Friday, November 24 (day after Thanksgiving) - Black Friday
No shopping for the Knaubs. We were off on an adventure to Bulls Island, an uninhabited island which is part of the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge. We knew we were in for a day of walking, but had no idea how much. The ferry takes off at 9 and comes back to pick you up at either 1 pm or 4 pm. On the way out, it was high tide and you could only see a foot or so of the grass. On the way back, the grass was fully exposed and you could see the dirt and mussels at the bottom. There is about a 6 foot difference in the depth of the water depending on high or low tide (in the estuary).
We drove South on 17 almost to Mt Pleasant (Charleston) area. There was probably a half mile walk to the end of the pier to board the ferry.
We had to carry in all food and drink since there is nothing on the island. In fact, there is only one bathroom and that is about 1/2 mile inland after you get off the ferry. So, if you aren't close to it, well you know...
We were told there were alligators, otters, bobcat, squirrels, deer, lots of birds (over 275 species recorded here) in this jungle-like atmosphere. There are many ponds and trails, observation towers, birding platforms. It also has Moccasin Pond and Alligator Alley. It lies 3 miles off the mainland. We were told that the alligators would run from us, just jump up and down and make yourself "large". The gators will be scared and run toward the water. However, if you encounter one that won't run away, then you need to go the other way. We were also told that this was the cleanest air around.
The walking began. It was about 2 miles to get to the beach. From there we probably walked another 2 miles to get to Boneyard Beach. We were also warned that we should pay attention to where we entered the beach (through the sand dunes) because there was only one 2 x 4 marker standing in a sand dune and it's easy to miss. I also left a folding chair there so we could easily see it on the way back.
As we walked towards the boneyard we found over 50 sand dollars and many other shells. It was a beautiful sunny day with a bright blue sky. The Boneyard Beach is a 3-mile stretch of beach where hundreds of oaks, cedars, and pines are strewn along the beach, the result of an ever-changing beach which is in constant battle with the in-coming surf. The trees have been bleached by the sun and salt water ultimately resembling a grave yard of bones.
After we got to the graveyard I went back to the lawn chair and Harry and Cam went inland to alligator alley. They saw about 5 alligators. They also saw live starfish in the tidal pools on the beach. Cam found 3 large whelks.
I walked back to the starting point and waited for the guys to return. We were all physically exhausted. Cam revived quickly and was running around. Harry said he thinks this is the first day in a long time where he expended more calories then he took in.
On the ferry ride back a naturalist answered questions and showed us alligator skulls, shells, etc. and explained how they eat. It was pretty fascinating.
