Last 10 days in Hilton Head - Part 1 of 2*****

******due to a careless mistake, I lost all of the text in the draft of this blog - which I have now (mostly) recreated ......here is Part 1.......Part 2 to follow soon.....even though it’s “late” I hope that you still enjoy reading it.....as always, thanks for following our travels!

During our last 10 days in Hilton Head we experienced a wide range of weather conditions - from sunny, cool days in the mid 50’s, to days that were hot and humid, when the temperature hit 83F. We had days when sea-fog covered the coastal areas and other days when the winds blew hard.....so it was not the best of weeks to rent bikes, but we did!
Although there are many communities on the island that are “gated” - where access is restricted to only residents and guests - we found that together with the 12 miles of beaches (where the sand is hard-packed and easy to cycle on), there are enough miles of available bike paths to satisfy us. We cycled paths that wound through jungle-like areas where we saw lots of birds, turtles and even an alligator. We made our way up and down narrow streets that were close to the beach - some were merely lanes - and admired the huge southern-style beach-houses.
On the hottest day we abandoned our bikes and went to Tybee Island - a small barrier island just 20 minutes from downtown Savannah....legend has it that anyone who grew up in Savannah learned to swim on Tybee. The island is small - less than 3 sq miles - has about 1 mile of beach and gets extremely crowded in summer. A few years ago when passing through the area, we drove there in the height of summer and left immediately, vowing never to return. Curiosity, however got the better of us - everyone around here seems to love this beach-town - and as it was out of season, we de decided to give Tybee Island another chance.
On this day there were only a few people around, the beach and sand dunes were lovely and sparsely populated - but the tacky, t-shirt & souvenir shops still remain.
Wandering around, we speculated that maybe this is what the crowds come for - the nostalgia of the sea-side of their childhood - in a place that hasn’t changed.
After browsing the shops, we walked up and down the beachfront and along the fishing pier before returning to the car to take a slow drive around the coastal edges of the island.
Quiet and peaceful, it has small streets filled with beach houses - mostly small and mostly for rent at this time of year. There are a couple of small beaches on the river, which are, apparently, the quietest ones in season. Before we started the journey back to Hilton Head, we found a little piece of sand between two houses on the Savannah River - close to Tybee Creek - a place where kayakers and paddle boarders can easily launch. It was empty, quiet and peaceful, so we pulled out our beach chairs and enjoyed a cold drink while watching the wildlife and the river flow by.
On another, cooler day we once again left our bikes behind and paid the $6 fee to enter the grounds of Sea Pines Plantation - the first private Plantation community, and still one of the largest, built on Hilton Head island. Started in 1956 it covers 5,200 acres, has 4 championship golf courses, over 100 tennis courts and access to 5 miles of beaches - all of which service the almost 4,000 homes and 2,000 plus “villas.” If you know where to look, it’s possible to enter the Plantation, via the beach, on foot or by bike - but for us that was too much of a challenge!
We drove through lovely, shaded streets to the southern end of Sea Pines where the landmark red and white striped lighthouse sits - built in 1969 as a private guide for the large yachts travelling on Calibogue Sound into the marina. The lighthouse is now a popular tourist attraction - together with shops and restaurants it’s part of the Harbour Town Marina area which has become a destination in itself for visitors. During our time there we learned a little more about Hilton Head’s preservation policies. Charles Fraser, the developer of Sea Pines Plantation (and many others in the area), was a committed environmentalist who was ahead of his time. In 1956 he changed the whole configuration of the Marina at Harbour Town in order to save an ancient live oak. The moss-draped tree, now named The Liberty Oak, towers majestically over the area - Fraser was buried next to the tree when he died in 2002.
Continuing our tour of Sea Pines, we passed upscale club houses for both golf and tennis, another marina and an equestrian centre + miles of bike-paths that wind throughout the Plantation. Our last stop was to see the ruins of the historic Stoney-Baynard estate, which includes the main house and slave quarters. Although built in the 1790’s by Captain Jack Stoney, it was later owned by William Baynard - who, according to local legend, won it from Stoney in a poker game. Baynard, a successful cotton plantation owner, lived there with his wife and 4 children until 1861 when they evacuated the property due to the invasion of Hilton Head Island by Union soldiers. This grand antebellum house, which looked over Calibogue Sound, was used as Union Headquarters during the Civil War......they burned down to the ground when they left.
Today only a few, small ruins remain, on this piece of “high-ground.” In a clearing, surrounded by a fairly dense area of woodland, the area is eerily quiet. With information boards supplying information, the tour is self-guided. Although small, we found it both peaceful and interesting and for us, worth the price of admission to Sea Pines!