November 30, 2006

This is a post from the trip down when I didn't have wireless service. But here it is: will post again for today on a different page.
Land of Spanish Moss, pink hibiscus and early morning mists on
the river. Yes, we arrived in Hilton Head, S.C. yesterday noon time. This is one of my favorite places to be. I feel alive and renewed in this climate. Now going out into the traffic is another matter altogether. It seems to get worse each year. But for now, we are tucked safely and quietly away in an rv resort and marina on the river. We are directly across the river from the Pinckney Island Wildlife Reserve. If I had more time here, I would pull Namaskar off the kayak rack and launch her here. Our plan is to purchase another kayak so Ralph can join me on my adventures into the marshlands. For now, we must be content with a long walk on the beach today with our friends who live here year round. They are way down on the southern tip of the Island in Sea Pines Plantation. That is the toe of the shoe. This island is shaped like a shoe or a boot. Sea Pines requires a permit to enter and is one of the favored places to live and play golf.

We left Ashland, VA the day after Thanksgiving after much to do. We were delayed from getting an early start due to mistakes on our part. But finally loaded with kayak and bikes, ladders and dog we were off to parts southern. We had lovely weather and each drove so the trip didn’t seem as long. We made it to Florence, SC over 320 miles and found shelter for the night in a Coast to Coast park. We were very tired when we pulled off I 95 and the directions to the park said it was only 200 yds from the ramp. All we saw was a gas station on the left and a road curving off to the right. Well, we drove right up to a “Wrong Way” sign for I 95. What a revolting development that is! Luckily there was room on the grass to make a partial U turn to get this monster back on the ramp but headed north once again. Eight miles later, we found an exit and turned around for the return trip of 8 miles to do it again. In the meantime, I called for further instructions and discovered that all their signs had been blown apart by a storm and that they were further down the road than the map had said. All was made well but the level of frustration was off the gauge for awhile.
We had a nice thanksgiving day dinner with my family although we missed my grandson who was marching in the parade with the Highty Tighties in Philly. We had more food than we could eat but it tasted so good. We had loaded the kayak from my dear friends house and dropped my car off there for storage on our way to dinner. It was cold and raw. We watched old movies all afternoon. It was a pleasant break for me away from football.

I took pics this morning and will post them. May you all have a lovely Sunday.