention was to travel the outskirts of Augusta and the towns that don’t have a bike shop,” he says. “And then somebody told me one day that they thought Columbia County was looking for somebody to rent bicycles on the canal.”
Whitaker didn’t think he could make it by just renting bikes, however.
“But I thought if I could rent, sell and repair — and sell accessories — it might be profitable, and they welcomed it,” he says.
And he wasn’t there very long before it became clear the need was there.
“I don’t know how many times people have brought their bikes down to ride and if I hadn’t been there they would have wound up putting their bikes on their vehicle and heading home because there was a problem,” he says. “I try to do a lot of little goodwill things. If somebody’s got something minor, I don’t worry about it — I just fix it and say, ‘Hey, come back and see me.’”
Whitaker, his 14 rental bikes and his repair trailer, are at the park on Saturdays and Sundays, from around 10 a.m. to whenever the last rider returns. He charges $15 for a two-hour rental, with each additional hour being $5.
Because of insurance restrictions, he’s limited to renting all-terrain comfort bikes, which aren’t as aggressive as mountain bikes, though he’s sold a fair share of the mountain bikes to people who appreciate the Jamis brand he sells.
The 62-year-old Whitaker started riding with his son was young, and the two quickly started doing some strenuous overnight rides. Because of the riding, he came to find out he had a heart condition.
“My cardiologist told me that most people wouldn’t have had any idea that they had a problem, but because I was out exercising and getting my heart rate up, I was able to detect it early,” he says.
He says that bikes not only gave him a livelihood, they saved his life as well.
Located a literal stone’s throw away from the canal, Whitaker says being located on the path is a considerable asset.
“Having the trail down there helps because people get to test the bike someplace other than a parking lot,” he says. “My little bike shop has the best view of any bike shop in Augusta, and the best riding area.
For more information, call the Bicycle Peddler at 706-373-4519 or visit him on Facebook.
Next to Whitaker’s mobile shop at the Savannah Rapids Pavilion, local outdoor outfitter Escape Outdoors has created its own outpost. Located on the banks of the canal just yards from the water, anyone interested in getting a canal-eye view of Augusta can rent a single or a tandem kayak and jump right in.
“We basically built a little log cabin to where we can ring people up,” says Travis Azar, who oversees the kayak rentals. “We have some merchandise down there as well. It’s a way for us to attract folks and a place for our workers to hang out while they rent kayaks.”
The Savannah Rapids location is open on Saturdays and Sundays, though Escape Outdoors also rents kayaks from their Evans location throughout the workweek.
The two locations rent different types of kayaks, however. Savannah Rapids Pavilion rents the sit-on-top style of kayak, while the Evans store rents the sit-inside variety.
“Sit-on-top kayaks are just what they say they are,” Azar says. “You’re not enclosed in the kayak itself — your legs and feet are exposed when you’re sitting on top of the boat. That just makes it a little easier to paddle, especially in the canal.”
Sit-inside kayaks, he says, feel more stable, but have you sitting closer to the water.
The big selling point to the Savannah Rapids location, however, is the return service, something that’s not offered for the kayaks rented at the store. For an extra $15, people can start off at Savannah Rapids Pavilion, paddle down the canal to Lake Olmstead, drop off the kayak and get a ride back to their car at Savannah Rapids Pavilion.
If you leave a car at Lake Olmstead, though, you can just drop off your boat (and paddle and jacket, all of which come with the basic fee) and head on home yourself.
“It’s about six miles from the Headgates to Lake Olmstead, but the kayak is really yours for the day, so it really depends on how long you want to make the trip,” Azar says. “The canal moves pretty good, so the average group gets down there in two to two and a half hours.”
Though walk ins are certainly welcome, Azar recommends making a reservation, since the last few weekends they’ve been booking most of their 35 to 40 kayaks.
For information, call 706-869-8080 or visit their website at getyouradventureon.com.
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For those who want to experience the thrill of cruising the Savannah River without the pain of buying a boat or the risk of getting wet, Captain Jim Bradshaw offers two different types of river cruises. The first boat, the 60-passenger, air-conditioned Patriot, has been running tours and charters out of Augusta for the last five years, while the second, smaller boat is especially designed for the more adventurous type of cruising — a one- or two-day trip all the way down the river to Savannah.
“It’s a one-way trip down,” he says. “Passengers spend the night in a hotel and the next day they do a tour of Savannah. That evening they catch the bus and we bring them back.”
The two-day trip utilizes a hotel about halfway down.
Despite all the beautiful homes across the river from downtown, Bradshaw emphasizes that the Savannah cruise is more about nature than houses.
“Once you’re passed that lock [about 12 miles down], there’s nothing down there but wildlife,” he says. “There won’t be any houses and there won’t be any people or fuel, so the cruise is for a person who likes the outdoors and is trying to get a feel for a natural experience.”
