Awendaw SC (South Carolina, Francis Marion Forest)
Cruise Port schedule, live map, terminals, news
Region
East Coast USA and Canada New England
Local Time
2024-11-27 00:00
63°F 17.1°C
Light breeze2.9 m/s
74 °F / 24 °C 52 °F / 11 °C
Awendaw SC is a small town in South Carolina USA's Charleston County, with land area approx 10 mi2 (25 km2) and population around 1,500. The town is also part of Charleston Metro and is approx 30 mi (45 km) from Charleston City (state's capital).
The town's economy is largely based on commercial fishing and crabbing. The annual Blue Crab Festival takes place in the summer.
Awendaw is the gateway to Francis Marion National Forest, accessed by cruise ship tourists via bus tours. The National Forest is named after Francis Marion (1732-95, aka Swamp Fox/American military officer acting with the Continental Army and South Carolina militia during the American War of Independence 1775-83). The Park has total area approx 258860 acres (104760 hectares / 1050 km2) and consists of mainly old-growth baldcypress trees. The Park includes four towns (Awendaw, Huger, Jamestown, McClellanville), with four ranger offices in Cordesville.
Unfortunately, Hurricane Hugo in 1989 (September 10-25) nearly destroyed the Park as only the young growth survived. The Park's recreation facilities and amenities include campsites, shooting ranges, boat ramps. Tourist activities include mountain biking/trailing/hiking (Palmetto Trail), off-road ATV and motorcycling (Wambaw Cycle Trailhead), horseback riding, hunting.
As cruise port, Awendaw was first included in the 2022 schedule of Lindblad Expeditions with the ship National Geographic Sea Lion. Next table shows the boat's 5-night/6-day itinerary (themed "Wild South Carolina Escape. Beaufort and the Barrier Islands Cruise"), with prices from USD 4000 per person with double occupancy.
| Date / Time | Port |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Departing from Charleston SC |
| Day 2 | Beaufort, North Carolina |
| Day 3 | St Phillips Island and Edisto Island, South Carolina |
| Day 4 | Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge |
| Day 5 | Awendaw (bus tour to Francis Marion Park) |
| Day 6 | Arriving in Charleston SC |
The town was named by the indigenous Sewee tribe, Awendaw meaning "Red Clay", Sewee Mound (aka Old Fort/1970-included in the USA's National Register of Historic Places) is near Awendaw and one of 20 prehistoric shell rings along the coasts of South Carolina and Georgia. With diameter 45 m (149 ft) and height 3 m (10 ft), the Sewee Mound is largely composed of oyster shells and was created by the Sewee Indians.