We Traded Hilton Head for Greensboro
Better Safe than sorry when it comes to Idalia, a Category 3 Hurricane
The threat from Hurricane Idalia chased us from Hilton Head Island, South Carolina before our time was up. Last night, we packed up and finished cramming our belongings in the SUV. We hit the road for higher ground at 7:15 this morning, a few hours ahead of Idalia.
If you are keeping score at home: Idalia 1 - Charles and Debbie 0. By packing up and leaving a day early, we beat the worst of the storm, flooding and possible damage. Honestly, my biggest concern was flooded roads which would stop us from using the one island road.
By 5:25 am, this alert was sent to local smart phones from the National Weather Service with a Hurricane Warning for our area.
By 7:15 am, our bags were packed and we waved goodbye to Hilton Head. Initially, we thought we would drive to Charlotte, North Carolina. It was in the direction we wanted anyway. Since we still had the energy, we drove right pass Charlotte and settled in Greensboro. This allowed us to be a bit more inland and avoid the expected mess from mother nature, including the possibility of tornados.
To stay on top of the latest hurricane news, I also downloaded The Weather Channel App. Here is what it was telling me yesterday.
FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY MORNING THROUGH LATEWEDNESDAY NIGHT...
* WHAT...Flash flooding caused by excessive rainfall continues to be possible.
* WHERE...Portions of southeast Georgia, including the following areas, Bulloch, Candler, Coastal Chatham, Effingham, Evans, Inland Bryan, Inland Chatham, Inland Liberty, Inland McIntosh, Long and Tattnall. Portions of southeast South Carolina, including the following areas, Beaufort, Charleston, Coastal Colleton, Coastal Jasper and Inland Jasper.
This would include us. So….. we gave in and packed up. The video below shows what mother nature was delivering around 6:40 this morning. I stopped packing just to take the quick video.
Climbing up the steps back to the condo a few minutes later this is what the view looked like from the front door.
As I type this, Idalia was closing in on Savannah, Georgia, our temporary home for the first part of August. The hurricane is scheduled to reach Hilton Head in a short time.
Greensborough is away from the eye of the storm. The weather channel is predicting rain here later this evening, but nothing serious compared to what has happened in Florida and Georgia.
During our time in South Carolina, we enjoyed many great experiences. Some included:
Golf. I was able to register a day of golf at Shipyard with my mother-in-law, Louise. She came to visit from New York with Debbie’s sister Sue. Louise and I had a fabulous time on the golf course, even with the morning humidity. Hilton Head is known for golf. There are 30 courses on the Island and we were able to sneak off for one morning together for time on the links. Here is Louise teeing off on the front nine.
Boat Rentals. With Louise and Sue in town, we decided to take a two-hour boat cruise in search of Dolphins. We were not disappointed and our captain Angela delivered on showing us several mammals including this guy.
Renting a boat allowed us to enjoy the coastline from a different perspective. Often it is from angles we would never see nor be able to capture from land. The photograph below showcases the Harbour Town Lighthouse. Also, being on the boat also helped us beat the heat with ocean breezes and cooler temperatures.
Daufuskie Island: In a previous post, I mentioned the 2023 Top 15 U.S. Islands as voted by Travel+Leisure’s readers. Daufuskie Island was on that list (#13) so naturally we needed to visit. After purchasing ferry tickets, Debbie, her mom, sister and I boarded for the forty-five minute ride from Hilton Head. We then hopped into a rented golf cart and explored the Island.
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Paul, a local who helped us rent the golf cart, said approximately 400 people live on the Island. While the average priced home is about $700,000, I can safely say it is one location where I will not be settling down. It is just too small and remote for us. Our group was happy to visit and spend money supporting small businesses. We agreed it is a location we would not come back to for a return visit.
That said, Debbie and I would return to Hilton Head for a future visit. The access to the outdoors, activities and the beach is exactly what we wanted and received. The daily morning walks on the beach is a memory that will stay with us for years. Here’s a few more examples.
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Catch up on past posts here
Hurricane Idalia Headed Our Way