543...

First you get a little history lesson:

Many, possibly all, of the first European settlements were established in coastal areas, as the invading Anglos, came by boat, wading through the surf. Where they landed, dressed in their finery or lheavy armor, with all their communicable diseases, to claim the land for King, and Church. At these locations, in places there were often already permanent native American villages. As Europeans came into the Americas, they built trading posts at points where there was access to fresh water, along the coast, then gradually traveled inland/upstream along the rivers to the interior. Where they established more colonies at river intersections to barter goods with the natives, providing manufactured items in exchange for prepared skins and furs the natives had to offer. Here on the 'falls' line, the river is no longer navigable for commercial vessels/trade. This is where the landscape changes from flat to sufficiently rocky/hilly that the first water falls occur over impassable shoals, making the river no longer navigable for large vessels

Some years ago, the convention and visitors' bureau folks, people who are charged with smiling at strangers who come in asking nutty questions, and get paid to answer them - came up with the idea of promoting Columbus, GA as "Georgia's West Coast". This town on the east bank of the Chattahoochee River, is situated on the Fall Line: meaning we are located on a non-existent/not actually visible 'line' across the state. This imaginary line stretches from up in the Carolinas/Augusta on the Savannah River, to Columbus, and on across the southern states, probably along about Montgomery in Alabama. Columbus started in the mid 1800's as a trading post with the Creek and Cherokee Indians. And grew, with families moving in, settling, beginning agriculture and growing crops and families, tradesmen establishing businesses.

So... between Tuesday and Thursday, I drove from Columbus, to Valdosta,, to St. Simon's Island, east of Brunswick on the Georgia coast and back again. Does that make me 'bi-coastal'?  And the 543 is the approximate distance for that round-about trip.