Day 7: Hilton Head Island

We have been somewhat beach-deprived over the last couple years. When we took the Mediterranean Cruise to Europe over the summer we missed out on any beach days due to our prioritizing historical sites and museums over sand and surf.

So when we were planning the trip to South Carolina and Georgia I wanted at least two days in a beach-front location. After studying all of the many options available from Kaiwah Island, to Edisto Beach, to Tybee Island, to even further south in Georgia, I settled on Hilton Head Island.

We had never been to Hilton Head before, though I knew it was a popular beach vacation spot. I also knew that the majority of the lodging were vacation rentals, and after looking at maps and various lodging rates, I picked one that would put us in walking distance to the beach (1/2 mile) while not being exorbitantly expensive and breaking the budget.

The Coral Sands Resort wasn’t spectacular, but the townhome rental was roomy and comfortable and quiet. It was nice to have separate sleeping areas and not feel crowded.

When I was in my twenties, my then girlfriend (now wife) Shelley and I rented a townhome in Morro Bay, California and just about every day I went for a run on the beach. Since I now had that opportunity for a couple days at Hilton Head I made a quick morning run a priority.

When I arrived on the beach I found it at high tide, but I was far from the only morning jogger. It felt great to just be outside enjoying the fall weather from the beachfront.

After returning to the townhome I took a shower and we set about finding some morning breakfast.

We ate at a place called the Plantation Cafe. The service was a tad grumpy but the food was pretty good. In terms of the service, we were starting to wonder if time had changed ‘southern hospitality’ since the people we encountered just didn’t seem as friendly and welcoming as they had seemed in 2020. They seemed much more like people you’d encounter elsewhere in the country. Places that aren’t known for friendliness.

After eating we didn’t have anything definitively planned for the day other than to go to the beach as a family. But we really wanted to do something interesting and fun. After considering our options we found a segway tour for two hours in the afternoon at a nature reserve. We booked it and then got dressed to spend the intervening time at the beach.

Coligny Beach

There was zero chance of us not going to the beach. Shelley had some lingering knee pain from a long hike a couple weeks before, but neither she nor we were going to not make the walk to the beach from the hotel for some time on the sand.

The three hours between my morning run and our visit as a family was enough time for the tide to have withdrawn considerably and the beachfront was much more expansive. The water was also a bit warmer and the sun was warmer as well. The cold front that had moved into the area the prior few days had withdrawn and we were able to enjoy warm, comfortable weather.

Instead of making sand castles, my son Evan and I like to make sand drawings. We sketched out at least a dozen in the time we were there. While we were at the beach the Segway tour operator called and asked if we would be able to come in at 1:30 instead of 3 PM. We said we could and so we left after an hour to change our clothes quickly and drive to the Coastal Discovery Center at Honey Horn Plantation.

The Segway Tour at Honey Horn Plantation

The Coastal Discover Center is a natural area on the northern side of Hilton Head Island with a museum on the site of a former plantation called “Honey Horn”. The oddly named “Honey Horn” came from the Gullah Geechee who mispronounced the name of the plantation owner, John Hanahan.

We really enjoyed the off-roading segwey tour. The segweys were pretty rugged and the tour led through forest trails around the expansive property. We learned a number of interesting things from the tour guide and showed off a bit of our acquired knowledge as well.

When the tour guide asked if we knew the difference between a cemetery and a graveyard, Evan responded that a graveyard is attached to a church, while a graveyard is separate. Yeah, he’s paid attention and learned a few things over the course of the week.

The photo that appears to just be of muddy ground includes a small crab called a fiddler crab. We waited patiently by a marsh to finally capture a couple photos of these small, elusive crabs. They are very sensitive to motion and hide quickly in the mud, so patience is necessary.

The garden plot is an indigo plant. I didn’t know much about indigo as a crop before, but the original process of creating the dye includes soaking the plant in urine, which contains ammonia. Indigo is used for dying blue jeans, of course.

After the 90 minutes of Segway riding we were ready to eat a good dinner. We had skipped lunch and wanted a seafood boil. Nothing else was acceptable. We asked the tour guide if she had any recommendations and she suggested Hudson’s Seafood House.

Hudson’s Seafood House

This seafood restaurant was exactly what we were looking for to enjoy a seafood boil. A no frills restaurant with great food and plenty of drinks to go with it.

The shrimp was right out of the water, that very day. Yeah we had to devein the shrimp, but they never tasted better.

The restaurant is pretty simple in terms of atmosphere, but the boil here hit the mark completely. And the cocktails were excellent too. I’m glad the tour guide recommended it or we would have had a hard time finding something this good on our own.

The following day we’d be flying home in the afternoon. We would have some time following checkout to do with as we pleased.