Trip Report - Quick Visit

A friend and I spent the day in Beaufort today. The weather was scruptious after the light fog lifted, and I wanted to share the experience before I had my evening glass of vino.

We got to town at around 11 am and parked on Bay Street in front of some cute shops that we felt we ';had'; to visit. My friend and I had a blast at the children%26#39;s clothing/accessories/toy store called Doodlebugs that, IMHO, is the best such store we%26#39;ve ever laid eyes on or feet in. If you are shopping for anything for children, this is the place. If you find a better shop, let me know! The next shop was the pottery guild nearby - their jewelry and hand-thrown pottery was exceptional. Bay Street is a very historic street with many boutique shops and galleries and is a delight to walk around. The town makes sure it%26#39;s as pedestrian-friendly as possible by clearly marking all crosswalks so cars don%26#39;t fly through town. We went in to an import store with mostly folk art - and I love folk art. Very nice. Then we went to a consignment store where I bought a wrought iron fireplace screen for $35. (How could you pass that up?)

Time for lunch. We had lunch at the Sea Island Wine and Gourmet. I will say this...I have never had such good chicken salad in my life! I had almost sworn off of it since some places make it so chewy or with dark meat. This was a little piece of chicken heaven. The place was very cute with an outdoor patio and a wine shop (attached). There is no doubt that on my next trip I will pack a cooler and buy this chicken salad by the pound. (which they do sell that way since it%26#39;s a deli as well) The iced tea had sliced strawberries, orange and lemon and gave the tea that extra ';love'; that went so well with our delightful meal.

Next we went on a carriage tour, which started near the marina (in the main public parking lot which has strange parking meters - you have to press a button on them to indicate whether yours is the car on the left of the meter or the right). Our driver was Walter Gay, and he never stopped talking (except to hear what his horse had to say). I felt like this made the trip worth twice the amount we paid and tipped him nicely. If you have never been to Beaufort, you cannot imagine how beautiful it is. It is a town with the largest concentration of Antebellum homes - and it sure shows. The number of movies that were filmed here will make you dizzy. I took about 100 photos and can%26#39;t wait to download them. The azaleas were blooming yet some camellia%26#39;s were still not blooming - how odd! The lemon and orange and grapefruit trees were fully ready for the picking! There is so much Spanish Moss in this town you could probably fill Charleston Harbor.

On our drive out of town, I couldn%26#39;t wait to stop at the Caffino%26#39;s drive through. If you don%26#39;t know what this is - it%26#39;s a coffee place that originated in California, and having just moved to SC from CA it was - honestly - one of the things I longed for. To find it%26#39;s now in SC was a thrill, and I ordered my ';usual'; which is a nonfat Chai latte - it was exactly the same as in Cali! If you%26#39;ve had other Chai%26#39;s and have not been impressed, give this Chai a chance. It will not disappoint! Now, if we can only get them to open a Caffino%26#39;s in Charleston....

I love Beaufort - it is one of the real hidden gems of the east coast. Those who have been here know - those who have not should drop everything and race down here immediately, shedding your cares along the way so you can take in the smell of the flowers and the feel of the town.

As one Cali governor once said in another role...';I%26#39;ll be back';! :)

Trip Report - Quick Visit

CultureHound: So the weather in Beaufort was warm yesterday? Is that what you%26#39;re saying? I sure hope so. We are heading to HHI March 8-15, so leave in a couple of weeks. We will be heading to Beaufort on the 12th for a Natalie MacMaster (Canadian fiddler) concert at the U of SC in Beaufort. It will be myself, my husband and another couple with their 16 yr old daughter (couldn%26#39;t drag the two teenage boys to listen to Celtic music, go figure!). My Q is: what place would you suggest for dinner? The lady at the University suggested Saltus Island Grille and Batteau in Port Royal. We don%26#39;t want anything too pricey but waterfront would be great.

Thanks,

D in Muskoka.

Trip Report - Quick Visit

I have to laugh because as I was reading the word ';perfect'; in your reply, there was a clap of thunder. (Thank goodness we didn%26#39;t go today!) So - as any place in the lowcountry - expect anything up through mid-April, then it should be consistently warm. 74 yesterday, 77 and rain today, 55 tomorrow and sunny; it%26#39;s like traveling the country while staying in one place!

As far as dinner suggestions - I%26#39;ll look into it - we%26#39;re close enough to not stay for dinner and that%26#39;s what we did. We have gone to the Shrimp place on the creek where Forrest Gump was shrimping - I don%26#39;t remember the name - it was good but very casual.

Oh and I did mean to say ';Scrumptious!'; which actually applied to yesterday%26#39;s weather and yesterday%26#39;s lunch.

I guess it was only ';perfect'; in my head - not in your reply!

Can%26#39;t go wrong w/ Saltus River Grill (check out their menu on their web site...very unique..you%26#39;ll also get an idea of prices). Plum%26#39;s is good too, and there are a few other riverfront dining restaurants. Barabara Jeans is not %26#39;in%26#39; downtown Beaufort, but is famous for their crab cakes. Steamer%26#39;s is also across the bridge towards Dataw and Fripp...VERY casual, raw bar...good service and food.

steamers is awesome!!!!!!!!

Thanks for your report. My daughter and I used to go to Beaufort a couple of times a year when she was younger. It%26#39;s now been several years since we visited. She%26#39;s married now, with a 6-year old and another baby due in April. We%26#39;ll be camping at Hunting Island in August and I%26#39;ll be happy to visit Beaufort again. I will definitely check out the Sea Island Wine and Gourmet. Glad to know that they have a deli where I can buy some good food to take back to the camp site.

Sounds like Beaufort has changed quite a bit since my last visit. Glad you enjoyed it.

BTW, I visited CA last March. My brother lives in San Diego and he was able to give us a pretty good tour although we were only there for 4 days (we drove back to Las Vegas for another 4). I plan to go back with my grandson and spend a little more time. I%26#39;d like to travel a little north of San Diego next time. Take a little road trip and see more of the state.