Something is underway in the Southern Carolina Lowntry. Spoiler alert, that something is me.
It starts as many classic stories do, with the love of a good woman. My wife, after years of toleration of unhealthy habits and the sedentary lifestyle of a writer, finally set foot (there is a theme and a play on words here, as you will see soon) and insisted that I become healthy.
The first step (plus on this play on words) consisted in visiting a doctor and some of these medical tests procrased for a long time, and at the risk of surpassing the result was a plethora of bad news: blood pressure, pre-diabetic bees, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, a level of blood sugar that attracts bees when I ride outside.
To rectify this, my choices were simple: start to engulf a handful of pills every day, or be in good health with the old and natural old. I chose a natural approach, and my wonderful doctor, Vicky Reynolds, advised me standard tortures: diet, exercise, moderation and temperance.
Thus, in addition to learning to accept the fact that yogurt, quinoa and high fiber granola are actually edible and capable of human consumption, I started walking and hiking a few kilometers every day, and therefore the idea of this column was born.
Get to know our Lowntry hometown Even better
After a few weeks of walking and passing the same buildings and trees each time, I quickly realized that, unless you hike through an explosive mines field or a bare beach, walking quickly loses excitement, especially if you drink the same route every day.
Of course, this podcast, music or audio book in my ear helps pass time and make trotting more entertaining, and there is something relaxing and refreshing in a walk in the fresh air of nature, but I needed something more.
Then, it came to my mind that here in my own original county, there are kilometers for kilometers of dirt roads, highways, roads, navigables and many natural or historical attractions that I have never visited, despite my 52 years entire.
I now have a long-term goal: I will put my foot and learn to know each road or community of the Hampton Comté that I can, and write on my current adventures each week or bihebdodaires for our newspapers in the birthplace.
But why stop with the county of Hampton? Here, in the Lowcountry SC, there are state parks, lakes, rivers, historical markers and more than I have ever visited or experienced. Here, there are sites where the Amerindians formerly prospered, where the strata and the colonials fought during the American revolution, where the Yankees troops fought with the Confederates, where the reception guards looked at Nazi invaders, where the inhabitants walked for civil rights …
And at a more earth-to-terre level, there are neighborhoods and companies filled with new friends waiting to be met, people with stories to tell and ideas or opinions to share.
Walk with me, dear readers
“It’s too dangerous,” warned me the conscientious and wise woman when I shared this idea.
“You cannot take from each road in this area, you will be injured or killed. And you will not leave me a young widow with these brats and these invoices,” she added, or something like that. I didn’t really listen to because I was busy looking for my hiking boots.
Of course, there will be risks to walk on new roads. “No intrusion” panels will testify everywhere. Factor in high criminal areas, reckless drivers and hostile or overprotective dogs, and you have just made things more interesting than your typical Sunday walk. Then there is the torn meniscus and this knee surgery that I have been resting for months to face.
But if I have to walk almost every day, then I hang out with me for protection, dear reader, as well as someone who to talk to and share my stories and the stories with which I discover.
I armed myself with a knee and a notebook splint, a camera, robust shoes, my favorite water bottle and my walking stick, and cards from the county of Hampton and the South South Carolina, and I put my foot in battle against poor health and I took the first steps.
I swear to visit a new area every week, to see new sites and scenes, to meet new people and to share these images and stories with my readers. I will look for foreigners, I will knock on new doors, gossip with women in beauty salons, laugh at the jokes of old men who hang out in service stations or hardware stores.
A few weeks, I will boast of the number of steps or miles that I travel (believe me, dear reader, when I could lie to the woman about my exercise and my food consumption, I will not lie to you).
Some weeks, I will share a small culture and a story of lowcountry of each destination, and you may learn something new, or that you will find a new appreciation for a benchmark that you often pass without thinking.
And a few weeks, when I spot road signs, litter or dilapidated buildings collapse, I will share a little social, political or economic comments.
I heard the cliché that each trip starts with a stage. Are you ready to browse the Lowcountry with me?
If so, I will see you next week.