It was with some reluctance that we left Myrtle Beach State Park. We had another park, Huntington Beach State Park that we needed to visit before we made the long drive home.
The children would never admit to being tired but the car got progressively quieter as we made the short drive to Garden City. It didn’t take long to see our turn from the highway into the grounds of Huntington Beach. We were immediately grateful to again abandon modernity and enter into the canopied shelter of oak and pine. On we drove until we approached a long bridge over a marshy waterway. I heard Wetfoot’s gentle breath of sleep from the back seat of the van. I carelessly glanced into the marsh and saw- alligators. There were lots of alligators on both sides of the bridge. They were sunning, swimming, yawning and posing for the cameras of park visitors standing from observation points above.
“Sweetie! Honey! Wake up!” We tried our best to rouse our daughter but our attempts were futile. Exhaustion and a sugar crash had made her near comatose.
Wetfoot had spent a great part of our Ultimate Outsider journey whining, complaining, begging, and praying….dying to see alligators. Most alligators had been smart enough to steer clear of our noisy brood …but here at Huntington Beach, we were finally surrounded by the reptiles and Wetfoot was missing it!
Only after we pulled up to the gift shop/park office and the gentle rocking of the van quieted, did the child stir. The poor thing was almost in tears when we told her what she had missed. Of course it didn’t help that her siblings relentlessly tortured her with minute details of the gator sighting. I couldn’t bear it for Wetfoot. In sympathy, I delivered a stern stare accompanied by a no nonsense direction for the tormentors to cease aggravating their sister.
Everyone was soon distracted by the beach itself. It is amazing that Huntington is so geographically close to Myrtle Beach and yet so culturally different. Huntington Beach quickly won our hearts with its quiet wildness. The commercial development was further removed here and harder to spot. Both beaches played host to lots of visitors that day and both parks attracted all age groups. Still something was acutely different. Myrtle Beach vibrated with vacation excitement. It burst with noise, movement and freedom. Huntington felt subdued in contrast. Perhaps the beach absorbed some of the quietness of Atalya, the abandoned castle of a sculptress who had long since donated it to the state along with the beach property itself. Perhaps the difference was the relative distance from the main strip. Whatever the reason, Huntington’s relaxing gentle invitation was a perfect tonic for the hustle of the Myrtle Beach traffic.
We spent a long time on the beach and even my mountain heart was won over by Huntington’s rhythmic waves. I walked along the beach with Ben while Anchor played in the waves with the other children. I heard their laughter behind me. I was content quietly walking with Ben. Ben is not a creature of stillness- neither am I. We move when we are peaceful. I stayed with Ben so he would walk along the shore and not challenge the tide and walk out to drown. We walked on and on in the sand as the water came up to our ankles. We saw boats and fish and birds. We gathered shells and greeted fellow explorers. Eventually we turned back to check on the others. They were having a blast making sand castles. Quiet smiles met excited screams of laughter as my other children bombarded me with exultations recounting what they had done in my absence.
The afternoon stretched out. Sunset came and we were off -back to the interstate and a three hour drive home. We would have to come back to explore Atalya and the incredible nature center here. We did though spy the alligators in the waning sunlight. Wetfoot was awake and saw them. Her park dreams were fulfilled in the marshes of Huntington.
A postscript....
We did come back and did explore the nature center. It is one of the best in the South Carolina Park System. It is full of interactive exhibits, incredible volunteers and a bunch of freaky weird critters. Ben watched a Sea Hare do laps around an aquarium while Thoreau was enchanted by the snakes feeding on frozen mice. The beach at Huntington is tremendous but it is an inexcusable oversight to neglect the nature center!
We have not yet made it to Atalaya. It pains me to admit that...but that is why I love the South Carolina State Parks. There is so much to explore. It will take a lifetime to do it justice.
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