Taste of A Sunrise Tide

Whiteboot heroes preserve a way of life tied to vast waters and salt marshes of the Carolina Lowcountry.

Oysterman Vince Chaplain, St. Helena Island native son (andrewbranning.com)

Several salt-pruned live oaks, twisted and sculpted by winds over time line the banks of the mighty Chechessee. Pines silhouette in the distance against a peach-colored dawn illuminating a sweeping expanse of marsh. As the day unfolds, the rising sun pierces the grey clouds high above.

I watch as a lone oysterman launches his bateau into choppy waters. He slips into the misty fog taking my imagination with him.

andrewbranning.com

Has he spent a lifetime winding through these rivers to distant channels? Only he and God understand the secrets that yield the treasures of these unspoiled shores—the water ripples, disturbed only by the rush of tidewater traveling beyond the horizon.

Along the banks of the Chechessee time stands still as a Lowcountry morning awakens. Above the river, a lone osprey traces lazy circles in the crystalline blue sky. It’s my place for quiet viewing with reverence for our natural world. These spiritual areas of our coastal terrain are sanctuaries of unparalleled beauty.