May 5 Kiawah Island Paddle

The gals go swimming. Watch out for the Sting Rays.

Kiawah Island has a maze of creeks and estuaries. Kayaking the creeks will get you up close to a lot of waterbirds and other birds which rely on a fish diet. Before our kayaks were in the water, we watched a Brown Pelican dive and catch a fish. Then straightened its neck before swallowing the fish whole.

Later we watched an Osprey carry off a fish. They carry them head first. This Osprey headed up to a nearby tree and ate the fish. Its mate was in the nearby nest squawking as she watched him eat. Females sit on the next while the males hunt. Although they mate for life, there may have been a domestic dispute over the fish incident.

We saw Cattle Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Egret and Great Blue Heron. I inadvertently deleted those photos in preparing this blog entry. The Great Egret was so majestic looking.

Hermit Crab

We saw lots of Hermit Crabs and Fiddler Crabs. The male Fiddlers have one large claw. They use it to bob up and down with. The larger the claw, the higher they bob. Females will mate with the ones with the biggest claw. As we passed some exposed muck with so many Crabs bobbing, the muck appeared to be vibrating. 

Our guide, Capt Nick explained the tides before we headed out. The tide was receding so we would paddle up creek and turn back. There was a noticeable drop in water level on the return. I touched bottom in several spots. If we had started later or delayed our return, we could have gotten stranded.

Kiawah Island is strickly controlled by the Kiawah Island Community Association. The entire Island was undeveloped until 1974 when the Kuwait Investment Group had a whole island development plan drawn up. Many areas were withheld from development either entirely or for future development. The developed area is almost all forested, so homes and roads are shaded. An extensive system of walking and bicycling trails covers the island. It is so extensive, bicycles are not permitted on the main trunk roads. You must pass through at least one manned gate to get to any house on the island. In some areas, you might have to pass through 2 manned gates and an electronic gate. I rode each morning on the bicycle trails and noted that savvy non-resident bicyclists were parking several miles away and biking to the island on a roadside bike path and then accessing the trails on the island. These trails are not for speed demons and have some hazards, like broken pavement from tree roots and a healthy snake population, not to mention the occasional gator.