 |
|
In
this file photograph, surfers stand on Folly Beach
at the Washout waiting to head into the water to
enjoy the waves.
|
CHARLESTON,
S.C. — Charleston may have a reputation for expensive
(and often starched) elegance, but there are options for
vacationers who want to kick back at a low-pressure
Lowcountry beach. Welcome to Folly Beach.
—In
a nutshell
Downtown
Charleston is flanked by barrier islands. Up the coast is
Sullivans Island and white-shoes golf/tennis development
of Isle of Palms. Down the coast is Folly Island, 12
square miles of eclectic relaxation. Originally known as
Coffin Island because ships bound for Charleston would
dump their plague victims there, it became a summer
getaway for Charlestonians.
These
days, huge modern vacation homes mix easily with
weather-beaten bungalows. The long, wide beach faces south
for great sunrises and sunsets. Center Street — S.C. 171
(aka Folly Road), which connects it to James Island and
the mainland over a salty gumbo — is a micro-Myrtle with
a sprinkling of Asheville funkiness and Lowcountry
manners.
—How
to stay there
Weekenders
can stay in the one hotel – the beachfront Tides
high-rise (a former Holiday Inn) — or one of several
scruffy motels off Center.
The
best way to go is renting a house Saturday-to-Saturday,
the rhythm of local lodgings. Rates vary by size and
condition as well as season. Overall, cost rises the
closer you are to the beach, with streets west of Center a
bit pricier overall.
Fred
P. Holland Realty ((www.fredhollandrealty.com)
is the big player in full-service Folly vacation rentals,
and there’s a lot of variety in the 200-some properties
they handle. They may handle a few too many: The week’s
worth of sheets and towels were missing when we checked
into a Holland-handled beachfront place on an off-season
mid-afternoon; the housekeeper, eventually located in
Mount Pleasant, made her delivery several hours later.
Holland
is probably the way to book if you have no ties to the
area, but if you have friends there, ask them to scout
around.
—Before
you go
Don’t
pack too much. A couple day’s worth of clothes will do
– rental houses have laundry facilities, and this isn’t
a dress-up destination. Don’t bother with food: Stop at
the Food Lion on S.C. 171 just before you hit the marshes.
If
you want to fish on the pier (more on this later), borrow
and pack your rod and tackle before you leave town.
Bring
books you want to read. You can buy newspapers here, and
that’s about it.
—Getting
around
Get
ahold of "Matty B," the character who rents
well-used but well-working fat-tire bikes from his yard, a
block north of Center on Huron. It’s $40 for a week,
lock included – heck of a deal (843-406-5721).
His
stripped-down Beaver Cleaver models are OK for the streets
and great for riding on the beach. The trick to beach
biking: Ride in the surf-darkened strip closest to land.
That ribbon is widest when the tide is going out.
—At
land’s end
County-owned
Folly Beach Park, at the southern tip of the island, was
smacked hard last year by Hurricane Irene. The storm didn’t
make landfall, but damage at park compounded an ongoing
erosion problem. It’s likely to remain closed this year.
Bike,
walk or drive to the other end of Folly and you’ll pass
the Washout, a stretch of beach where Hurricane Hugo is
responsible for larger waves that surfers love.
At
Folly’s northern tip, beach-facing Ashley Avenue ends.
Walk the quarter-mile trail, and the sand hills will part
to show you Morris Island lighthouse — a once-working
beacon where channel shifts gradually ate away the island
until the beacon, out of business 50 years now, is all
that remains. The tower is about 300 yards out, with a
nice view of Charleston Harbor behind it.
—When
you’re hungry …
If
you’re renting a home, figure out how often you want to
dine out vs. using the kitchen. It seems like a no-brainer
— why cook? — until you figure out the cost difference…
and until you go to Crosby’s Fish & Shrimp Company
(843-795-4049).
That’s
the fresh seafood market on S.C. 171, a small place
perched above Folly Creek. Their boats work the area. The
prices are reasonable enough, but the freshness and
variety is what does the trick – plus, you can get items
you won’t find elsewhere, like triggerfish.
The
best breakfast is at Lost Dog Café on Huron Street (off
Center) where the walls are plastered with several hundred
dog photos. From 6:30 a.m. until closing (3 p.m.), you can
get coffee, fresh bakery biscuits and gravy and the like.
