We just finished a week at Huntington Beach State Park and we were astounded by its size and avian population. Walking the nature trails through oak forests and marshes, over beach dunes, and along the shore itself, we encountered herons, storks, egrets (small and large), pelicans, ibis, cormorants, and the usual ducks and seagulls. Signs warned of alligators, but no sightings by us.
We missed the last of the loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings by about a month. The entire coastal community is asked to dim their lights between May and October to avoid confusing the tiny turtle babies who follow the light of the horizon to make it from shore to sea. If lights are left on by humans, the 2-inch creatures may go toward the white light instead of the ocean. You can learn more online from SeaTurtle.org.
For our Pasadena friends, we found another Huntington Gardens here in South Carolina. Okay, it’s actually called Brookgreen Gardens, but it was founded by Archer Huntington, who was Henry’s cousin AND step-son. While the soap opera of the Huntington Family can be looked up on Wikipedia (you may need a flow chart to keep track of the marriages, divorces, deaths, etc.), suffice to say that Archer and his wife, artist Anna Hyatt Huntington, created a legacy of botanical gardens that rival our treasured San Marino gardens. The Gills were patrons of The Huntington for more than a decade and Joe’s students even created one of the art exhibits a few years ago. When we travel, we like to visit gardens, learn local flora, and get inspired for garden projects in our own yard. Brookgreen did not disappoint!
Over 9000 acres of gardens, fountains, sculptures, poetry, and CHRISTMAS LIGHTS were on display for our visit this week to the annual Nights of a Thousand Candles. There were almost three thousand hand-lit actual candles throughout the main gardens. And the electric decorations were too numerous to count. Additionally, we were able to walk through Bruce Munro‘s immersive art installation, Field of Light.
Where in the world are the Gills? 