The boat, which carries about 18 to 20 people, is a 36-foot pontoon boat with an awning to protect the passengers from the elements.
Smaller than the Patriot, it is ideal for the Savannah cruise because it’s easier to manage in the tricky water downriver.
“When you get beyond the lock, the river is half as wide as it is downtown, half as deep and three times as fast,” he says. “The river down there is a different experience.”
Being able to float in 20 inches of water means that Bradshaw, who is licensed to pilot a 200-foot boat about 200 miles off any shore in the world, can avoid the snags and obstacles that sometimes occur along the Savannah. And because the flow of the river is regulated, he knows generally what to expect as far as the general depth goes.
“The worst scenario is about three feet in a couple of places,” he says.
“I’m kind of a one-man show,” says Whitaker, who worked for Chain Reaction bikes for 14 years before striking out on his own.
“I thought I could start a mobile business, and my first intention was to travel the outskirts of Augusta and the towns that don’t have a bike shop,” he says. “And then somebody told me one day that they thought Columbia County was looking for somebody to rent bicycles on the canal.”
Whitaker didn’t think he could make it by just renting bikes, however.
“But I thought if I could rent, sell and repair — and sell accessories — it might be profitable, and they welcomed it,” he says.
And he wasn’t there very long before it became clear the need was there.
“I don’t know how many times people have brought their bikes down to ride and if I hadn’t been there they would have wound up putting their bikes on their vehicle and heading home because there was a problem,” he says. “I try to do a lot of little goodwill things. If somebody’s got something minor, I don’t worry about it — I just fix it and say, ‘Hey, come back and see me.’”
Whitaker, his 14 rental bikes and his repair trailer, are at the park on Saturdays and Sundays, from around 10 a.m. to whenever the last rider returns. He charges $15 for a two-hour rental, with each additional hour being $5.
Because of insurance restrictions, he’s limited to renting all-terrain comfort bikes, which aren’t as aggressive as mountain bikes, though he’s sold a fair share of the mountain bikes to people who appreciate the Jamis brand he sells.
The 62-year-old Whitaker started riding with his son was young, and the two quickly started doing some strenuous overnight rides. Because of the riding, he came to find out he had a heart condition.
“My cardiologist told me that most people wouldn’t have had any idea that they had a problem, but because I was out exercising and getting my heart rate up, I was able to detect it early,” he says.
He says that bikes not only gave him a livelihood, they saved his life as well.
Located a literal stone’s throw away from the canal, Whitaker says being located on the path is a considerable asset.
“Having the trail down there helps because people get to test the bike someplace other than a parking lot,” he says. “My little bike shop has the best view of any bike shop in Augusta, and the best riding area.
For more information, call the Bicycle Peddler at 706-373-4519 or visit him on Facebook.
Next to Whitaker’s mobile shop at the Savannah Rapids Pavilion, local outdoor outfitter Escape Outdoors has created its own outpost. Located on the banks of the canal just yards from the water, anyone interested in getting a canal-eye view of Augusta can rent a single or a tandem kayak and jump right in.
“We basically built a little log cabin to where we can ring people up,” says Travis Azar, who oversees the kayak rentals. “We have some merchandise down there as well. It’s a way for us to attract folks and a place for our workers to hang out while they rent kayaks.”
The Savannah Rapids location is open on Saturdays and Sundays, though Escape Outdoors also rents kayaks from their Evans location throughout the workweek.
The two locations rent different types of kayaks, however. Savannah Rapids Pavilion rents the sit-on-top style of kayak, while the Evans store rents the sit-inside variety.
“Sit-on-top kayaks are just what they say they are,” Azar says. “You’re not enclosed in the kayak itself — your legs and feet are exposed when you’re sitting on top of the boat. That just makes it a little easier to paddle, especially in the canal.”
Sit-inside kayaks, he says, feel more stable, but have you sitting closer to the water.
The big selling point to the Savannah Rapids location, however, is the return service, something that’s not offered for the kayaks rented at the store. For an extra $15, people can start off at Savannah Rapids Pavilion, paddle down the canal to Lake Olmstead, drop off the kayak and get a ride back to their car at Savannah Rapids Pavilion.
If you leave a car at Lake Olmstead, though, you can just drop off your boat (and paddle and jacket, all of which come with the basic fee) and head on home yourself.
“It’s about six miles from the Headgates to Lake Olmstead, but the kayak is really yours for the day, so it really depends on how long you want to make the trip,” Azar says. “The canal moves pretty good, so the average group gets down there in two to two and a half hours.”
Though walk ins are certainly welcome, Azar recommends making a reservation, since the last few weekends they’ve been booking most of their 35 to 40 kayaks.
For information, call 706-869-8080 or visit their website at getyouradventureon.com.
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