South Carolina February 28 – March 3, 2017 101 miles
We had such a good time on Tybee Island that we were a bit reluctant to leave but we had our sites set on our South Carolina 100. The first trail we have planned is the Spanish Moss Trail. Found a trail head in Port Royale and enjoyed a wonderful ride past rivers, marshes and mud flats. It was a good sampling of the low country. The trail traveled past the Marine Air Base in Beaufort. While passing the end of the air field several fighter jets flew over. I have never experienced anything like this before – it was an awesome sight, the sound was overwhelming – I was in tears. Speechless!!
We planned to camp at Hunting State Park, but were told by a jogger that it had been closed since being damaged in hurricane Matthew. Apparently Beaufort was one of the hardest hit areas! So, we headed for Edisto Island – we had been here years ago with the kids and my mom and dad. Arrived after dark and found there was no camping on beach due to hurricane damage but we were able to find a campsite at Liv-Oak Campground. No phone, no internet, no satellite. No problem!
We awoke to a beautiful campground. We rode our bikes on a dirt trail and across boardwalks into town. Walked on the beach, road through Wyndham timeshare which was only 30% open due to hurricane Matthew damage. We stopped at Dockside for a beer, a place we’d had dinner many years ago. Next stop was Fins for Bam Bam shrimp and another beer! We certainly wouldn’t get many miles under our tires if we only rode around these beach towns. It was fun and relaxing though.
Left Edisto Island and headed for Charleston area to ride West Ashley Greenway – a nice trail through pine forests and mud flats. Most of the trail was gravel, some smooth, some not so smooth.
We stayed at a Wal-Mart on James Island and found a bike shop just down the road. Lenny purchased a new Giant Cypress with front suspension. We headed for James Island County Park to test his new ride. This park is for bikers and dog lovers. They have a huge off the leash dog park with a lake for dogs to swim. Flo loved it and we loved the biking. We checked on camping but it was over our budget so we cooked our dinner in the park and headed for Summerville.
We rode the Sawmill Branch Trail in Summerville. The trail head was at a soccer complex – yes, soccer day in America. We did enjoy watching the soccer games while getting ready to ride. The trail followed a canal and was smooth and flat, a good trail for Lenny testing his new blue bike.
We headed for Traveler’s Rest (cool name for a town) to ride the Swamp Rabbit Trail. Traveler’s Rest is a nice little town with some nice eateries and outfitters for hiking and kayaking. We rode along the Reedy River, past Furman University and Falls Park in Greenville. Falls Park was a pleasant surprise – nice view of Reedy Falls. There were restaurants overlooking the park and the falls – very busy with Sunday strollers. It’s well worth the trip to Greenville to see this beautiful area!
On our return I dropped by new water bottle (purchased on the Silver Comet Trail). Lenny climbed down an embankment and under a bridge to retrieve it. Had to drop it on a bridge!
From Traveler’s Rest we headed for Denver, NC to meet up with our niece Natalie. We had a good Mexican meal and then she introduced us to Cookout. They have fantastic shakes – any flavor you can think of.
- Spanish Moss Trail – Port Royale
- Edisto Island
- West Ashley Greenway
- James Island
- Sawmill Branch Trail – Summerville
- Swamp Rabbit Trail