Givhan's Ferry - The Beauty of a Rain Hike

Givhan’s Ferry was wet.  Givhan’s Ferry was really quite wet and the ground squished under our boots.  The fact that this was one of the rainiest seasons that South Carolina had experienced in years was more than evident here.

Givhan’s Ferry embraced the water and her own soggy state.  She stands beside the Edisto River and welcomes paddlers who journey via water from Givhan’s Ferry to Colleton State Park.  She welcomes families who splash and tube and fish along the river side.  It is wonderful to visit a park who revels in what she is.  Givhan’s Ferry delights in the river and in the rains that feed it.
 
The ranger office at Givhan’s Ferry bears testament to its CCC heritage as does an array of cabins that greet travelers as they journey on towards Charleston.  We parked in front of the office and donned our mini tarps with which we meant to become as water proof as possible.  We gathered our stamp and then discovered the trail which led us down the park road, through a ball field and into the woods.  It was as if we had abandoned humanity.  We were wet, hot and muggy.   Our discomfort was amplified under the supposed relief of our rain jackets.  Droplets of sweat replaced the relative respite of raindrops.
 
Still, we were not blind to the pristine beauty here.  There is quietness about the wood between rains as the leaves shake off their sparkling droplets.  The trail alternately crunches brush and squishes mud.  You hear the birds beginning their songs after abandoning their shelter.  We were treated as the trail’s special guests and were privy to all of this.  We witnessed the sounds, the sights, the wonder and the beauty of the wood waking up.  I let my gaze fall on each of my children and on my husband who was leading this procession.  How amazing was this moment?  How miraculous was this sight?  All together and exploring the wakening wood.  Talking, laughing, swatting mosquitos, wiping sweat, discovering …pointing things out, encouraging, “Good Eye!” asking “How much further?”, falsely promising “Not far now,” sharing, complaining, loving, and experiencing ….together.  I will always remember that rainy hike at Givhan’s Ferry with gratitude.  How grateful I am to see the wood wake from the rain.  How grateful I am to see my children wake to the wonders of the wood.