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 Backroads guide to Carolina LowcountryPlanning tips for picturesque area between Charleston, BeaufortBy Gary D. Ford  South Carolina's Lowcountry offers beautiful water views. RELATEDON A RAINY DAYIn Walterboro stroll through fine arts and crafts, all made by South Carolinians, in the South Carolina Artisans Center, which is housed in a rambling Victorian house. At Ravenel, the Caw Caw Interpretive Center houses exhibits on the rice culture and natural history of the area. Outside, eight miles of interpretive trails and a boardwalk provide access to marshes and swamps. The Edisto Island Museum relates the story of this sea island, while the Edisto Island Serpentarium features about 500 reptiles on display. YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS(Southern Living First stop: WalterboroIf you're driving along I-95, your first glimpse of the ACE Basin comes in the middle of this small city that lies on the area's northern edge. Walking trails of the Great Swamp Sanctuary meander alongside Ireland Creek. It's a great place for birding. Call (843) 549-9595 or visit www.walterboro.org Oceanside at Edisto IslandFrom U.S. 17, turn south on State 174, cruise slowly through the small town of Adams Run and then follow the road about 25 miles to ocean's edge. Edisto Beach State Park features four miles of nature trails and programs. Loggerhead turtles nest on the island's sandy beaches. Edisto Beach Golf Club is open to the public at Fairfield Ocean Ridge Resort. You can shop, dine and sunbathe. For general information, call the Edisto Chamber of Commerce at (888) 333-2781 or visit www.edistochamber.com Lowcountry gemsYou'll find the best views of Ernest F. Hollings ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge and Donnelley and Bear Island Wildlife Management Areas deep in the hearts of these areas. At all three, walking trails take you deep into forests, fields and tidal marsh. At the refuge's visitors center (off State 346), you can tour its headquarters, Grove House, built about 1828. It's one of three antebellum houses remaining in the area and was once the seat of a rice plantation. Cooler days in late fall, winter and spring are the best times to walk the trails of the refuge and wildlife management areas. Bring binoculars (and insect repellent) for great birding in those seasons. For information, call the refuge at (843) 889-3084 or see www.fws.gov/acebasin/ You can put your feet up and see much of the ACE Basin with several vendors who provide guided excursions into the area. Beaufort-based Ace Basin Tours is one. Tours aboard the 38-foot Dixie Lady pontoon boat wind through marshes and around sea islands for about three hours. Call (843) 521-3099 or visit www.acebasintours.com Paddling the acronymThe Ashepoo, Combahee and Edisto Rivers, along with scores of other tidal creeks, slip through the silence of forests and marsh. Many choose to explore the Edisto, which is the longest free-flowing blackwater stream in North America. The Edisto River Canoe & Kayak Trail Commission has marked a 60-mile trail, with several put-in spots, including one each at Colleton State Park and Givhans Ferry State Park. The commission offers guided educational river trips. Call (843) 549-5591 or visit www.walterboro.org You'll also find several commercial liveries in the area. One is ACE Basin Outpost, right on U.S. 17 at Joe's Landing on the Ashepoo River. It offers rentals, sales, lessons and tours. Call (800) 785-2925. Driving great roadsThe way paddlers love canoeing the ACE Basin, others love driving its two-lane roads. They glide beside the white fences and green pastures of old plantations, penetrate deep forests and ride along above thick swamps. Glance at the forests along roadsides, and you'll often see the dikes of relic rice fields now overgrown. Take it slow; wildlife may be crossing just ahead in a bend of the road. I once slowed down for a wild turkey to strut across State 26, one of the best roads to drive. From deep forest it rises over relic dunes and ends at Bennett's Point on Mosquito Creek. There you'll find science lessons and fresh shrimp. Biologists of the National Estuarine Research Reserve study shoreline life. Other beautiful two-lane drives are those I like to call "Sabbath roads" that pass alongside historic country churches. They include State 21 (turn off U.S. 17/21), which pauses at Old Sheldon Church Ruins, lovingly preserved by St. Helena Episcopal Church in nearby Beaufort. State 174 turns south off U.S. 17 and passes by Trinity Episcopal, housed in an 1880 edifice. Presbyterian Church on Edisto Island occupies an 1830 structure, while the 1818 Old First Baptist Church houses an African-American congregation. Another African-American congregation worships at St. James the Greater, an 1826 church on what locally is called Catholic Hill. Follow State 303 south of Walterboro and turn right on State 41. Give a (loggerhead turtle) mom a helping handBotany Island Beach ranks as one of the premier nesting sites in South Carolina for loggerhead sea turtles. This year, females lumbered ashore and dug at least 200 nests. The nonprofit Botany Community Conservation Sea Turtle Project always needs volunteers, especially during hatching time in late summer. Call the project coordinator, Meg Hoyle, at (843) 869-2998. The organization also accepts tax-free donations at 2231 Devine St., Suite 100, Columbia, South Carolina 29205. Where to stayYou'll find several chain motels, such as Hampton Inn, along I-95 in Walterboro. Edisto Beach State Park features cabins and campgrounds. Elsewhere on Edisto Island, Fairfield Ocean Ridge Resort offers vacation villas, with off-season rates at 20 percent less than the published online, on-season rates. Rates range from $180 to $760. Call toll-free (877) 296-6335 or visit www.fairfieldvacations.com Many visitors choose to headquarter in Charleston or Beaufort and then drive into the ACE Basin for the day. Beaufort is much closer -- about 30 miles south of the area. Several chain motels are available, along with small inns housed in historic structures such as the Beaufort Inn ($165-$285). Call (843) 379-4667 or visit www.beaufortinn.com Note: Visitors fill Beaufort-area lodging for graduation ceremonies at nearby Parris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot, which are held most weekends of the year. You often can find accommodations at the last minute, but it's good to call well in advance. Where to dineIn Beaufort, fill up on stone-ground grits and other breakfast foods at Blackstone Deli & Cafe, (843) 524-4330, or choose pastries and gourmet coffees at Firehouse Books & Espresso Bar, (843) 522-2665. Several restaurants line Bay Street, among them the elegant Saltus River Grill (843) 379-3474. On Edisto Island, our choice is the Old Post Office, (843) 869-2339, at 1442 State 174. You'll want to write home about the shrimp and grits. In Walterboro, have a soda at the fountain at Hiott's Pharmacy, (843) 549-7222, on Washington Street downtown, and don't miss the boiled peanuts at Woods Brothers Store, (843) 844-2208, on U.S. 17 near Green Pond. Copyright 1996-2005 SOUTHERN LIVING Magazine. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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) -- While the land area of the ACE Basin is small enough for a weekend trip, the natural beauty of this great, green place in the South Carolina Lowcountry will make you want to linger longer. Walking trails, canoe trips, nature tours and more await.
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