Feb. 12, 2014:  Once again, the south is experiencing a winter storm. Right now, where we are, on St. James Island Campground, it is raining hard and steady. A short distance away, in Charleston, it looks like there is ice this morning, rain this afternoon, then the possibility of more ice tomorrow morning. Further inland, the winter warnings are for snow. In Richmond, VA, eight to twelve inches of snow is being predicted. For New England that is a decent amount of snow, but down here, eight to twelve is a disastrous amount. Last night, the local news stations were showing road crews with their trucks ready with sand in the back and plows on the front. The plows looked like they just came out the box; the paint was bright, not a scratch anywhere, and no rust. The real big problem here are the bridges, there are many of them, and most of them rise high above the water, so any amount of ice is a major traffic concern that leads to bridge closings.

We are scheduled to leave this campground tomorrow morning, but I will see about extending our stay one more night--as soon as the rain lets up and I can get over to the campground office.

My last entry on Feb. 8th, said we were leaving Skidaway Island and heading a little bit north towards Charleston to once again visit the site where the Confederate submarine, H. L. Hunley, is now undergoing a conservation process--only this time while they are open to visitors-- and then to the campground on St. James Island.

The visit to the H. L. Hunley was very interesting. I had read the book,Raising the Hunley, by Brian Hicks and Schuyler Kropf, which tells the story of how the submarine was located in 1995 and raised from its grave site in 2000, but it also tells the history of the submarine. One of the unbelievable parts of the story was that the Hunley sank twice during operational trial runs in Charleston harbor, with the loss of its crew each time; yet, Lt. Dixon, who believed that he would be able to  operate the submarine properly, was able to get seven men--one of which was married with four children-- to volunteer to go out of the harbor in the submarine with him and attack a Union blockade ship, the USS Housatonic. Lt. Dixon was successful in getting out to the Hosatanic, sinking it, and then start back towards Charleston. The Hunley became the first submarine to successfully sink an enemy ship in combat. The last signal received from the Hunley, by spotters on land, was a blue light, a pre-arranged signal to light bonfires on shore to help guide it back into harbor. The sub was never seen again--until 1995--a period of almost 150 years; it sank on Feb. 17, 1864. 

The sub was raised, brought to the Lasch Conservation Center, and placed in a large tank, built to hold the remains of the sub, while naval archeologists and scientist work on preserving it. Inside the sub, they found the remains of the eight crewmen, still at their assigned positions, there did not appear to be any attempt to escape through the two hatches. Items that the crew carried into the sub with them were still with them--even pieces of clothing and shoes were found. The remains were buried in April, 2004, along side the graves of the two previous crews that lost their lives on the Hunley. 
More interesting details and photographs about the submarine's history, recovery, and preservation can be seen on the Friends of Hunley website: www.hunley.org.

The campground at St. James Island is operated by the St. James County and is located inside of a county park. The park is a heavily used facility, even at this time of the year. When we arrived here, we passed by an area, next to a large pond, set aside for dogs and their owners where one, or the other, could run around free without being attached to a leash. It was a nice sunny Sunday afternoon and the area was full. The park also has a water park, boat rentals, playgrounds, and walking/jogging paths. The campsites are not crowded together, and they have trees and shrubs between them, for privacy, which we enjoy having. Again, there are quite a few large motor homes and we are the only truck camper.

Also, during our stay here, B and I finally realized the we are now, by definition, "red-necks"--our home is on wheels and some of it is being held together with duct tape. (the latch on our medicine cabinet popped out its retaining slot and it is now being held in place with duct tape)