Ashley River Park 8 '22

I've mentioned a couple of times that our new home is located near

 one of the Ashley River Parks.

It is one of the newest  Parks in the Ashleley River Park System and provides an impressive set of recreational offerings available to the public.

Unlike the first Ashley River Park we visited , Boating is not a major focus of this park.

While there is a boat launch on the premise, 

most of the facilities are not watercraft oriented.

There is a large childrens play ground bordered by picnic shelters on each side  so that the young ones can burn off some energy, while their parents relax in the shade.

Much of the equipment is state of the art in terms ofphysical education.  I swear a four-year-old could  safely train to compete for American Ninja Warrior  in this play ground.

There is also a splash park to help the kids cool off during

 our hot and muggy Southern Summer months.

(and may to keep them from trying to cool off in one of the larger fishing ponds).

Of course, there are  also  some spots set aside for the fur babies,

both large and small.

For more mature residents, the park has a  concert stand

 that surrounded by a huge lawn which  can accomodate a huge audience.

Beyond the concert area, is a huge freshwater fishing pond

with lots of docks for fishing. It's all catch an release of, course, 

but try to tell that to this guy , 

or any of the osprey that are buidling nests in the man-made

 Osprey nesting stands adjacent to the ponds.

And of course like all  of the Ashley River parks, there are miles  of walking trails

both through the park,

 and continuing on along the banks of the Ashley River to the next park in the series.

Becoming River People 7' 22

 

My brother, Tony, would be pleased to know that we are fast on our way to becoming "River People" Dorchester and Charleston Counties have both built several public parks on the banks of the Ashley River to allow picnicking, boating, and fishing access on the river. The newest of these River Parks is just two blocks away from our front door with an entrance to that park available to us through our housing community. All of these parks are connected by walking trails. Bruce and I have just begun to explore some sections of these trails.

For More about the Ashley River See: https://www.americanrivers.org/river/ashley-river/

with photo credit  ro Larry Gleason

Nrusery Hopping in Summerville 7 '22

 Bruce and I have finally reached the point where we are well enough organized indoors that we can start turning our attention to the outside of our new home. Both the front and back yards are infested with biting ant colonies so we can't really plant anything in the ground until we get that menace under control. Meanwhile, we have been trimming back overgrown cycads and edging up the lawn so we can see where it ends and the flowerbeds begin. While we are tidying up the home's basic landscape design, we've been visiting the local nurseries to see what plants and products they offer. I must say I am really impressed with the quality of the nurseries in this area.

Stacks Nursery

located at:

10546 Dorchester Rd,

Summerville, SC

is about 4 miles from our front door. This well-organized garden center has everything from pond garden plants, to tropical flowers, to colorful trees and shrubs suitable to this area.

All of the plants Stacks look healthy and are well cared for

and the staff is very helpful.

Flowertown Garden Center

located at:

10 E 5th North Stree, Summerville SC 29483

is a bit further ( about six miles from our home) but is hands down the best nursery we've ever seen. First of all, it's huge ( 3.7 acres all of which are open to the public) .

The plants are arranged like you are visiting some artist's personal backyard.

Each area is connected to the other by named pathways,

There are lots and lots of decorator items

and plenty of humor mixed in with the plants.

their "Funny Farm critters" are sure to bring a smile to your face .

and all around the edges of the property are cute she-sheds

and man-caves filled with interesting local hand-made items ( like honey or unusual garden signs and tools).

Plant-wise there's something for everyone here. Even Bruce couldn't resist buying a hanging pot for our front porch. This place is a must-see for any gardener visiting the area.

Fourth of July walk along the Ashley River Trail 7 '22

 

 Bruce and I have  both had our fill of unpacking boxes and have decided that that we want to celebratethe Fourth of July by spending the day  enjoying our new home and community.  So to celebrate,  we decided to take a walk along the Ashley River ,   Dorchester and Charleston Counties  have built a series of Public Parks along  the Ashley River  to provide acces to the river for picnicking, boating, and fishing.  A network of river bank trails connects these parks.

