1295 October 24, 2025 Highway 21 Drive In

Yesterday, when Tim walked, he went to the northern end of the island and there were hundreds of birds.  I decided to walk that way today.  Designated as a Critical Shorebird Sanctuary, no golf carts or pets are allowed.  Only pedestrians.  There were very few people.  It was another great fall morning and I was walking on firm sand.  There were lots of shells on the beach.  I was almost to the point when I began to see birds…thousands of birds…lots of different species.  What a pleasure to see them in a protected place, feeding and flying and free.

Today was moving day.  We were only traveling about 20 miles.  We left before noon and stopped at Walmart and did a couple of other errands.  We arrived at the Highway 21 Drive In by early afternoon.  This is a Harvest Host site.  There is no charge for boondocking here.  We needed only to purchase our movie tickets and our dinner from the concession.  We chose Screen 3. 

The movies didn’t begin until 7pm.  We rested for a while and then we were going to ride our bikes.  The Spanish Moss Trail is adjacent to the theater.  Tim took the bikes off of the Jeep and returned with “bad news.”  He had a flat tire.  Fortunately, we were 5 miles from an open bike shop.  Tim called and the guy said he would fix the tire “on the spot.”  The bike shop was a bit chaotic but the man knew what he was doing and the tire was quickly repaired.

We got back to the drive in and hopped on our bikes.

This evening, we ordered cheeseburgers. This spooky scarecrow spoke to me as I walked by, startling me!

We watched the Springsteen movie from our front seats. The movie was mostly about Springsteen’s struggles with depression. It was intense. I agree with the New York Times review that was posted Saturday morning.

I really enjoyed this experience. I have such fond childhood memories of going to the drive in. We would put on our pajamas. My mom would make a huge Coleman jug of red Kool-Aid and a brown paper bag full of Jiffy Pop Popcorn. We would drive to the Edmonson Drive In and the three of us kids would snuggle up in the backseat with the pink blanket with red roses on it. We would watch Woody Woodpecker and then at least part of the first feature and the we would be asleep. We would arrive home drowsy and happy!

Get out there and try something new!!

1294 October 23, 2025 Beaufort And Gullah Grub

Tim was going to the beach to walk.  I was going to the dumpster to take the trash.  I decided to walk to the end of the park road.  As I walked back, I passed the beach access path.  I went to look at the water and then walked down to the shore.  In the far distance, I could see the lighthouse.  I made it my goal to walk to the lighthouse.  It was a lovely fall morning, perfect for a good long walk!

We too the Jeep and drove into Beaufort.  We parked at the waterfront lot and walked in the park. 

We passed the marina.

We walked through town.

For lunch, we had wanted to go to Gullah Grub.  We had eaten here years ago and remembered the good home cooked meal that we had.  Gullah culture is an important part of low country history.  These are descendants of enslaved West Africans.  There is a strong community of Gullah Geechee people here.  At the restaurant, our server was talking with us about our travels.  We mentioned that we had been here many years before and we particularly remembered the potato salad.  He told us that the same guy was making the potato salad and we were sure to enjoy it today as well.  The chef, who had overheard the conversation, came out from the kitchen. Mr. Green is 75 years old.  His greatest joy is cooking for people.  He has a program where he recruits high school students.  He takes them to his family farm and teaches them about growing food and then he brings them to his restaurant and teaches them how to cook.  He does everything with four basic tenants in mind:  love, kindness, tolerance, and respect.  It is his belief that we are meant to be helping one another.  He also believes that educating young people and giving them skills is the most important thing we can do.  The world needs more men like Bill Green.  This is not a fancy place and this is not fancy food.  The ambiance is unique.  We had a great meal of ribs and potato salad but the best part of our experience at Gullah Grub was chatting and sharing values.

 After lunch we went for a drive in the country.  We took Eddings Point Road to the end where we came upon a farm with lots of donkeys. 

There was also a large pig laying on the pasture…we never know what we are going to find!

This evening, we drove to the Visitor Center and then found a place to sit by the lagoon.

We went to the lighthouse but it was closed for construction.

We went to sit on the beach.

We took a small picnic to the Marsh Boardwalk.

We saw a bald eagle.

We stayed for sunset.

1293 October 22, 2025 Island Hopping To Hunting Island

We found 2 sets of raccoon tracks right beside the steps to the RV…small ones and larger ones. 

I finished my walk and did some cleaning and then got the rig ready to go.  We stopped at the sanitation station and then went to fuel up.

Today’s destination was Hunting Island State Park.  It was just 13 miles from Edisto…as the crow flies.  In order to get there, we had to drive inland and then back east.  The road trip was 97 miles and took us about two hours. 

The park is beautiful but nothing looked familiar.  We were here more than ten years ago.  Since then, there have been a lot of changes.  This barrier island loses 20 feet of sand/land every year.  It is eroding more quickly than any other barrier island.  Consequently, the beachfront campground that we remember no longer exists. 

