Camping on Capers

Capers at night by Parker Gibbons.

A lot of people ask us when we get to Capers about if camping is allowed. Here’s some important Information regarding camping from South Carolina Department of Natural Resources if you are interested in learning about how to camp on capers: Camping on Capers Info

Now that you’ve got the important information here is a serene testimony by one of our naturalists, Parker Gibbons, on his time camping on Capers with some of his friends.

“The long awaited fall weather finally arrived, meaning the camping trip we had been talking about since the dog days of summer finally was going to happen. We rode out on Sunday evening and set up camp at the beginning of the boneyard beach. I strung up my hammock ~15 feet up in a young live oak tree, which perfectly overlooked the boneyard. This tree gave me a remarkable view and provided a quite relaxing setting. The whole time we were on Capers we only saw one person. It’s truly an amazing experience to have a barrier island all to yourself. From catching a big redfish & exploring the tidal pools at low tide–there’s always an adventure around the next bend on Capers.

Much of the undeveloped Carolina coastline is lined with incredible boneyard beaches. The trees are left stranded on the beach due to erosion which repositions the islands over time. This island specifically loses around 12 feet of maritime forest annually to the encroaching beach. While this sounds like a lot, it’s actually the reason we have barrier islands and should protect them. These islands take a beating from storm surges which protect the mainland. We as humans like to develop beachfront property but in reality it destroys the natural protective border our coastal is meant to have. Islands naturally move around over time.  Tide with the assistance of wind and storms are the forces behind sand being transported. (erosion and deposition or accretion–which is the build up of sediment. Think about when you deposit money in a bank you are adding to your savings much like sand is added after being moved somewhere!) When we develop an island we try to keep the island from shifting or we interrupt its natural flow. This is why a lot of places have ongoing beach restoration projects. Humans also will move sediment or sand by trucking it in from other areas. If we left these barrier islands up to the hands of Mother Nature, they would all be as beautiful as this one.”

-Parker Gibbons