The nearest of these Parks is just two blocks awayfrom our front door  at  the edge of our housing development.  But that park was already crowded with  picnicers celebrating the Fourth Of July, so we opted to drive to the next  nearest River  Park with is only a few miles away off of Dorchester Blvd.  

That Park is more oriented less towards picnicers and more toward  kayakers and other small craft.   We pulled into a large parking lot that had four picnic pavillions lining the north side of the lot  and  a boat launch on either end of the lot.  The parking area and the pavilions were nearly empty except  for  lot of cars with small boat trailers .  Everyone was already out on the water. 

View of the Ashley River from a Picnic Pavillion

 That gave us a chancce to enjoy a cool drink while taking in a view of the river rolling by  while we watch a small sail boat being  launched from the nearby ramp..

Sailboat being launched.

On the South side of the parking lot, we found an entrance to one of the Ashley River walking trails.  

The cool shaded path along the green river bank offered a welcome respite from the oppressive summer heat.  

Bruce was especially appreciative  that the trail was paved 

which assured he had a safe even path to walk on.

The walking  trail stayed pretty close to the bank of the river.  I've never had any experience with rivers environments so I  enjoyed being able toget close enough to really study both the river and the micro-climate habitat it supports

Every so often the river would take a turn away from us and the path ahead of us would widen out into a vast  green field of cattail and other reeds. 

 

The trail continued on through the wetland on a raised boardwalk keeping us high and dry.

Where the river turned to rejoin the path, a large fishing pavilion had been installed. 

The Pavillion also functioned as a nicely shaded rest stop where we could take in the views of other habitats before crossing the river and looping back to the lot where we had parked our car.

Christmas Day at Market Common" 12 '19

Bruce and I decided to go see the newly released Star wars film "The Rise of Skywalker".  The plot was a bit murky, but the characters and action scenes did not disappoint us.

Then we took a walk about the  Market Common Complex

And found a couple of good spots for some holiday selfies.

Celebrating our Anniversary: 3 ' 19

We celebrated our 24th Wedding Anniversary over dinner at Perrones this evening.

  

In our opinion, this funky little local restaurant

is hands down

the best in South Carolina.

And once again, their chef delighted us .

For starters 

Bruce chose: 

a Crab soup (gf) with fresh handpicked, north carolina lump blue crab, aromatic broth, sautéed leeks, oven roasted roma tomatoes, touch of heavy cream 

and 

CC chose:

• Gambas al ajillo - pan seared local shrimp, e.v.o., garlic, fino sherry, butter, lemon, hot chilies, sweet smoked paprika, fresh thyme, Italian parsley, fleur de sel, grilled bread.

Moving on to the main  course:

Bruce had :

Seafood truffle risotto  (gf) butter poached, maine cold water lobster tail, shrimp, fresh scallops, black truffle shavings, white truffle oil, fresh asparagus, shiitake mushrooms, white wine, garlic, cream, parmigiano reggiano, lemon zest, arborio rice .

While CC chose to try:

Elk rib chops  (gf) certified cervena, double cut, bone in, all natural, grass fed, pasture raised, (cooked sous vide to med rare, (barely warm red center)), iron seared,  server over a (to die for)  lingonberry and port sauce , grain medley of organic brown rice, black barley and mustard seeds, brussel sprouts with berkshire bacon . The sous vide preparation left the elk tender enough to cut with a fork.

A desert of Tiramasu was provided compliments of the staff in celebration of out anniversary.

New Year's Day Walk on the Beach 1 ' 19

 We  were blessed today with clear skies so we were able to continue our tradition of taking a walk on the beach on New Years Day .

It was  perfect  beach walking weather

Temperatures were in the low 70F s and there was a light refreshing breeze 

Other than a couple of other people, 

 

we had almost the entire beach to ourselves

 I said 'almost' because there were a hundreds of terns, skimmers, gulls, pelicans and other shore birds lining the edge of the water awaiting the next incoming tide.

The tide  was lower than either of us could remember it ever being. It felt like we were walking to where the sky met the sea.  It was the perfect start for the new year.