A
couple of eateries along Center push seafood; try the
Folly Beach Crab Shack ((www.crabshacks.com)
where you can sit indoor or outside. Buy a mixed bucket of
snow crab legs, oysters and shrimp for $26.99 and $41.95.
This
time of year, they serve Gulf select oysters from Alabama.
The oysters straight out of the Folly River are cluster
oysters, and in season — fall through spring — they’re
available here and elsewhere.
If
you’re a fan of Locklear’s seafood in Mount Pleasant,
S.C., head to their operation here: it overlooks the
fishing pier and has indoor/outdoor seating.
Don’t
miss Bowens Island Restaurant, which is surprisingly easy
to do. On the S.C. 171 causeway, watch for the Bowens
Island Road sign on the southbound side. Turn there and
wind over about five5 miles of swamp hills to the
restaurant., owned by the grandson of the Bowens who
started it in the 1940s. It looks like something out of a
Robert Mitchum movie — a group of weather-beaten
structures, one of which is the eatery famous for seafood.
It’s open Tuesday-Saturday nights; just walk up the
stairs to the rambling dining room. The whole operation
faces the Folly Creek flats, and the view at sunset is
fabulous. Take note of the floor, too: Paintings on it are
from a 2010 James Brolin flick called "Angel
Camouflaged."
With
oyster season ending, shrimping season is about to begin.
The fried shrimp here is widely acclaimed, local whenever
possible.
Also
noteworthy: Taco Boy ((www.tacoboy.net),
whose machine-shed exterior on Center Street hides a
bright and somewhat bizarre art-students-must’ve-done-it
look. The 16 or so tacos on the menu include the
Korean-style kimchi beef as well as portobello mushroom.
All are fantastic. But at $3.25 and up, you’ll eat a
hole in your vacation cash if you go there too hungry.
—People,
places
Check
the shops, bars and cafes on Center Street; it dead-ends
at Arctic Avenue, where you’ll find the sea-facing
Holiday Inn and the fishing pier. The back of the hotel
has an outdoor bar and terrace seating that faces the
beach. The Edwin S. Taylor Fishing Pier is long and huge
— 23 feet above the water and extending more than 1,000
feet into the sea. It’s a great place to stroll; keep an
eye peeled for dolphins frolicking. It costs $8 to fish,
$3 for kids. (No S.C. fishing license is required.) Dream
big: a 100-pound tarpon was hauled in from here.
And
then there’s Bert’s Market, two blocks north of Center
on East Ashley Avenue. What looks like a dingy convenience
store holds an amazing array of goods — wines, imported
and domestic beer and fresh sushi; laundry detergent as
well as motor oil. As such it’s an eclectic place where
tourists and locals cross paths and linger for directions
and tall tales. There’s also a dress mannequin (not for
sale) wearing an apron, and a long-hair or two behind the
counter. Their motto is "We may doze but we never
close," and indeed it is open 24/7.
—Side
trips
It’s
an easy drive to downtown Charleston. Going the other way,
you can kill a couple hours visiting the Charleston Tea
Plantation on Wadmalaw Island (tours are free; www.charlestonteaplantation.com)
and, en route, taking a look and photo at the enormous
Angel Oak on Johns Island ((www.angeloaktree.com).
It’s thought to be about 1,500 years old.
—Culture
Art?
Well, the Bolus law firm has the front half of an enormous
fiberglass shark mounted above its door on Center Street.
It was already there when the attorneys moved into the
upstairs office. "We were privileged to hang our sign
underneath the shark head," Keith Bolus deadpans.
Music?
Clubs and restaurants offer everything from lounge to hard
rock, especially toward weekends.
This
is the beach, remember. You’re here to relax.
That’s
what brought George Gershwin here in 1934. He vacationed
long enough at 708 W. Arctic to judge a local beauty
contest and write "Porgy and Bess."
———
IF
YOU GO:
Getting
there: From Charlotte, take I-77 South to Columbia, then
I-26 East toward Charleston. Take I-526 bypass west to
U.S. 17; turn left; turn right on Wesley Drive/S.C. 171;
Folly Beach is 9 miles ahead.
Resources:
www.follybeach.com,
www.cityoffollybeach.com/visitors.
|
