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| Once we turned off of Highway 17 and
headed toward the coast we traveled several miles
down roads such as this one. Being from the western
U.S., I am used to wide open spaces, but here it
was trees trees trees. More than once I thought
I heard the twang of "Dueling
Banjos" in the distance... |
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| As we approached the home of Susan's long-time
friends and former co-workers, we passed this sign
which gave some history regarding this area. We
will be seeing more of and learn a little about
these "barony" holdings first granted
in the early 18th century. It's good to be King! |
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My concern about "good ol' boys" lessened
when I saw the name of the street where Susan's
friends, Rick and Ginger, reside. I would later
learn that Rick is wild about Neil
Young, which meant we immediately had
something in common. I later learned that Harvest
Moon also refers to the Civil War-era USS Harvest
Moon: "On March 1, 1865 the Union Steamer
Harvest Moon, Flagship of Admiral John A. Dahlgren,
struck a confederate torpedo and sank in Winyah
Bay 5 miles SSE of the city of Georgetown, South
Carolina. To this day, the Harvest Moon rests
where she went down, buried under the sands of
Winyah Bay with her smokestack still proudly visible...."
more
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And, buddy, are they right!
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Someone has to open and close
the gates, right? Rick and Ginger live on a little
more than seven acres of land on the south side
of the Winyah
Bay. |
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Although I would not consider
myself (any longer) to be a long-hair, I probably
fit the other description.
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Here is their old stable, with
the house off to the right. As you can already
see, there is plenty of room here for their seven
cats and three dogs.
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| The above photo and those that follow
are of the view from the rear of Rick and Ginger's
house. You can make out two Canadian geese in this
photo as well as the house across the pond that
allegedly was built with, shall we say, ill-gotten
booty. |
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Rick and Ginger have converted what was once
a hunting and fishing cabin into a very comfortable
home. Yes, they have air-conditioning for the
steamy and buggy summer days and nights. Once
I had graciously accepted the role of either "damn
Yankee" or "northern agressor"
things moved along sweetly and easily as we enjoyed
plenty of beer and some fine scotch whisky.
I regret not getting photos of the delicious
"Beaufort
Boil" stew that Rick presented us
for supper (with some lip-smacking ribs as an
appetizer and chocolate chip cookies for the munchies).
And the stars! It has been a very long time since
I have seen the Milky Way gracing the sky like
splashes of white lace.
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| This pond is fed by ground water (which
can be reached by digging down only five or six
feet!) but a dike was built where it drained off
to increase the pond's depth. |
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| I feel badly now that I did not get
photos of the pet menagerie, including the Huskie
with one blue eye, but at the time Susan was taking
plenty of those kind of photos. Here we are enjoying
the afternoon sun. I think the dog's name is Cocoa. |
| This caption should read "The
Baruch Gang." The homeowners, Ginger
and Rick, are second and third from the right. |
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After a restful night in Rick and Ginger's guest
room, the next morning we journeyed north again
on Highway 17 to Georgetown itself.
"Few other areas
in America contain more history or charm than
Georgetown, South Carolina. From its earliest
beginnings as the probable site of the first European
settlement in North America in 1526, to its present
status as a vibrant and gracious city of 9,000,
Georgetown has long been known for its warm hospitality
and Southern charm..." more
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| The South Carolina Low Country is
just that: swamps, salt marshes, tidal flats, and
just enough solid ground for "civilization"
to take root. Here is a monument to Francis
Marion, a famous South Carolina hero of
the American Revolution (also know as that unfortunate
misunderstanding with King George III). Marion was
known as "The
Swamp Fox" and bedeviled the Recoats
as well as colonists who remained loyal to Great
Britain. You might make out that the plaque was
dedicated in 1911 by the Daughters of the American
Revolution. |
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Here is another photo of a street
just off the "main drag" in Georgetown.
Before the American Civil War, the Low Country
was a major rice producing region thanks to the
availability of slave labor. After Emancipation,
the rice fields were abandoned and lumber became
the main resource.
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Georgetown may be rural but it has its industry.
Across the Sampit
River is a large paper plant. You can
make out the stern superstructure of a cargo ship
moored at its dock. The nearby soft pine forests
provide plenty of pulp for the International Paper
Company. Fortunately, on this day the wind was
blowing the mill aroma in the other direction.
There is also a mammoth steel plant which produces
reinforcing rods and similar steel products that
are shipped around the world. I did not take a
picture of that because it was uglier than a monkey's
butt.
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| Susan tells me that, at one time, the
river-front was a real wreck. After it was revitalized,
it is now a very pleasant walk with plenty to see. |
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| Here is a sign with special significance
for Susan. While working as a marine biologist a
nasty li'l gator nipped off the tip of her ring
finger! |
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After lunch at the River
Room we took a stroll along Front Street. |
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| Then it was into the rental car for
a quick drive around town. Most homes are marked
with their date of construction and many are from
the antebellum (or pre-Civil War) era. Between these
two houses stands a remarkable live oak tree. Remarkable
not only for its size, but also for the fact that
it has survived countless hurricanes and storms
in its over 500 years of life. |
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As you can see, we were not
the only tourists!
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| It was then off to Hobcaw
Barony where Susan had worked as a marine
biologist under the auspices of the University
of South Carolina's Baruch Institute. The
above plaques and links should give you some idea
of its history and the research institute. |
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It was a real pleasure to see where
Susan had worked and the road she took every day
into the pine woods and wetlands.
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It was then time to get back on Highway 17 and
drive to Charleston, South Carolina, for more
adventures to come...
... To Be Continued ...
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