We arrived by ferry on a crisp, cool morning. We drove off with driver Jeff and first stop was the History Museum housed in the old Mt. Carmel Baptist Church.
Although the museum was closed we saw the building, carriage house where we peeked in the window, and read about the island's midwife.
The guys looked at the Jane Hamilton School (Gullah Learning Center) and behind it is the new modern elementary school. Middle and high school students go over to Hilton Head for their education.
Next we drove through the Melrose Plantation with its canopy road covered with live oak trees dripping in Spanish moss. We stopped at the rookery pond and saw wood storks, snowy egrets and anhingas.
We stopped at the First Union African Baptist Church which is in use and got a group photo in front.
Inside the church is a small altar and many pews.
On the grounds is a Praise House (this is a replica) and a graveyard.
Time to eat. There are two choices for lunch and a third restaurant is open to the public for dinner.
We enjoyed lunch al fresco at at Lucy Bell's eating fried green tomatoes, onion rings and large steamed shrimp. There was a huge rooster roaming around and a lively bird feeder.
One must see place on the island is the two room school where author Pat Conroy taught for one year and is depicted in his novel "The Water is Wide." The Mary Fields School was built in the 1930's for the island's black children. The school was integrated in 1962.
Inside one of the classrooms is Dafuskie Blues. These two gals are growing and processing indigo and creating beautiful scarves and other dyed items. Indigo was an important crop in South Carolina and exported to Britain for great profits.
Indigo plants growing in the front yard.
There is also a coffee shop located in the old school kitchen and lunch room.
Bloody Point Lighthouse is the next stop on our travels.
It is a two story dwelling with a front and back light built to guide boats into the Savannah River Channel from 1883 to 1922. The building is now a museum and gift shop. Small buildings outside originally stored kerosene and are now the Silver Dew Winery. Their grapes are grown behind the museum and we got to sample two of their sweet wines.
A short walk behind the vineyard takes you to a view of a bald eagle nest. Luckily for us an eagle flew in and posed. Also spotted a colorful bluebird.
Beautiful vistas are seen everywhere on the island.
Bloody Point Cemetery took us over a wooden bridge and hiking through some brush to see only a few Gullah gravestones. Apparently Mongin Creek has caused beach erosion losing some graves.
Last stop was the Mary Dunn Cemetery, the only historic cemetery for white people dating back to the 1700's. The oldest stone we found was from 1790.
Our day has ended and we head back to the dock to return our cart and wait for the ferry to Bluffton.
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