This month’s Back in My Day is a trip to Edisto Beach. Growing up is Colleton County, we had the best of both worlds when it came to watersports. We had therivers to ski and fish during the year, and in the summer, we had Edisto Beach. Originally part of Charleston County, the beach joined Colleton County in March of 1975. The beach, when I was growing up, seemed like it was a thousand miles away. After traveling a two-lane road across the railroad tracks and crossing the intercoastal waterway on a sketchy-at-best drawbridge, the Dawhoo Swing Bridge, you came upon Edisto Beach. You were there when you were greeted by the pavilion.
Your typical beach house was, in a child’s eye, a marvel of engineering. On stilts, with one central room with a kitchen in the front, a living room, and a large, screened-in porch facing the water. The central room was flanked on both sides by two bedrooms with a bathroom shared between them. If it was a rental house, there was always a mysterious locked closet or room under the house where the actual owners kept their personal possessions. If you were lucky, the central room had a window air conditioner, but realistically the box fan was your best friend. For a child, the house was the adventure; from building sand cities under the house to playing on the stairs leading up to the front door, there were endless possibilities to keep you entertained. Of course, the outdoor shower below the house was a treat; if you were lucky, it was hot and cold water, and the drain was not clogged with sand; we were not that lucky.
The food was one of the best parts of the trip; from seafood to fried chicken, we ate well. The trip was typically topped off with steaks or a Lowcountry boil to cap off the week. Looking back on it, we probably should have left the grill on the ground and not the screened porch, but we never had a problem.
Inevitably you do get a little restless at the house, so it was time for a trip to the water. The houses either had beach access or access to the waterways behind the island. You could spend time lying out, building sandcastles or flying kites. The jetties were always a present and a temptation to play on, which was without a doubt frowned upon. On the inland side of the island down Jungle Road and down by the golf course, “Oristo” at the time, you could lay out, fish, or take a small sailboat out to enjoy the day. Once you had gotten the proper amount of sunburn and had sunscreened up with enough lotion to slide off the plastic-covered couch, it was time to wash up and get in the car to loop the island and enjoy the air conditioning. You would lap the island like a NASCAR race in slow motion, stopping to speak to anyone you saw outside. This delayed going back to the house and realizing we were back to the box fan. After the lapping of the island, the final stop was the pavilion.
The pavilion was the place to be, with its mechanical games, pool tables, and foosball; you could spend hours with friends and family just enjoying the games. The line of pinball machines, Skee-ball, and even the claw game gave you the opportunity to be the wizard of your group and maybe win a prize. This was also a place to get out of the sun and relax, and have a snack. The pavilion was for the most part open, with ceiling fans and the ocean breeze to keep everyone cool. They also had a long fishing pier.
The beach did not have many restaurants or entertainment venues like other beaches. Folly Beach at the time had its Amusement Park; it could be seen with its lights on the rides, North of Edisto. We would occasionally make the trip. Edisto was just laid back.
Today the fishing pier is gone; there are a few more restaurants, timeshares and a few more options for entertainment that have come to the island. Edisto still has a relaxed feel with a slower pace; the pavilion is now a bar/restaurant and an enormous gift shop, but you can still get the laid-back feel and spend time with family. So put on the sunscreen, blow up the BBQ grill, pack 20 people into a 4-bedroom house, and enjoy the summer. Edisto is like stepping back in time. Enjoy!
