Myrtle Beach...The Adventure Begins

Monday, August 1st, was our first full day of fun. Myrtle Beach is part of the Grand Strand. The Grand Strand is about 60 miles from the border with North Carolina going south along the Ocean. In that 60 miles are 14 unique communities, 6 distinct beaches and 2 state parks. Harbor Lights was located along the Intercoastal Waterway and about in the very middle of the Grand Strand. We were not on the ocean front. And that was truly okay with us. We had easy access to Hwy. 501 running west to east into the middle of the Grand Strand and Hwy. 17 running north to south along the Grand Strand. It was very easy to get anywhere we wanted along the Grand Strand. The maps below are actually two ends of the same map. You can tell by the green circle around Harbor Lights, we were in a great spot. 

We determined we should begin our Myrtle Beach adventure by putting our toes in the Atlantic Ocean. We drove east on Hwy 501 to the beach. Then took a left and drove north till we found a spot for public parking. We walked down to the beach and enjoyed a nice stroll on the beach. Even though Claude and I rolled up our britches, we still got wet. When we finished our hour of beach fun, we went back to the car. There was a pump at the end of the parking lot to rinse the sand off your body or hair before you got back in your car. Cordell and Kris got there before us. There were two buttons to press to get the water. Kris pressed one to rinse her hands and feet and found out it was the one to shower under. Fortunately, they were able to explain this to Claude and me and we only got our hands and feet wet. It was fun to be in and near the ocean.

All four of us have the same eating pattern when home. A light breakfast and an early big dinner. A treat enjoyed in the evening. Something about a vacation makes that a bit different. We decided we needed a light lunch. We had big dinner reservations. So, we drove north and found the Old South BBQ Company. It was a fun little place to have a light meal. Please carefully read their sign out front. 

As we left, there was a quarter on the ground. Cordell reached down to get it. It was glued to the ground. We determined they had a camera hidden somewhere to take pictures of you bent over trying to get that quarter. We called it the 'gotcha quarter'. 

Back to Harbor Lights we went. Everyone took a nap except me. I typically do not nap. Instead, I played my games and started my cross-stitch. 

Our dinner reservation was at 4:30pm at Medieval Times Dinner Theater. I got everyone up by 4pm. This theater was just down the block from Harbor Lights. It would be a meal without utensils. Poor Kris. This time there were no plastic gloves. The program was a medieval tournament with four knights. The knights were each a different color. The knight we cheered for was the yellow knight. We dined while the show went on, queen, knights and royal court. Alas, our knight did not win. But, with a name like the 'yellow' knight, one should kind of expect that. It was a fun evening. 

We returned to Harbor Lights. There had been a little rain, so the humidity was not as bad. We all sat on our screened in porch and watched the lighting and storm in the distance. This was the only night it was comfortable to sit for a long period of time outside.

Tuesday, August 2nd, we had a Dolphin Watch Cruise with Express Watersports from 11am-12:30pm.  It was at Murrell's Inlet and the Atlantic Ocean. The office where we parked and met for our ocean adventure had this picture on their check-out counter. It is an aerial view of Murrell Inlet. The dock area where we would walk to board our boat is in the lower left corner of the picture. You can see that the Inlet meanders a bit before it hits the ocean. This left us lots of views of the salt water marshes. I'm not sure why, but I love these marshes. I was happy to see this aerial view of the area. 

Claude and I opted to wear our long sleeved shirts and long pants we will wear when we visit the Amazon later in the year. We wanted to give them a trial run. They worked great. 

When it was time for our dolphin cruise, we walked across the street and down to the dock area to board our boat.

Claude really looks for shade on an adventure like this. We boarded the boat and headed right to the front under the covering. We would stay there for the entire trip. Too many encounters with skin cancer between us to not do it that way. Cordell and Kris joined us for a bit. When the boat got into the water, past the salt marshes pointed toward the ocean, they went to stand at the back of the boat in the sun. They both had hats. 

As you leave the dock area, you pass Goat Island. I'll post the story on our menu from lunch that day with an explanation about Goat Island. 

The salt marsh 'no wake' zone. This makes this area a little slower pace and relaxing. Lots of water fowl to see. We also saw a white building with a mound of something in front. I guessed right when I told Claude it was an oyster shell factory of some kind. Oysters are critical to keeping the water healthy in the low country area. The people recycle their oyster shells. The mound was a huge mound of oyster shells being returned to the water. They will eventually have new oysters growing in them over the years. These will take toxins out of the water and provide fresh water and air for the communities in this area. We also saw a man very relaxed and fishing in the salt water marsh. I do love these areas along the shores. 

Out into the Atlantic we went in search of dolphins and possibly a shark. We saw lots and lots of dolphins. I didn't not get a single picture of a dolphin, though we saw many. They are fast little critters. I would find, after I returned home, that I got a bit of a video clip with my regular camera of the dolphins. It was fun to bounce along the waves of the ocean. The breeze is always refreshing when you do that. 

While in the ocean, I looked out to Kris and Cordell. Cordell was not good. He has Parkinson's. I was very concerned. I pointed this out to Claude. In a bit we saw Kris getting his meds out for him. He takes very strong meds at regular times during the day. He dropped one of his pills as he was taking it and they couldn't find it. About that time, the little girl sitting on her mother's lap next to Claude and I proceeded to hurl her cookies. A lot of action as we returned to the dock. Cordell was in a very bad way when we got back. Fortunately, there was a restaurant right at this point on the dock we had all pre-determined we would eat our meal-of-the-day at after our cruise. 

We left the boat and headed to Drunken Jack's where we would enjoy a good lunch in the air-conditioning. When we sat at the table, they didn't have any silverware on the table. It would have been our third meal with our hands and a bad omen for Kris. Fortunately, they quickly brought us silverware!

Cordell struggled to get back to a place where he had more control of his bodily movements. Parkinson's is awful in that regard. Kris thought he might have a UTI. Claude and I were concerned he had a heat stroke from being out in that sun on the water for so long. We were all just guessing. Cordell began to have hallucinations. Very concerning. We finished our lunch and walked across the street to our car. Time to head back to Harbor Lights. 

We stayed in till dinner time. Claude and I drove to Circle K for gas and to pick up Subway for dinner. The Subway in the gas station was closed. After filling car with gas, we drove to another Subway to pick up dinner. It was fun to learn some of the back roads. When we returned, we all enjoyed our sandwiches and a short evening before Kris and Cordell headed to bed. He needed rest. 

I spent the evening watching old movies with Claude and working on my embroidery project.