This morning was Wednesday June 25th. We were a little more than halfway through our vacation and the big event planned for today was the Dolphin Cruise. We didn’t have to be at the Activities Window until 9:30, but were up around 6am. I worked on some trip notes and Judy did some laundry. I tell ya, having a washer/dryer in the suite never gets old!
Breakfast wasn't too glamorous today, just some cereal and coffee for me. Judy probably had some fruit.
I wanted to get a picture of the resort sign, so set off to get that done before we needed to report for the cruise. There’s a bridge leading to the resort from Shelter Cove (the resort is actually on a small island), and the sign is at the Shelter Cove end of the bridge.
Here’s a shot of the marina as I crossed the bridge. The red-roofed buildings on the right side of the picture, above the trees, are Disney resort buildings.
A little further on, and across the road, my mission was accomplished.
Here you can see what I was trying to describe earlier. The sign, the bridge, a nice walkway along the bridge, and the entrance gate to the resort at the other end of the bridge. The marina is to the left of the walkway.
I walked over near the entrance to the walkway and took another picture of the marina. You can see the resort buildings a little better in this one.
An artsy walkway shot.
And another shot of the marina from the walkway.
Walking back toward the resort, the shuttle stop to catch a ride to the Beach House is near the entrance gate. If memory serves
, there was service daily, from 10am to 5pm, running every 30 minutes.
Just beyond that was the entrance gate. It was always nice to pull up to this and use my key card to have the arm swing up, allowing me in. Yes! I belong!!
And just beyond that, was the Live Oak Lodge. You walk up the steps at the front of the building to get to the Front Desk. To get to the underground parking, you take the driveway around to the right side of the building, and you can see the entrance in this picture, just above the windshield of that SUV on the right side. You can also walk to the underground parking through the opening at the front of the building, between the stairways. That’s also a good way to get to the elevator to reach the upper floors.
With my little photo excursion done, I went back to the suite and got some sunscreen on before heading out for the dolphin cruise.
I had to take a picture of Judy with the Bambi and Thumper topiaries. It seems like there should be a "Kodak Picture Spot" sign here.
We got to the Activities Window and soon another couple joined us in waiting for the cruise. They had a really cute baby with them, Tommy. After a little bit, our captain, Tony, appeared and walked us over to the marina to board our boat.
This picture was actually taken after the tour, but I couldn’t wait to show you our boat. Do you see that magnificent white yacht, dwarfing all of the other boats? Yeah, that wasn’t our boat. Ours was the one in the foreground. Not quite the yacht, but perfect for a little trip on the intracoastal.
We got situated and pulled out of the marina. Wait, is that what you do in a boat? Maybe it’s "set out". Okay, let’s go with that. We set out from the marina and I took a shot of what I’ll call "Kayak Beach" at the far end of the resort as we passed. This was where we started off on our kayak tour a couple of days before.
Another shot back toward the resort
We soon found the kayakers. This was us, just a couple of days prior.
I took a picture of the other couple with their camera for them, and they took one of me and Judy.
Yeah, my legs hadn’t seen a lot of sun.
Anyway, regarding the cruise. Captain Tony was an absolute wealth of information, and was as happy to talk about the celebrities who live/vacation in the area as he was the nature that we were seeing. I think he’d talk on any topic that you asked him. My notes are a hodge-podge of what I could remember to write down after we got back, and they go like this:
We saw Mark Messier’s house (famous NY Rangers hockey player). I have a picture of it later in the chapter. Tony told us that Oprah looked at it but didn’t buy it.
Barbara Streisand was weird. (I’m sure he elaborated, but I can’t remember the specifics, which is maybe a good thing.)
"Up the Creek" is a good local, no-frills restaurant. (I think I had asked where the locals eat.)
Michael Jordan was a jerk. (Again, sorry that I can’t remember the reasoning for this sentiment!)
Hockey players are cool, and are happy to work with the kids as coaches.
Pete Rose demanded a new caddy because he hit a bad shot.
"Spanish Wells" was named for fresh water.
Pirates really operated in the area here, near Savannah and Charleston. Then would hide out in the Caribbean.
There is a "Gullah" culture and language in the area that was passed down through the descendants of former slaves. The language is a very literal what-you-hear language. For example, nearby Dafuskie Island is derived from the words "the first key". (I think I’ve since read some name origin stories that contradict this idea, but who knows.)
Here in South Carolina they have their own names for things based on how they look. For example, a cormorant is a "snakebird". An osprey is a "seahawk".
They have otters and minks. And some new critters have moved into the area: storks and armadillos. "Possums on the half-shell", he said. "The food that comes in its own bowl!"
This is the time of year that dolphins have their babies. They don’t mate for life.
The toll bridge won’t charge during an evacuation. So we have that going for us.
Some private communities on the island require that you belong to their golf club, but have reciprocity with some of the best courses around the world.
Some people on the island are just too rich. (I am not one of them, he didn’t have to say.) He told a story of a lady who put in a new marble bathroom estimated at around half-a-million, and then had it torn out. Then another story about a guy who tried different contractors, making attempts to keep his copper roof from patina-ing.
As you head out toward the ocean, there is a line dividing the big sharks from the smaller ones. The Hilton Head area is one of the largest breeding grounds for sharks.
…and that’s just the stuff I remembered to write down.
[URL="http://www.disboards.com/threads/keepin-it-on-the-downlow-country-at-hhi-i-begin-to-see-the-signs-pg-21.3309082/page-19#post-53085320"]Continued in next post[/URL]
Not sure if I could work it out, considering how far away I live and that I currently trying to juggle finances and time off to make a transatlantic relationship work. But I guess you are thinking of a time frame of 2017 and beyond - so who knows what things will be like then!
I'm glad you had such a great meal! Looking at the menu, I'm not sure I could have decided on something that sounded good, because quite frankly, a lot of those descriptions make me go 
Actually, Judy's fish looked very good, but I would need a better idea about everything that was in the "sauce" before I spread it on every bite! 
Yes, it can be a touch place to decide on what to get!
micandminforever!! Thanks for commenting. You're very welcome for the video. I was hoping that people would find it helpful.
Now all of my old trip reports have chapters that start 3/4 of the way down the page! Doh!
