Folly Field Notes — Ecosystem Engineers
The importance of oysters is immeasurable Part 2 of 2 on the importance of oysters Are you ready to learn more about the humble oyster!? Because I’m excited to talk about them! Here’s a quick refresher in case you missed Part 1 last month. Oysters are a keystone...
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Salt Marsh Diaries
Amazing Grace & the Hooded Merganser From my stool at the breakfast table, I look down at Grace the dog. She paces from one side of me to the other, then she barks, as if to will my eggs onto the floor. At eight years old, Grace is still more puppy than adult. Her...
Post Office Worker Cathy Jackson Says Goodbye
Dear Folly Friends! I have seen a lot of people come and go in my five years at the Folly Beach Post Office. Now, it’s my turn to say goodbye. I have been offered a full time position at a Post Office in Northern Virginia. I really love the area, and it is a good...
In Search of the Elusive Roseate Spoonbill
Many years ago, I saw my first roseate spoonbill in the Atchafalaya Delta, South Louisiana. I wasn’t a birder at the time. In fact, the spoonbill was pointed out to me by my mentor, Ivor. Ivor spent years researching natural processes in the Atchafalaya, including its...
Folly’s Finest
Folly Beach’s Public Safety department has always gone above the call of duty Folly’s police and fire department pose for a picture in the early ‘90s with Mayor Bob Linville seated in the middle (dark tie), next to George Tittle, the chief of police. James Couche...
Dodging Dangerous Summer Storms
Anchored in north-facing Manjack lagoon, Spartina began to roll occasionally on random ocean swells. By midnight, the rolling became regular. Swells, from tropical storm Chris off the Carolina Coast, had found us in Abaco. It was mid-July and time to leave the...
It’s Shrimp Season
Shrimping and crabbing supported many Folly residents for decades Shrimp baiting season starts on Saturday, Sept. 15. Shrimping and crabbing supported many Folly residents for decades. Before opening Oceansports Surf Shop, Bill Perry, pictured here in September 1981,...
The Swamp Angel
The waters where boaters now cruise, the Swamp Angel once terrorized Charleston Built atop a manmade earthwork of sandbags on a ‘Marsh Battery’ between Folly and James Island, the Swamp Angel housed a 16,500-pound rifled Parrott cannon whose shells could reach...
Uncle Charlie’s Beach
We anchored Spartina in 15’ of water near a narrow beach just west of Lynyard Cay. I snorkeled over the anchor to make sure we had a good set. After that, Grace (the dog), Julia, and I dinghied over for a walk-about. The roughly 100-yard long carbonate sand beach was...
Celebrating Independence Day on Folly Beach,
By 1937, over 15,000 people celebrated the Fourth of July on the island. Folly’s Playground amusement park was a primary draw for day-trippers to the island. Mary Barnett Herbert recalls the riotous atmosphere in local bars during the ‘40s and ‘50s, caused in part by...
Big Bertha’s Close Call
We left Nassau the first week of July 1996 aboard Sailing Vessel Royal Affair, bound for New York City. I’d never been to New York and was excited about the visit. The 90-foot charter sailing yacht was one of two owned by my employer — we’ll call him Homer. I took...