Day 2.52: Charleston, SC to Columbia, SC

We woke up and tried to get out relatively early so that we could get to Congaree National Park, a place that no locals in Charleston seemed to know existed even though it’s less than two hours away. Apparently, it was designated as a national park in 2003. It’s pretty small compared to others, and we spent less than two hours there. We did a hike that was supposed to be mainly on the boardwalk but still managed to get lost, mainly because a part of it was under construction and we ended up walking past our theoretical exit point to somewhere we had already been. We saw some cool trees and reflections in the swamp, but that was about it. This isn’t a must-see, but it’s a worthwhile stop if you’re in the area.

On our drive out of the park, Arielle noticed what look like a dark cloud above the trees that quickly turned into black smoke, so she called the police to report it in case it wasn’t a planned burn. We drove about half an hour to Columbia, where Arielle met with Henry, a gentleman involved with the local Jewish community who her avuncular Miles had known for many years. We then drove about twenty minutes across town to the home of Miles, Betty, and their dog Rusty. They have been friends of Arielle’s parents for many years, and it was great to be in their home for the first time. Betty made a delicious salmon dinner with ratatouille, and we chatted for a while afterwards before their nightly ritual of watching MSNBC. Arielle realized that she likes knowing what’s going on in the world and should probably read or watch the news going forward. After a lovely evening together, we went to sleep.

Approximate number of miles covered: 134