ST. PHILLIPS ISLAND, South Carolina — During an eco-tour in the waters around St. Phillips Island in coastal South Carolina, the captain of the boat announced it was snack time. I expected her to break out a cooler filled with soft drinks and chips. Instead, she steered the boat straight into the soft bank of a tidal creek in the salt marsh so we could pull sea pickles from the pluff mud, two things I’d never heard of before.
From the soft, sandy, nutrient-rich soil (known as pluff mud), we picked short, thin green stalks that were crunchy, salted by nature and tastier than I expected. Sea pickle (aka pickleweed, sea bean and other names) looks different than the Lowcountry’s tall marsh grass called Spartina. You have to know what you’re looking for to spot the squatty plant. This is why it helps to have an expert guide while visiting St. Phillips Island, especially when picking wild plants as snack food.
St. Phillips Island is a 4,600-acre, 4-mile-long National Natural Landmark accessible only by boat and managed as a separate unit of nearby Hunting Island State Park in Beaufort County, South Carolina. It stands out as a natural destination because it was never logged, farmed or settled during the Colonial and plantation eras, so there’s a primeval beauty about it.
Shell middens (ancient heaps of shells and other refuse) from indigenous populations are still visible along the ancient dune ridges, which span the length of the island in succeeding rows like rib bones, each representing a former shoreline in a different era. The existence of these now-forested dune ridges helps to make St. Phillips unique among the barrier islands along the Atlantic coastline.
Credit: Blake Guthrie
Credit: Blake Guthrie
The South Carolina State Park Service acquired St. Phillips Island in 2017 when media mogul and conservationist Ted Turner sold it to the state for the rock-bottom price of $4.9 million (at the time it was appraised at $15 million). What once served as a private island retreat for Turner’s family and friends now welcomes the public for day visits through a state-park-authorized ferry service — Coastal Expeditions — and extended overnight stays in the vacation house Turner had built after he purchased the island in 1979.
The 3,350-square-foot Turner House is a five-bedroom, five-bathroom self-sustaining solar-and-propane-powered property with Wi-Fi, its own water tower and protections from shoreline erosion by a sea wall of gray boulders. The house can comfortably sleep 10 people, requires a five-night stay and boasts an 820-square-foot screened-in porch with an ocean view, making it ideal for large families and groups looking for a serene coastal getaway.
The only other structures on the island are a house where park rangers stay, a maintenance shed, a fishing pier next to the house and a boat dock on the marsh side of the island. Transportation is provided along a 3.4-mile sandy road to the house, as well as a picnic area for day visitors. Overnight guests and day visitors can explore the diverse ecosystems of the island that includes salt marsh, old-growth maritime forest and the vegetated dune habitats along 4 miles of trails and on its wilderness beach.
Day excursion visitors have four hours to explore the island. There are no concessions on the ferry or the island, so you’ll want to bring a picnic lunch and plenty of water. The covered ferry ride to and from the island lasts 45 minutes each way with a naturalist on board and on the island tram ride to provide context, help spot and identify wildlife and answer questions.
Credit: Blake Guthrie
Credit: Blake Guthrie
It’s a scenic boat ride along a tidal estuary cutting through the expansive salt marsh. Dolphin sightings are common in these waters. When two began surfing the wake of the boat I was on, someone asked the guide what they were doing. “Having fun,” the guide responded. “Dolphins like to have a good time just like humans do.”
Groups staying at the Turner House have the island to themselves after the day visitors depart on the ferry in the mid-afternoon as camping isn’t allowed on St. Phillips.
Day trippers to St. Phillips can stay overnight at the beachside campground inside Hunting Island State Park or at its sole cabin located next to a historic lighthouse within easy walking distance of the beach. The beach on Hunting Island is popular and can get crowded, especially in summer.
Since there’s no place to buy groceries on St. Phillips Island, the house rental comes with grocery credit up to $1000, and state park staff will pick up your grocery order, deliver it to the island and stock it in the kitchen prior to your arrival. Alcohol can’t be included in the order but guests can bring their own adult beverages. Park rangers stay in separate accommodations next door and are available to give tours and provide access to amenities such as bikes, kayaks and golf carts.
During my stay, the ranger on duty led us on tours by foot, bike and boat. In addition to picking and tasting sea pickles, I got to see baby alligators between the dune ridges, identify the bizarre snake-like egg casings of whelks on the beach and learned a lot about shorebirds and sand dollars, among other things. Armchair naturalists will have a field day on St. Phillips with experts on hand to fill in the blanks.
Credit: Blake Guthrie
Credit: Blake Guthrie
After my time on St. Phillips Island, I spent a day exploring the trails on Hunting Island and Little Hunting Island. A .7-mile trail leading from the park’s nature center on the south end of the island connects Hunting Island to Little Hunting Island via a footbridge. Like St. Phillips, Little Hunting Island has a wilderness beach strewn with bone-white weathered trunks and gnarled branches of fallen trees from the forest that once stood there. Both beaches are every bit as photogenic as Georgia’s famous Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island.
One trail that stood out to me was the Marsh Boardwalk Trail on the west side of the island. At a quarter-mile, it’s one of the shortest trails in the park but also one of the more scenic as it carries you over the marsh to an overlook on a tidal creek. It’s a prime location for bird watching and a good spot to catch the sunset. On a tiny island in the middle of the boardwalk trail, I followed a pathway just to see where it led. At the edge of the marsh, I thought I recognized something in the pluff mud. Squatting down for a closer look, sure enough, it was sea pickle. So I picked some and had an all-natural snack before leaving the island, thankful for the new knowledge I had gained from my expert guides.
IF YOU GO
Hunting Island State Park in Beaufort County, South Carolina, is 282 miles southeast of Atlanta via I-75 to I-16 to I-95 to U.S. 278.
Activities
Hunting Island State Park. $8 admission. 2555 Sea Island Pkwy. 843-838-2011, southcarolinaparks.com/hunting-island.
St. Phillips Island Ferry. Coastal Expeditions provides a naturalist-led ecotour to the dock at St. Phillips Island. From there you’ll take a tram ride then a quarter-mile walk to a beach. Wear hiking clothes and closed-toed shoes, and bring a hat, sunscreen, bug spray, snacks and lots of water. $65 adults, $35 children. Departs from 1928 Sea Island Pkwy., St. Helena Island, South Carolina. 843-884-7684, coastalexpeditions.com
Stay
Hunting Island State Park. Campground $60 and up, cabin $325 (summer rate; rates vary by season according to demand). 866-345-7275, southcarolinaparks.com/hunting-island/camping.
The Turner House. Five bedroom, five bathroom house with screened porch. $12,000 (includes a $1,000 grocery credit) for a five-night stay. 803-904-6220, StPhillips@scprt.com.
Eat
No dining options exist on Hunting Island. Limited options are available on Harbor and St. Helena islands near the state park. Beaufort is 16 miles away with multiple options.
Saltus River Grill. Fine dining seafood restaurant on the waterfront in downtown Beaufort. Entrees $29 and up. 802 Bay St., Beaufort, South Carolina. 843-379-3474, saltusrivergrill.com.
Beach Bums Barbecue. $7.50 and up. Family-run roadside barbecue place less than a mile from the Hunting Island State Park Campground. $7.50 and up. 2137 Sea Island Pkwy., Beaufort, South Carolina. 843-541-7447, beachbumsbarbecue.com
About the Author
