Two Islands, Ten Thousand Acres, a Billionaire, and One State Park
By Jo Clark

Always wanted to be a billionaire—or at least live like one? Here's your chance! For the paltry sum of $10,000, you can spend five days in the house media mogul Ted Turner built on his private island, now a part of the South Carolina State Park system. If that's a little outside your vacation budget, hop aboard a ferry, spend the day exploring the island's trails and beaches, and pretend it is all yours.

Enjoy the accompanying Big Blend Radio “Jo Goes Everywhere” Podcast episode and article below, or download/listen to the episode on Podbean.

Historically, the Escamacua, a Muskogean-speaking Native American tribe, inhabited St. Phillips Island. They were nomads who migrated from the interior to the Lowcountry coast, between the Savannah River and Port Royal Island, in search of new hunting and fishing grounds.

St. Phillips Island is a 4,680-acre barrier island located just 15 miles from Beaufort. It's four miles long, and the undeveloped land is accessible only by boat. Ted Turner, billionaire and conservationist, purchased St. Phillips Island to create a private island retreat and spent forty years preserving the land's unspoiled natural beauty. Turner protected the island from development and, in 2017, sold it to South Carolina for inclusion in the State Park system. Today, it operates as a component of the nearby Hunting Island State Park.

St. Phillips has the designation of National Natural Landmark, one of only six in South Carolina. With its ancient dunes, seven freshwater ponds, and a mature forest filled with live oaks, Southern magnolias, and saw palmettos, St. Phillips Island provides habitat for native species. Observant visitors will spot wildlife like fox squirrels, loggerhead sea turtles, alligators, indigo snakes, and perhaps an elusive bobcat.

The island is also a haven for birdlife, including bald eagles, roseate spoonbills, osprey, pelicans, and painted buntings. Since the island is only accessible by boat, Coastal Expeditions and their naturalists provide transportation and tours of the wild island, pointing out Native American shell middens and the stunning bleached bones of maritime trees along the beach. And, with luck, some playful dolphins will race alongside the ferry. Once you reach the island, Coastal Expeditions will put you on a tram to traverse the island, so it isn't all walking.

The Turner House was built on St. Phillips shortly after Turner purchased the island in 1979. It reflects Turner's vision for a comfortable, rustic home that blends in with its surroundings, and it served as his beach retreat for decades. Construction materials for the compound had to be delivered by boat.

Today, as part of the SC State Park system, the five-bedroom house, as well as the caretaker's cottage, really is available for rent. I'd be happy sleeping in the hammock on the oceanfront screened porch. Rental fees include scheduled boat transportation to and from the island, and private chefs can be hired locally to stay in the caretaker's cottage and prepare meals for your group. To inquire about this unique vacation location, contact St. Phillips Island reservations at (803) 904-6220 or email [email protected].

The eight miles of trails on St. Phillips range in length from a mere one-tenth of a mile to nearly a mile and a half. The shortest trail takes you to a brackish pond on the west side of the island, Airplane Pond. The pond attracts native wildlife like egrets, herons, and alligators, and is home to the remains of a small airplane that crash-landed years back.

The Long Pond Trail—appropriately named—begins on the island's main road and leads you deep into a maritime forest, passing by osprey nests, live oaks, and native magnolias.

The remaining trails are half a mile long, give or take a few tenths of a mile. The Beach Trail takes a southwestern route through wetlands and ends at Boneyard Beach, filled with the "bones" of sun-bleached tree trunks. At high tide, it is also the only way to reach the beach.

The Marsh View Connector begins at the main road. It provides access to a freshwater swale, where wildlife abounds, and to the High Bluff Trail, which takes hikers through three different ecosystems. Along the short trail, visitors will pass a salt marsh overlooking the beach, a saltwater creek, and an interdunal swale (a dip between dunes that holds runoff).

Pro Tip: Bird-sized mosquitoes with voracious appetites await your arrival. I have just one thing to say about that. OFF! And I'm talking about the large, economy-size can.

Hunting Island is a semi-tropical barrier island located 15 miles from Beaufort. Part of the South Carolina State Park System since 1935, it welcomes more than one million visitors each year, making it the state's most visited park. Then again, it is an island—and it does have a lighthouse.

Long before anyone discovered America, Native Americans were eating their fill of shellfish and piling up the shells in middens on Hunting Island. By 1713, the island, known as Reynolds Island for its earliest recorded owner, Richard Reynolds, was drawn on a map.