This afternoon, we drove to the Nature Center and then walked the pier. 

This heron was clearly accustomed to being around people.  A fisherman there told us that the bird had just eaten 3 fish.

We took our bikes and rode the trail to the “boneyard.”  This beach has a lot of driftwood and fallen trees. 

There was a section of cabins along this beach.  They have been destroyed by storms over the years.  There is still evidence of their existence.  There are great piles of concrete.  These cabins were actually built in the woods…far away from the shoreline…until they weren’t.

I saw a pair of large birds in a tree quite a distance away.  I saw that they were eagles.  I moved closer and took dozens of pictures.

We biked back to the Jeep and drove to the Marsh Boardwalk.  We saw hundreds of tiny crabs moving through the mud.

We saw this wood stork soaring above.

This evening, we were tired.  We decided to stay in and just had eggs for dinner.

1292 October 21, 2025 Environmental Learning Center

I walked the Cabin Road again today.  There were no new bobcat tracks but there were lots of raccoons out and about last night.

Some cool fungi.

There are lots of live oak trees and therefore there are lots of acorns and therefore there are lots of squirrels.

This huge spiderweb was awesome!

I felt good and so I continued my walk on a smaller trail.

This afternoon, we took our bikes and rode the trails from the campground to Spanish Mount.  This was as shell mound built by Native Americans more than 4,000 years ago.  The shell mound has deteriorated over time due to flooding and erosion.

We cycled on to the Environmental Learning Center.  This is a beautiful building that houses displays and information about the ecology of this area and the importance of conservation.  The center is well done and we enjoyed our time there.

We took one last trail spur to the Bache Monument.  In 1850, Bache was assigned the task of mapping and measuring the east coast of the United States from Maine to Alabama.  He used a system of triangulation with concrete markers to calculate the miles.  In the 1990’s, modern global positioning was used to test Bache’s measurements.  He was 2 ½ inches off.  That’s pretty remarkable. 

We biked back through the forest to the RV.

This evening, I grilled salmon, made asparagus salad, and cut some fresh mango.  We took our dinner to the picnic area at the boat ramp.

When we were finished eating, we drove into town and stopped at the beach.

We went to the Jungle Road Park to watch sunset.

1291 October 20, 2025 Wandering In Edisto

We each took walks on the trails in the state park.

Bobcat tracks in the sand.

Later this morning, we jumped into the Jeep and we went for a drive.  We started with a ride into town and to the beach.

We drove out of town to King’s Market.  We browsed and bought some more fig preserves.

These painted turtles are displayed all over Edisto Island; each unique and beautiful.

There are lots of sweetgrass basket stands here in low country.  I bought one years ago that I still love and use.  Now the smallest basket was $160.00.

We stopped at Dawhoo Landing and had a great view of the bridge to the island.

We went to the seafood market for fresh shrimp.

We stopped at George and Pinks; another small market off the beaten path.

We drove down Palmetto Road to the state park boat ramp.

This evening, we went to Waterfront Restaurant which was NOT on the waterfront.  We both ordered shrimp and grits.  Before our meals came, the server brought us a basket of hot hushpuppies…YUM!!!  Then, we couldn’t finish our food.  We were too full!

We drove back to the boat ramp to watch the sunset over the salt marsh.

1290 October 19, 2025 Edisto Beach State Park

I walked in the area surrounding the campground.  I noticed that the Firestone was open and I went in to ask if we might be able to use their air compressor for an RV tire.  They were very gracious and I told them that we would be by later in the morning. 

We did a couple of errands and then got ready to go. 

Some Halloween dump station humor.

We were able to pull up right in front of the Firestone and get our tire inflated.

We left Charleston, crossing over several bridges. 

We traveled another 1 ½ hours to the south to Edisto Beach State Park.  The last 10 miles of our drive was on the Edisto Scenic Byway.  I love driving through the tunnels made by the old live oak trees.  The branches were draped with Spanish moss.  We were now in low country.

Our campsite is nestled among trees.

This afternoon, we got on our bikes and rode into the town.

We stopped at the Jungle Road Park, situated on the salt marsh.

We continued on a newly paved bike path all the way to the end of the island.  We pushed our bikes on the last bit of trail to the beach.

We sat for awhile on this very crooked bench, watching the water.

We biked back.

This evening, I made flatbread with a glaze of fig preserves, thinly sliced fresh pears, goat cheese, prosciutto, and a drizzle of honey.  It was delicious!

1289 October 18, 2025 Exploring Charleston

I walked the nature trail adjacent to the campground.  I passed the lake and headed into the woods.  It was slightly chilly and peaceful.

Tim found a nearby gym, brand new and well equipped.  He was able to get a free three-day trial membership.

Later this morning, we took the Jeep and drove to Charleston.

We parked at the Charleston Visitor Center.

We took our bikes and cycled through the city.  We spotted a farmer’s market at Marion Square.  We browsed the selection of tasty foods and fine crafts.  We found a loaf of orange, walnut and cranberry sourdough bread.

