Pinckney Island Wildlife Refuge Photo Blog

Pinckney Island National Wildlife REfuge

9/15/2017

William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message

Friday, 8:35 AM - What a wonderful and understanding wife I have! During a church sponsored marriage retreat on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, I was able visit Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge; my wonderful bride strolling by my side!

Gnarled dead tree skeleton in salt marsh, Pickney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA Picture

Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, Hilton Head, South Carolina, USA. A 4,000 acre wildlife and nature preserve on the Intracoastal waterway. The salt marsh, tidal creeks, salt pannes, ponds, Saw Palmetto, and forests are habitat for waterfowl, shorebirds, wading birds, raptors, neo-tropical migrants, white-tailed deer and American alligators, with large concentrations of white ibis, herons, and egrets.

Immature Snowy Egret on Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA

The refuge is on the left as you cross the bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway onto Hilton Head Island. It is a well maintained refuge with a long gravel road perfect for walking, running and biking. The mixture of freshwater ponds, Live Oak and palmetto forests, and tidal creek salt marshes sport plenty of wildlife.

We began our walk around 8:30 AM from the well-groomed and wooded parking lot nestled in Saw Palmetto. The gravel drive lined with trees shaded the rising sun off to our right. As we came to the first narrowing in the road, and the thinning of the trees, the low tide revealed the extensive salt flats stretching off to our left and right. Ibises and gulls were foraging across the mud and a tri-color heron hunted in the shadows of the marsh grass.

Laughing Gull bird in salt marsh, Pickney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA Picture

Laughing Gull bird in salt marsh, Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA

White Ibis wading bird foraging, Pickney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA Picture

White Ibis wading bird foraging, Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA

The gravel road continued north along the island, passing several ponds, salt marshes, and through a small forest of tall pines reaching into the blue sky and Saw Palmettos at their feet. Along the walk, breaks in the trees revealed fishermen and Little Blue Herons fishing out on Mackay Creek. Several mowed paths left the main gravel road to our right and left as we sauntered. But not wanting to get wet feet from the long, dew-laden grass, we didn’t take any of the side paths.

After a 3.5 mile walk, we reached the end of the gravel road at Clubhouse Pond. Before turning around, we paused at the pond and spotted a young alligator; probably about four to five feet long. Close by was a single White Ibis, busy in his foraging in the mud recently exposed by the retreating tide.

American Alligator, Pickney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA Picture

American Alligator, Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA

On our way back, we took a side branch to Starr Pond. Although the sun was now higher and the view was bright and hazy, in the trees bordering the far end of the pond could be seen hundreds of immature Ibis and Anhingas; a large rookery, a nursery in the trees!

White Ibis wading bird perched in tree, Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA

HDR Waterfowl pond on Pickney Island National Wildlife Refuge, USA Picture

Just before making it back to our parking lot, I found a sad sight: a snake smashed in the road way. Wait, not a snake but a legless lizard. All of my years of reptile hunting and I had never seen one in the wild. I wasn’t too pleased that it had to be deceased when I finally made that life list discovery.

Pinckney Island is a true gem. While many of the visitors are busy renting bikes to travel the somewhat crowded bike paths of Hilton Head, this wide gravel road within the secluded refuge makes for a much more intimate walk… especially when you’re in town for a marriage retreat!