Day 12 - Plantation House

 
Oh, this has been the best day yet! Please forgive if I include a bunch of pictures. We saw so much! First of all, let me explain we drove north toward Charleston and went to the Magnolia Plantation. It is famous for it's extensive gardens. Personally I think it is most important that it has belonged to the Drayton family since Revolutionary times. That is the house above. The gardens opened for tourism just ten years after the Civil War but it took another 100 years before the house was open.

First of all we took a tour of the slave cabins. (That is the small white house above.)Really neat to walk in and touch and feel and smell the place. The guy who led us was really passionate about history - hmm sound like someone else you know - so despite the rain we enjoyed the tour. Oh didn't I mention the rain? Well let's just say we could have swam in the river and we would of been drier!

Next we toured the inside of the house. Kade ooohed and ahhhed. She felt like "a lady from back times." My personal favorite part was the quilt with an eagle and 13 stars - because when it was made there were only 13 colonies. Peter loved the desks especially the secretary which dated prior to the Revolutionary war and came complete with secret compartments.

Our next tour was by far Jost's favorite - the pontoon boat tour of the marsh. The water of the marsh is sweet water - or not salty - and this makes it a great wildlife habitat. Interestingly even this far up the Ashley River is still brackish meaning it is a mixture of salt water and fresh. It even rises and falls 6 feet with the tide. So why did Jost enjoy it? ALLIGATORS!!! Turns out Kade is great at spotting them. We saw about 4 of them. They just lurked there among the reeds looking villainous and menacing. We also saw turtles, herons, egrets, and tons of other birds. I was in birding heaven. (The picture of the three of us is on the boat).

We had lunch at the appropriately named Peacock Cafe. Then we headed to our final tour around the 500 acres on the nature tram. Once again the guide was very knowledgeable giving both the common names, proper names, and historical relevance of many plants and trees. Once again it poured, but by that time we had been wet all day so we really didn't care. We saw more alligators - happy Jost - and tons more birds - happy Tonya.

Once the tours were over we had enough energy left for the shrub maze, some of the gardens, and of course the petting zoo. This was what Kade had been waiting for all day. And it was worth it! We petted deer, pigs, geese, and goats. And yes, Mom, we washed our hands afterwards. There was one rooster who kept following Kade around and crowing. When she went to see the rabbits, he jumped in the pen and acted like a rabbit! We decided he thought she was a pretty hen. Unfortunately one billy goat didn't like her and butted her. She tried not to cry, but her feelings were hurt.

The white bird in the picture above is a great Egret. It walked out from behind a tree about three feet in front of me. I couldn't believe it was so close. When it swallowed a little fish, you could see the fish go down its throat. So cool.

The bench the kids are on above is called a joggling board. Essentially for getting your wiggles out. At least that's the best way I can explain it.

We grabbed a quick dinner in Charleston. Unfortunately it was too late in the day to "see" Charleston. We hope to go back later in the week. Tonight we are exhausted and poor Kade is sick - sore throat, stuffy nose, cough. I'm not sure if it is a cold or allergies but her breathing is not good. I have a hunch it is the mildew that is everywhere here. Our agenda for the week will depend on how she is feeling. I may have to send Peter out on his own for a few days.