We biked along Meeting Street.

We turned onto Market Street.  We walked our bikes for a short distance inside the market but quickly realized that it was too crowded and we went back out to the street. 

We found our way to the waterfront.

The famous pineapple fountain.

We biked on along the Battery. There are some beautiful old houses here in the city.

We passed the Bloom Festival.

We stopped at a small taqueria for lunch.

On our way back to the car, there was an olive oil store.  We bought a bottle of almond cream balsamic vinegar to go with the fresh sourdough bread.

I wish that we were staying longer.  There is a lot of history in the City of Charleston and I would like to learn more…next time!!

This evening for dinner we packed a picnic.  We put everything on our bike bags and rode back onto the nature trail to a picnic table.

This deer walked across the sandy path.

We biked the remainder of the trail past the lake.  Several turtles were enjoying the last vestiges of sunshine.

What a great day we had!

1288 October 17, 2025 Charleston KOA

I started by walking to the beach.

Then, my goal this morning was to walk the trail to the ponds that we passed yesterday on our bikes.  It is very hard to take pictures while biking.  I am so blessed to be able to walk in such beautiful surroundings.  The turtles and alligators were not out sunning themselves.  It was only 54 degrees when we got up.

I returned along the causeway where I saw wood storks perched in a tree.

There is a huge eagle nest beneath the canopy of this tree.

We packed and prepared to move.  We went south on 17 and arrived at the Charleston KOA after only about 1 ½ hours.

My mission this afternoon was to get all the clothes and sheets and towels washed.  Our dryer is not working and so we needed a nice laundry room.  This campground is well kept and clean.  I spent the afternoon out on the deck on a fine fall day, listening to an audiobook and getting the laundry done!

I had put chicken on the crockpot and we made tender and delicious butter chicken with garlic naan and broccoli.

We cycled around the park this evening after dinner.

1287 October 16, 2025 Gem In South Carolina

My walk this morning took me by Atalaya, the house built by the Huntington family in 1931.  The family donated this land that was to become Huntington Beach State Park in the 1950’s.

I also walked out to the beach.

The park was to preserve the habitat of wildlife; birds, turtles, and alligators.  The Huntington’s had created two manmade ponds for fresh water species.  In addition, the property sits on a salt water marsh and has miles of ocean beaches.  There is maritime forest as well.  Migratory birds use this place as a rest stop.  More species of birds have been identified in this park than in all of the Carolinas!

We went to Murrells Inlet to do some errands.  Our first stop was the CVS.  We both got Flu and COVID vaccines.  It was simple and free!

We went to Publix for a few groceries and for fresh water fill and we fueled the Jeep.

This afternoon we biked about 7.5 miles through the park on a paved bike path.  It was another gorgeous day.  We saw gators and turtles and dozens of wood storks and a couple of spoonbills.  We followed the path parallel to Highway 17 and then through a neighborhood with big and beautiful beach houses.

This evening, we packed steamed shrimp and whole grain sourdough and took our picnic out by the pier.  We watched the birds.

We were waiting for the sun to go down and we got a FaceTime call from Kyle and Wade.  It was dinnertime!  Wade was loving his meal!

 Tomorrow, we will leave this place and head south to Charleston.  This was a really cool park and I hope that someday we get an opportunity to come back and explore some more!

1286 October 15, 2025 Huntington Beach State Park

I was feeling really good this morning and I set a goal to walk to the bridge.  I was able to walk 3.25 miles without foot pain.  This was my longest walk post injury and it is a huge big deal not to hurt anymore!

I was thinking that we might stay longer in Holden Beach but we were able to secure reservations for two nights at Huntington Beach Sate Park.  We have tried to get reservations here before but this is the crown jewel of the SC state park system and it stays full.  We drove out of Holden Beach and then another 1 ½ hours into South Carolina and then around Myrtle Beach.  We arrived in early afternoon.  We rested and then we cycled through the park.  We began at the beach.  The tide was very high and there were lots of people enjoying a very small amount of beach. 

We sat in a pavilion along the marsh and watched little white egrets hunting for food.

This is a ghost tree and it is part of a ghost forest.  With rising sea levels, the tidal water now reaches further inland.  Hardwood trees are not able to tolerate the salinity and they die.

We biked to the nature center and walked through the exhibits.

The access to the pier was flooded at the salt marsh.

We biked across the causeway.

We spotted a couple of alligators.

This little guy was less than two feet long.

This park has lots of birds probably because it has such a wide range of protected habitats.

We packed dinner and took the Jeep back to the nature center where that was a nice picnic area. 

The tide had receded and we were able to get out onto the pier for the sunset.

Tim saw this group of roseate spoonbills roosting on a damaged portion of the pier.  The no see ums chased us back to the car.

We went back out to the beach and took a walk.

What a perfect mild and pleasant day!

We also got to FaceTime with both boys and all the grandchildren!