South Carolina

We left off on our last adventure as we left Cape Hatteras. The drive to visit with Brooke, Dan, and Connor in Warrenville, SC was a bit too long for a straight shot so we stopped at an Airstream Courtesy Parking in Fayetteville, NC. Shiny was nestled in a lovely shaded spot. We had fun getting to know our hosts and Larry really enjoyed touring their collection of WWII trucks and jeeps.

Once we got settled into Sparky’s RV Park in Jackson, SC, we enjoyed frequent visits with Brooke and her family. We especially loved it when Connor came to visit us at ‘Shiny home’.

It was such fun to go to the fair, a soccer game, get ready for Halloween and enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner with the kids.

We scooted down to Charleston for a long weekend and stayed at James Island County Park. Our primary goal was to see the Angel Oak. It is estimated to be be between 400 and 500 years old. It was an incredibly beautiful tree and if you are a tree lover, as I am, I suggest you add a trip to Charleston to your bucket list.

We had a surprise at the James Island State Park. Our visit coincided with their annual Festival of Lights. We aren’t really Christmas light kind of people but this show was spectacular. You can drive around and see the whole show or just walk around as we did. What fun!

After we returned to Jackson, I got to visit with coworkers from long ago, Dave and Cricket. We met for breakfast and gabbed for several hours. Honestly, it seemed like I had said good bye to them just days earlier. I feel blessed to have folks like these two in my life.

Larry has friends in the Old Time Music community just about everywhere. We were very happy that we were immunized and that this year we could get together with Pete, Deb, Dan and Deborah.

We got to check out some really nice state parks near Aiken. Barnwell State Park is in Blackville, SC. It is a lovely place and we got to visit it when it was nearly deserted. It is another beautiful park built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The CCC was an amazing program established by FDR to address some of the financial hardships of the Great Depression. Men between the ages of 18 and 25 could sign up for a 6 month stint. Most of the men came from families on government assistance

“Each worker received $30 in payment per month for his services in addition to room and board at a work camp. The men were required to send $22 to 25 of their monthly earnings home to support their families. By July 1, 1933, 1,433 working camps had been established and more than 300,000 men put to work. It was the most rapid peacetime mobilization in American history” https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/civilian-conservation-corps

Isn’t that amazing?

Northeast of Barnwell State Park is the town of Blackville, SC. We drove there after our hike. I was struck by the history of this place. In 1781, Loyalists and a group of local Patriots had a skirmish which left 16 Patriots dead. This area was known for many years thereafter as Slaughter Hill. Then, only 84 years later, Sherman and 60,000 Union Soldiers burnt most of the town and destroyed the railroad. Some of the houses have survived to this day. Local lore has it that a woman saved her house by waving a Masonic flag from her second story window. Apparently, the Union officer who saw it, was also a Mason and spared the house.

Near to Blacksville is God’s Acre. According to Wikipedia, the plot of land is owned by God Almighty having been bequeathed to God in the land owner’s , L.P. “Lute” Boylston, will . It is the sight of a spring purported to have healing properties. We didn’t go there. Maybe next time around.

We spend another day hiking around Aiken State Park in Windsor, SC. This park was built by two CCC companies, one of which was an African-American detachment. It was a beautiful park and, as ever, it’s so much fun to see new flora and fauna.

I was happy to return to the magical Audubon’s Silver Bluff Sanctuary. A lot of days, I was the only person there. What a treat!

Well, time passes and we needed to ‘head down the road’ as Connor says. We got to see Brooke’s house all decorated for Christmas and we headed off to the beaches of South Carolina to wind down our Atlantic Seaboard tour.