In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) employed 49,000 young men in South Carolina over seven years. They built 16 South Carolina State Parks, including Hunting Island State Park and the Harbor Island Swing Bridge, providing easy access to the Sea Islands. Those men were made of sturdy stock and battled malaria-infested mosquitoes, nearly unbearable heat, fires, and a hurricane.

The 1940 South Carolina Hurricane made landfall near Beaufort as a Category 2 hurricane on August 11, 1940. It sent a 13-foot storm tide over the Hunting Island CCC camps. Some men sought shelter in the swaying lighthouse, and 33 men died in that storm. The bridge and Hunting Island State Park finally opened in 1941, bringing tourism to Beaufort County.

In 1859, the first lighthouse was built on Hunting Island, but it was blown up in 1861 by retreating Confederate soldiers to keep it from falling into Union hands. Completed in 1874, the second lighthouse had to be moved farther inland just 12 years later due to erosion.

Hunting Island State Park covers 5,000 acres and has 100 standard camping sites (with electricity and water hookups), 25 tent camping sites, and 1 cabin. Yeah, you'll probably never reserve that.

During the season, there are riding trails, but no barns or corrals. However, a Google search will turn up several horsey hotel facilities in the area.

The park has a fishing pier, a boat ramp, more than ten miles of hiking and biking trails, a park store, a playground, a picnic shelter, and a nature education center.

In 1972, the Hunting Island Lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places. There are eight lighthouses along the coast of South Carolina, but this is the only one open to the public. It is open for self-guided tours during daytime hours. From the platform 130 feet above the earth, you can soak in the panoramic views of the forest, Fripp Island, St. Helena Sound, and the Atlantic coast.

The walk to Boneyard Beach is a little less than a mile, one way, so nearly a mile and a half by the time you trudge back to the parking lot. But it is so worth the wear and tear on your tootsies. As you walk over the arched bridge, you will see the amazing view of Boneyard Beach and, if you're lucky like me, maybe a nesting osprey.

One of the most extraordinary things about St. Phillips Island is that 1,000 of its 4,680 acres are officially designated as old-growth maritime forest. I was there when the Old-Growth Forest Network presented the South Carolina State Park Service with the sign recognizing the achievement—and yes, it is a big deal. Only three forests in South Carolina hold the designation, and just 300 nationwide.

Old-Growth Forest Network sites must include at least 20 acres of mature forest, be open to the public, and have long-term protections in place to ensure the trees continue to grow undisturbed. These forests serve as living examples of native ecosystems, giving visitors a chance to experience the beauty and benefits of old-growth woodlands firsthand.

Inspired to see more? The Old-Growth Forest Network's online map makes it easy to find protected old-growth forests near you—and a few worth planning a road trip around.

The forest on St. Phillips Island is accessed via four miles of trails, passing freshwater ponds, saltwater creeks, and the remains of a World War II airplane crash before ending at a pristine mile-long beach.

Escape to this hidden getaway on a boat ecotour, cruising through the estuaries behind barrier islands to St. Phillips Island. Once on the island, a tram ride and interpreter will take you through old-growth forest to the picnic area near the beach.

From there, you can decide if you'd rather comb the beach for treasures or hike some of the trails in search of wildlife. The St. Phillips Island Ferry provides you with a day in nature you will remember long after you return home.

Coastal Expeditions began its St. Phillips Island Ferry in 2017, soon after the State Park Service purchased the island. St. Phillips Island is one of the loveliest spots on the South Carolina coast.

You will need admission to the state park. So either take your park pass (if you don't have one… why not?), or pay for a daily park admission—you can do that at the boat dock. Now, that takes care of the park admission—but the boat ride and tour are another story. Book your day of fun with the Coastal Expeditions team, and before you know it you'll be on a first-name basis with the captain and naturalist.

Some places are worth the extra effort to reach. St. Phillips Island is one of them.

If Beaufort is the historic heart of the Lowcountry, then Bluffton is its culinary soul. One enchants visitors with centuries-old architecture and waterfront charm, while the other serves up creative cuisine, vibrant art, and a healthy dose of Southern hospitality. My companion article, 2 Islands, a Lighthouse, & Secret Magic of the Lowcountry, will tell you all you need to know to plan your own Lowcountry adventure.

Things to Do Near Beaufort:

Places to Stay and Eat:

Jo Clark is a travel writer and photographer based in South Carolina's Grand Strand. She has a thirst for knowledge, history, great food, and wine! She does her very best to live up to her podcast title and Instagram handle, "Jo Goes Everywhere!" Follow her there and on her Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/HaveGlassWillTravel/. She is the editor of http://www.RecipesTravelCulture.com.