Shem Creek Park // First 12 Hours in Charleston
There’s nothing like the feeling of reaching your final destination after a long trip. For us, this destination was long anticipated after not only 3500 miles and 15 states, but also for several years prior. This was one of those things we knew for sure: we’d be spending some time in the charming city of Charleston, SC, in the beautiful Southeast region of our country. As we approached the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, the giant cable bridge that takes you over the Cooper River, we were filled with excitement and hope of what living in this new city would look like for us. We made it. We were here, and we would finally be able to settle down.
We arrived that first day with still a few hours of sunlight to spare. From our hotel, there were plenty of local sites that were within a half hour’s drive, but we weren’t ready to get back in the car after our last long day of driving. Instead, Curtis found a letterbox within 1 ½ miles from us in a park, so we decided to go for a walk. We strolled down the sidewalk of a busy street with a new wonder we hadn’t experienced in a while. Look at these trees! Is that green grass even real? It feels so good for a late December day!
We made it to Shem Creek Park and got a little taste of what lots of trails in the Southeast look like: a boardwalk over a swamp. Different, but we weren’t complaining: it’s certainly better than walking THROUGH a swamp! 😉
Another question that was going through my mind was “how frequent are alligator sightings down here??” I kept my eyes out for them. Charlotte, however, was more concerned about what she could see: tall birds with long legs and beaks! Oh so terrifying for a small puppy! It took us a while to make it passed the big scary bird sitting on the boardwalk rail. Sadly, we weren’t able to get our first South Carolina letterbox that night though – it was planted under a bench…at the beginning of the trail…next to a restaurant. Bummer. We know we were quite spoiled by all the letterboxing in Tucson and have come to accept that this area isn’t as common for boxing! (Not that that’s stopping us. 😉 )
We saw our first South Carolinian sun set, then made our way back to the hotel.
The next morning, we were up before dawn to go see our first sunrise, and attempt another letterbox. (Another bust!) This time, we went to go see the great bridge from up close. Sadly, we couldn’t walk across it because dogs aren’t allowed. Maybe another day – sorry Charlie! We heard that there’s an annual race that goes across the bridge, and made a mental note to avoid it on that day. 😉 On Mt. Pleasant’s side of the bridge, there is a cute little riverside park that we wandered around for a while. We were both a little nervous about our appointment with the housing office later – they had let us know a week prior that there was a house for us, but it all seemed too good to be true and we worried it wasn’t going to be that easy. All that for nothing though, because within a few hours, we were doing our first walk through of our new home, and for the first time felt completely relieved and at ease – God was with us and was working everything out for us. Now all we have to do is trust Him – and enjoy His creation all around our new hometown!
Come back later to see what else we’ve been up to!
