Sunshine & Sand -- Huntington Beach, South Carolina

Sunshine and Sand

The Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina was closed, so we were searching for an alternative route.  Joe asked me to look at Hunting Island State Park.  I pulled out my phone, read the reviews and answered with,  “Looks great to me.  It even has a castle you can tour.”

“Castle? What website are you on?”

“Huntington Beach Park State Park.”

“I said ‘Hunting Island’ not Huntington Beach.”

“Oh.  Well…Huntington Beach looks a great spot to me!” 

After looking up the park Joe said, “You’re right. Let’s go there.” 

Joe made campground reservations at both parks and added a third.   In lieu of the Blue Ridge Parkway, we explored dog-friendly beach campgrounds along South Carolina’s Atlantic coastline.  North to south we camped in three state parks: Huntington Beach, Edisto Beach and Hunting Island.  Van life is different along the populated Eastern seaboard.  Reservations are must if we want to secure a spot: on Saturday nights every single campsite is occupied. 

Huntington Beach in January was quiet, peaceful and equipped with spacious campsites.  Our campsite was tucked beneath an Eastern Red Cedar.  The tree provided ample shade under it’s gnarled branches, twisted limbs growing away from the shoreline as if their job was to point the way inland.  Hailing from Michigan, we spent our time walking the beach in shorts and bare feet enjoying the sunshine and temperatures in the 60s.  With the tide ebbing and flowing, each walk was different.  My favorite was our last, a sunset walk at low tide.  With such a large swath of hard-packed beach exposed, it felt like we were walking on a road.  The clouds to the south changed from pink to deep red as the sun dipped below the horizon.  We walked the shoreline north of the campground where the beach was empty and wild.  Although we crossed paths with other dog walkers, at dark we had the beach to ourselves.  The temperature dropped faster than the sun and the sand chilled my feet, but it’s a beach I’d love to visit again and again. 

Molly at the Beach

Molly might enjoy camping the most. She is always ready to go for a hike and the last couple days have been filled with long walks on the beach. As she rolls around in the sand Joe see a dog having the time of her life, and Jenny sees a dog’s coat filled with sand that is likely to find its way into the van. Thank goodness for clean van day! Today is not clean van day and maybe tomorrow will be.

Daisy Town

Our country is young. Yet it is just old enough for locations to have a history. A history of once being something else. As we rolled into Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Ms. Google directed us to the only open campground on the Tennessee side of the park, Elkmont. The campground was named after a lumbering town that once graced the banks of the Little River. Now the town site is home to 200 campsites nestled between towering stately trees that sway in the winter wind as if they’re searching for dance partners.

Even though only one loop is open in the winter, we walked our dog, Molly, throughout the entire campground. The sound of the river water rushing down the mountain creates a natural sense of peace that permeates the Elkmont area.

At the edge of the campground, we crossed the river over a stone bridge and stumbled upon Daisy Town, a turn-of-the-century summer retreat for Knoxville’s elite. The historic row of private residences was once part of the Appalachian Club. When the Great Smoky Mountain National Park was formed many of the cottage owners were granted lifetime leases. The last two residents turned their dwelling over to the park in 2001.

Amidst the swirling brown leaves dancing in the wind gusts, we heard the sound of a hammer pounding and rocks being tossed around. At the end of the row, two National Park employees were hard at work restoring a cabin. We saw another dwelling with a fresh coat of blue paint and the Appalachian Clubhouse building was sporting a new set of support beams.

At one time the park planned to remove the cottages, but in 1994 Daisy Town was placed on the National Registry of Historic Places. The park appears to be slowly breathing to life into the aging buildings. With metal rooftops covered in leaves, doors open here and there, and windows missing glass panes, the place has a neglected but magical air. Traveling with Molly in national parks tends to limit our woodland exploring as dogs are not allowed on most hiking trails, so Daisy Town was a wonderful find.

Bruce Harris at WRRS in Cincinnati

We eased into our second winter of van life, by stopping along our route to visit friends.  We enjoyed their hospitality and stories, while we relished our extra few days of easy access to hot showers and plush towels.  Soon we will be pulling out our shower shoes, checking campground restrooms for spiders and resigning ourselves to using our quick dry camp towels that feel paper thin. 

In Cincinnati we stayed with Bruce Harris.  He’s a long time family friend with memories of museum outings with our sons when they were just preschoolers.  Bruce shared an office with Joe back in 1986.  Bruce will tell you that he encouraged Joe to ask for my hand in marriage.  Since Joe’s proposal was just one word, “Well?”; it’s a story Bruce still loves to share. 

Bruce is retired, yet busy.  He spends about 35 hours a week volunteering at different organizations.  He’s also a high school debate coach.  On Tuesday mornings he’s the producer for the live portion of WRRS radio..  The station call letters RRS stand for Radio Reading Service.   Volunteers aid the visually impaired by reading the news.  Daily.  All year long. 

Our Cincinnati visit included a tour of WRRS.  Bruce, with a business background, learned the art of radio producing on the job.  He remembers being overwhelmed by the number of switches on the control panel when he first started volunteering.  While in the booth Bruce demonstrated his radio voice and gave us a sample of his morning patter. We loved the tour and hope to catch his performance next time we’re in town. 

Molly's Carry Pack

Molly tore the ACL in her knee this summer. She has been thru physical therapy and is doing great. Just in case we run into an issue on the trail we will now be traveling with this carry pack in our van. Molly is not sure what to think of it, however. She gets this puzzled look in her eyes when we practice with it. Hopefully we will not need it.

We Are Off -- East to West and Home Again?

We are off on our next adventure!

Joe spent last fall pouring over online maps, researching potential stopping points and planning our 2020 van trip.  On last year’s trip we ping-ponged around the American Southwest and racked up over 10,000 miles by the time we returned to Michigan.  This year our intention is to travel from point to point in more or less a straight line.  We do have one caveat: weather permitting. 

We left the day after our 32nd wedding anniversary.  Loaded lighter than last year, we pulled out of our driveway around 10 am on Friday, January 3rd.  After overnight stops to visit with friends in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, we made our way to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Forecasted high winds closed the Blue Ridge Parkway,  so we re-routed ourselves to South Carolina’s coastline.  Currently we are enjoying our morning barefoot beach walks and the sound of the surf as we watch brown pelicans fly low over the Atlantic Ocean waves.

We’re slowly making our way to Florida to visit Joe’s parents in their new full-time Sunshine State residence.  After Florida we will head west toward New Orleans, Louisiana.  Then continue through the great state of Texas with stops in Galveston and Big Bend National Park.  When we run out of coastline we will motor across New Mexico and Arizona, maybe up into Utah.  We plan to linger in Southern California before driving up the West Coast to Seattle, Washington.   The last leg of our journey will bring us back to Michigan with stops in Idaho, Montana, South Dakota and Minnesota.   Our planned shortcut will take us from Wisconsin, across Lake Michigan via a car ferry. We will disembark just a few hours from home.  I know Joe will want to linger and stretch out our last day in the van, but after this six month in the van I will be ready for home. 

Our 2020 route covers about 10,000 miles and 20 of our nation’s states before returning us to Michigan.  We hope you follow along, or if time permits, join us on our journey.