By Local Opinion
Huntington is a magical place. Every time I go, which is almost every week (and sometimes more than once a week!), I experience something that connects me to this place. I always feel blessed to have such an amazing resource minutes from my house. Nowhere else I’ve lived in the country has a public space with such an amazing density of wildlife and experiences. And as with all things creek and ocean, Huntington is reborn twice a day as the tides go in and out, bringing new and fresh things to see.
The history of the property, and its sister Brookgreen Gardens ties me into Pawleys Island’s past. I won’t attempt to recreate the history here, but if you are fortunate enough to find yourself in Huntington and Brookgreen (and, if you are thinking about living here, you owe it to yourself to find yourself in these amazing spaces), be sure to spend some time looking at pictures, reading the placards, and reflecting on how the region has evolved.
Access
Like all parks, Huntington has been squeezed in recent years to cover more of its expenses with admissions. They have done away with the old, per-car admission fee and replaced it with a per-person admission fee. At the time of writing, the fees are $8 per adult, $5 per SC resident senior, $4 per youth 6-15, and free for 5 and under. Admission to the Atalaya castle is an additional $2 per person aged 6 and up.
If you’re planning to spend a day in the park, doing some wildlife observation, spending time at the beach, going for walks, and grabbing an ice cream, these fees are not too bad. If you’re more like me and you love to go spend an hour at the park whenever you’re having a quiet day and the weather is nice, locals should strongly consider buying the SC State Parks Park Passport. For $99/year at time of writing, you get unlimited admission to all state parks, including Atalaya and a few other park-specific perks around the state. This is a fantastic deal, and it has the added benefit of getting you into the park much faster than folks who have to interactively buy entrance.
Structure
The entrance to the park brings you across the main causeway, which is one of the best birding spots in the park. On your way in, your left hand side is the salt creek, and your right hand side is a freshwater pond. The result is an amazing array of different bird species, along with a bunch of other creatures like crabs, fish, and one of the park’s attractions - alligators. There is a parking area as soon as you cross the causeway, and you owe it to yourself to park and walk both sides of the causeway to collect some sightings. I will say, the quality of the birding does depend on the tide in the salt creek, but if you catch if right, you’ll be blown away.
If you go right from the causeway, you’ll wind around to the largest parking area and beach access in the park. The area also features the gift shop, camper registration, and the Atalaya castle itself, a very cool structure worth exploring. This is also where the park usually hosts events.
More interesting to me, if you park and walk to the entrance of Atalaya, but then turn and head back toward Highway 17, you’ll end up on the old causeway, now pedestrian (and sometimes surprisingly Segway) traffic only. This path goes all the way back to the highway, between the freshwater pond you saw as you came in and a second freshwater pond that is host to birds, frogs, turtles, spiders, and everyone’s favorite alligators. I have been walking on this causeway and seen a 10 foot alligator cross the road right in front of me, so during the warm months, pay attention to your footing!
If you head left from the entrance, you’ll come across a nature center that is fantastic. For a hidden treat that many people don’t know about, head downstairs, under the building and to the creek. There is a small sitting area observing some bird feeders. It may sound a little boring, but I have seen one of my favorite birds - the painted bunting more often at these feeders than at every other place combined.
Further down the road, you’ll come to the north beach access, a good setting-out point to visit the jetties (more on that below). It also has an observation deck overlooking a very unique freshwater pond just inland of the dunes. I’ve seen swallow tailed kites out here more than once. Another hidden gem lies beyond the observation deck. Keep going down the path, and it becomes a trail that winds back to the nature center. Along the way, you’ll see one of the coolest live oak trees down here. The tree was knocked flat during a hurricane, but kept growing and now is a dense thicket of live oak trunks sprawling across the path.
Beach
Huntington has, I’d guess, between 2 and 3 miles of mostly-undeveloped beach, accessible to those who come into the park or travel up the beach from North Litchfield. Like all Pawleys area beaches, sun and fun abound. Also like other Pawleys beaches, Huntington beaches get crowded during the summer months. They have recently initiated a new program to allow reserved access during peak season for a small fee, and if your vacation depends on enjoying this beach you should pay the extra money: the park often fills up during the summer, and anyone trying to get in is turned away. On really busy days, this happens within an hour or two of the park opening. The park usually opens back up as folks get sunburnt, tired, and hungry, so if it’s closed during the morning, check back in mid-afternoon.
One cool feature of the beach at Huntington is the walk to the south jetty at Murrells Inlet. Because of the prominence of the land here, there are often things washed up on the beach, driftwood, and other treasures to look at or collect. Once you’re at the jetty itself, there is some great fishing, so it’s not uncommon to see folks pulling a fishing cart down the long walk. The jetty itself also sports a paved top surface, so you can walk out “into the ocean” and see some sea birds, watch the boats come and go, or wet a line.
Birding and Wildlife
Let me start with an amazing statistic: over 300 species of birds have been identified in Huntington. In my last trip to the park, in November, I saw XX species: white pelicans staying in the park as they pass through, a roseate spoonbill, wood storks, great blue heron, snowy egret, lesser heron, coot, night heron, and probably 10 other birds I didn’t or couldn’t identify. It’s truly a birder’s paradise. It’s not uncommon to walk the causeway and see thousands of dollars of long camera lenses and spotting scopes as folks travel from all over the country for access.
Park activities
The park hosts lots of guided activities throughout the year. Some activities are more geared to children, while others are for birders or other folks looking to get more tapped into their natural surroundings. In my experience, the rangers at Huntington are top notch: that rare combination of very friendly and knowledgable.
Huntington also hosts events throughout the year. Because the events vary, be sure to check with the park or the park website for schedules, but one highlight is the Atalaya Festival, when Huntington plays host to dozens of artists from all over the country, showing and selling their works within the Atalaya castle. In my experience, this is a cut above your typical “arts festival,” with a higher quality of work and a wider cast of artists.
Camping
Huntington has almost 200 campsites, from full hookups accommodating a range of RV sites to primitive tent camping sites. Every site has hot showers and water access, so it’s a nice spot to camp, though in my opinion it is fairly brutal to camp in Pawleys in the summer due to the mosquitos and hot evenings. When I was a kid, my dad and I would occasionally come spend a night out on warm fall, spring, or even winter nights. It’s a great spot for an easy excursion with younger kids, because you can always escape home if things go wrong. I still remember eating my first can of Spam at Huntington while waiting for fish to bite.
Ice Cream
One more amenity I’d point out is the newish Spoonbills ice cream shop, located in the facility near the south beach access. This place has some amazing ice cream at great prices and is well worth the stop. I’d suggest the “Charleston Sea Turtle”.