Travelling to Huntington State Park
Friday. Mar7th
On the road to Huntington Beach State Park
The heavens open up just shortly after we get on the road. Good timing and good day to be driving. Severe weather warning is being broadcast for some regions. We’re on our way to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens & Drayton Hall, southwest of Charleston. Our visit may be shorter than planned if the weather doesn’t improve. And the weather does not; it gets worse. And worse yet, we have a wee accident involving the admission sign/toll booth to the Gardens. Sign got knocked down (about 2 ft. wider than the building). We also make brief contact with the roof overhang and the trailer gutters which now appear to be somewhat compressed. I seems that contact with their sign is not an unusual happening and we’re told not to worry. The bottom of the sign ways that a ‘rain check’ will be issued in the event of rain. We are given instructions on how/where to do a u-turn in the gardens. As we do so, I notice this long white ???. Upon closer look it turns out to be the tail of a rather elegant bird. Inside the wooden structure are 3 more birds – peacocks. What a pity that the weather is not conducive to walking the gardens or seeing the main house, Drayton Hall. This place is worth a visit, roughly 4 hours to see it all. Basic admission is $15 per adult, add on $7 each to see the House, the Audubon Swamp, Nature Train, Nature Boat tours or $35 for an all-inclusive admission.
Back on the road (#526 east) we drive north around Charleston, passing over 2 bridges (Cooper & Wando Rivers) giving us a view of container ship docking on the right and some plant on the right belching out steam/smoke further adding to visibility problems.
Next roadmap event is Francis Marion National Forest as we follow along #17N. As I look closer I begin to wonder about gas. Not wishing to have a repeat performance of the St. George Island leg of our trip, we wisely do a u-turn on the divided highway to visit what looks like the last station (Sewee Outpost) before Georgetown some 50 miles away.
Georgetown – home to International Paper (massive plant) and also a steel mill.
After setting up camp we drive into town to find a wireless source, just happens to be one at the Lattee ??? shop across the street from the Salvation Army Thrift store. Al gets the mail not having to enter the coffee shop and I buy a tie (my first fish tie) and a gargantuan jean skirt – probably a complete circle. From there we do the tour into Mrytle Beach, but the weather has not improved so we don’t stop anywhere. Just opposite the state park is Brookgreen Gardens which may prove to be a substitute for missing the Magnolia Gardens, all of which is still owned by the Huntington Foundation but leased to the State.
On the road to Huntington Beach State Park
The heavens open up just shortly after we get on the road. Good timing and good day to be driving. Severe weather warning is being broadcast for some regions. We’re on our way to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens & Drayton Hall, southwest of Charleston. Our visit may be shorter than planned if the weather doesn’t improve. And the weather does not; it gets worse. And worse yet, we have a wee accident involving the admission sign/toll booth to the Gardens. Sign got knocked down (about 2 ft. wider than the building). We also make brief contact with the roof overhang and the trailer gutters which now appear to be somewhat compressed. I seems that contact with their sign is not an unusual happening and we’re told not to worry. The bottom of the sign ways that a ‘rain check’ will be issued in the event of rain. We are given instructions on how/where to do a u-turn in the gardens. As we do so, I notice this long white ???. Upon closer look it turns out to be the tail of a rather elegant bird. Inside the wooden structure are 3 more birds – peacocks. What a pity that the weather is not conducive to walking the gardens or seeing the main house, Drayton Hall. This place is worth a visit, roughly 4 hours to see it all. Basic admission is $15 per adult, add on $7 each to see the House, the Audubon Swamp, Nature Train, Nature Boat tours or $35 for an all-inclusive admission.
Back on the road (#526 east) we drive north around Charleston, passing over 2 bridges (Cooper & Wando Rivers) giving us a view of container ship docking on the right and some plant on the right belching out steam/smoke further adding to visibility problems.
Next roadmap event is Francis Marion National Forest as we follow along #17N. As I look closer I begin to wonder about gas. Not wishing to have a repeat performance of the St. George Island leg of our trip, we wisely do a u-turn on the divided highway to visit what looks like the last station (Sewee Outpost) before Georgetown some 50 miles away.
Georgetown – home to International Paper (massive plant) and also a steel mill.
After setting up camp we drive into town to find a wireless source, just happens to be one at the Lattee ??? shop across the street from the Salvation Army Thrift store. Al gets the mail not having to enter the coffee shop and I buy a tie (my first fish tie) and a gargantuan jean skirt – probably a complete circle. From there we do the tour into Mrytle Beach, but the weather has not improved so we don’t stop anywhere. Just opposite the state park is Brookgreen Gardens which may prove to be a substitute for missing the Magnolia Gardens, all of which is still owned by the Huntington Foundation but leased to the State.
posted by Pat @ 11:27 AM
1 Comments:
You write very well.
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