Sunrise on Daufuskie island is neat - there are never any other footprints in the sand. The place I am staying, Melrose Place, went into bankruptcy about three years back. It was purchased by a fellow from Utah last year, and it doesn't take long for things to decay on a resort. There are about thirty cabins, a couple of lodges, a big hotel, a conference center, an equestrian center, golf pro shop, a swimming club, tennis facility - all basically empty. But the work being put into bringing it back to life is all being done right. There was a section of sea wall about 1000 feet long that washed out, and the repairs are about halfway done. The sea is relentless, and the work is serious work as you can see in the photos following. Several large trees have been toppled and more have died as the roots have been exposed. The fellow fixing it told me that if one single board in a seawall is lost the whole thing will erode out very rapidly. The repairs are in excess of a million dollars - just to the seawall. It is over 10,000 cubic yards of dirt that are being excavated and trucked across the island to finish the repair. But the work that was done here originally was quality work, and by the time they finish bringing it back to life this will be an amazing place.
The golf course is beautiful - it was the seventeenth that Jack Nicholas designed. The animals are hunkered down with the cold snap, so there are not many critter shots to be had. But I did get a glimpse of a big gator - they tell me he is 14 feet !! That is a huge lizard. Hopefully the sun will come out in the next several days. The management saw the quality of shots I am getting and agreed to have me stay through Sunday. I am glad because there are a lot of high quality photos to be taken here, and I can see the care that is going into the refurbishment. The combination of the two has me motivated to do a nice job getting photos for them. Now, if I could find a way to swap photos for groceries and gas I would be all set !!
I will include a few random shots from the course. There are some great lagoon shots to be had, and I have taken the test shots, but the wind wont die down. Having calm water is crucial to good shots in that environment. Also, the remaining golf course called today and gave me a gate code. That is Haig Point, and I am looking forward to getting in there for a few shots. They are a thriving community that is wholly owned by the owner's association, and that always means it takes an act of congress to get access.
Well, here are a few parting shots from today. All have a great Wednesday !!
David
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