Drive 144 miles to Charleston. Wind your way to East Bay Street and proceed to 79 to 107 East Bay Street. There you’ll find Rainbow Row, the colorful and historic name for 13 colorful houses. North of Tradd Street and south of Elliot Street, that’s where you’ll find them. As you’ll see, the pastel paints […]
Botanical Beauty
August 21, 2014 By
Horticulture magazine praised it as “one of 10 gardens that inspire.” HGTV calls it “one of 20 great public gardens across America.” Well you don’t have to drive across America to see it. A 30-mile drive will take you to the Riverbanks Zoo Botanical Garden, across the Saluda River from the zoo proper. Now’s a […]
Diggin’ Ditch Pond
August 7, 2014 By
Drive south-southwest about 85 miles to Williston, S.C., and on Highway 78 near SC 781, you’ll see a small lane that leads to Ditch Pond Heritage Preserve. Ditch Pond, as it’s called, is a Carolina bay that takes its name from ditches that attempted to drain the bay. Despite the ditches, Ditch Pond is relatively […]
Mastering Augusta
July 17, 2014 By
Drive southwest 95.5 miles to the city famous for the Masters and you’ll discover it has other attractions. The city that’s known for the renowned James Brown has the Morris Museum of Art, which overlooks Augusta’s Riverwalk, a beautiful place to walk along the Savannah River. If you like the South, you’ll like the Morris […]
Aiken to Explore
July 10, 2014 By
A quick 79-mile jaunt to Aiken will usher you into a past where luxury ruled the day. You can tour a classy town and see where wealthy industrialists spent their winters. Thus was Aiken once known as the Winter Colony. In Aiken you’ll find much to see and do. And should you desire you can […]
Gone Fishin’
July 3, 2014 By
A 162-mile drive, about three hours, will take you to a memorable place, the Walhalla State Fish Hatchery. Make your way to Walhalla and follow the directions at the end of this column. If you come away with a desire to go fishing and a hankering for fried trout, blame it on this column. Summer […]
Anomaly Hill
June 26, 2014 By
A 93-mile trek through Greenwood to Abbeville will take you to the Long Cane District where a geographic anomaly revives memories of Oconee and Pickens County vistas. Parson’s Mountain, a monadnock, sits alone overlooking the forest below as it stretches to the horizon. Geologists call this type of hill a “monadnock,” which is a technical […]
A ‘Heady’ View
June 12, 2014 By
Up in northern Greenville County, you’ll find one of the Blue Ridge Escarpment’s more prominent landmarks, Caesars Head. Some believe this rock outcropping resembles the Roman Emperor, Caesar, thus its name, though some believe the landmark took its name from an early pioneer’s dog. Regardless of its origin, Caesars Head surveys a kingdom of stunning […]
A Swamp Thing
June 5, 2014 By
There are roads in Palmetto land that go nowhere near big cities. And that’s not bad. One road, Highway 64, leads to Walterboro where an ancient lane once cut a green leafy tunnel through a swamp. Just three minutes off I-95, a town, of all places, provides a tranquil setting to contemplate a Southern swamp. […]
Peach Country
May 22, 2014 By
About 50 miles southwest you’ll find a place and season Van Gogh would have loved. Come spring, South Carolina Peach Country, a land where Highway 23 threads through acres and acres of peach trees, would have delighted the legendary artist. Winding along, that little highway will take you through Ridge Spring, Ward, Johnston, and on […]
