Our Family Trip to Daufuskie Island, SC

Yeeee! We’ve just returned from our wonderful adventure on Daufuskie Island, SC! So many people are curious (and dare I say confused) when we mention Daufuskie Island! Who’s ever heard of it?! But it is the coolest gem of a destination on the coast of South Carolina right between Tybee Island (Georgia) and Hilton Head Island! Now we know you’ve heard of both of those!

Like I told my family, visiting Daufuskie Island is the closest thing I’ve found to visiting a foreign country but in the USA. It FEELS like Kenya, it FEELS like Costa Rica and I love it all the more because of it!

HISTORY

Don’t hold me to any of this, but from what I’ve heard from locals living on the island, the history of the island dates back to the West African Slave Trade days. Evidently the island was originally inhabited by 11 plantations, 2 of them slave-owning plantations. When the emancipation proclamation came out, the plantation owners who lived in Charleston just washed their hands of the island and their slaves, essentially saying “you can have that crappy island. I don't want it anyway” and the freed slaves were left on Duafuskie.

This rich history, the near-silent untouched island, the friendly locals itching to tell their story all makes the island the most unique American vacation we’ve ever been on! The only way to reach the island is by ferry and no cars are allowed on the island: Golf carts only! There’s no grocery store, really no nothing on the island!

We spent the week simply exploring the island! Soft sandy beaches, shells on shells on shells, untouched jungles just begging to be trekked through, and miles of dirt path perfect for what Ruth calls “Cart rides!!” We took lots of naps, ate sandwiches, and just enjoyed the peace and quiet. At night, Tia and Doodad (or Rachel and Dad as you know them) would hide out in the woods and make animal sounds that would make Ruth squeal with laughter!! “Was that a….rhino?!…no…a camel?? A dying armadillo???”

We’re so immensely grateful for time to get away and be together and Daufuskie Island did not disappoint! We will most certainly be back!!