On our 3rd visit to historic Wilmington my daughter and I stopped by the

Black Beard wannabe

After some online research I figured it will take us little over an hour to go through all the exhibits.

Well 3 hours later we were still strong into it…

Admission is $8 (free for kids under 1).

The museum is located one block from the awesome Cape Fear Serpentarium and is open 9AM – 5PM (1PM Sundays).

What kids like to do at the museum

Get their hands dirty and create masterpieces. This is one of the better organized and supplied “Arts and Crafts” room I’ve seen.

Little Picasso

Be a rock star, play in the glow room and try on many cool outfits.

Lets dance!

Drive the magic school bus, climb the Spider Man’s web and play inside the little cottage.

Hop on in kids!

Put on your scientist hat and discover all the wonderful things of Mother Nature.

Future biologists under the miscroscope

and the list goes on… play doctor at the Teddy Bear Hospital, test your Circus skills, shop at the supermarket and go camping and kayaking.

More fun places to visit the family downtown

• Check out Southeast’s largest museum-quality model layout at the Railroad Museum ($7 adults, $3 children 2-12).

• Get a thrill at the Cape Fear Serpentarium, featuring the world’s largest collection of deadly venomous snakes like the black headed bushmaster, Gaboon viper, Tropical rattlers, Fer-de-lance, and King Cobra ($8 admission, live feedings in the weekends around 3PM).

• Be awed and inspired aboard the most decorated WWII Battleship, The North Carolina ($12 adults, $10 seniors and military, $6 children 6-11, free for children 5 and under).

There’s always something fun going on downtown Wilmington!

The Railroad Museum in Wilmington is one of the most pleasant travel surprises this year. It has everything! Large scale and intricate layouts, a “build it yourself” play room for kids, amazing historic artifacts and even ghost legends!

In front of the Railroad Museum

Outside you can climb aboard a real steam engine, wander through a red caboose, and experience the hobo lifestyle in a Atlantic Coast Line boxcar…

Best of all my daughter loved it!

Go Thomas! Go!

Hours and Ticket Price
The museum is open Monday to Saturday 10AM – 4PM and Sunday 1 – 5PM (except in winter when is closed). Closed on major holidays. Admission is $7 adults, $6 seniors and military and $3 children 2-12.

The Railroad Museum is located downtown Wilmington at 505 Nutt Street, right by the river next to the Chamber of Commerce and the Community College.

Let the train show begin!

Forever young at the Wilmington Railroad Museum!

If time permits visit the terrific Cape Fear Serpentarium, the world’s largest selection of venomous snakes (live shows on Saturdays and Sundays at 3PM) and the fun-packed Wilmington Children’s Museum. Both are located on Orange Street and admission is $8 for each.

Be awed, inspired and humbled aboard North Carolina, the most decorated battleship during WWII (admission is $12 adults, $10 seniors and military, $6 children 6-11 and FREE for children 5 and under).

“Twinkle, twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are!”

Reach for the stars at Ingram Planetarium in beautiful Sunset Beach NC. The fun packed observatory just half an hour away between North Myrtle Beach and Wilmington.

Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors, $4 for kids 3-5 years old and free for those 2 and under. Ingram Planetarium is opened Friday and Saturday from 12:30 to 5PM and astronomy shows start at 1PM.

Ingram Planetarium

Fun things to play with at the Planetarium

• Race into Space! – Shoot water at astronauts toys to see who gets up faster.

• Nebula Ball – Watch the light respond to your touch and gather around your palm and fingers to create beautiful swirling formations.

• Bernoulli’s Lift Off – Make an airplane fly. Fast moving air over the wings creates lift causing an airplane to fly. Same is true on a race car, the faster the air, the faster the car drives.

• Gravity Machine – Let gravity draw art for you!

Grownups love it too!

• Hear sounds coming from Pan’s Pipes – Pan was half man half goat that entertained Gods by singing on a flute he made from hollow reeds. Sound is a form of energy that is transmitted by vibrations called sound waves. The pipes trap sound in the room and channel it to your ear. The shorter the pipe the higher the pitch.

• Measure electromagnetic radiation using Crookes “light mill” – The radiometer is an airtight glass bulb containing partial vacuum. The vanes rotate when exposed to light. The more light the faster they go.

• Watch cool NASA movies. Did you know the Solar wind output is at 50 year low?

Look mom I'm flying into space!

Special Events at Ingram Planetarium (beware the planetarium will be closed May 1 through 22 as it goes digital!)
• March 14: Space and Pi Day
Celebrate the number 3.14 and other math games. Space Day activities.
• April 2 – 4: 100 Hours of Astronomy
Look through a telescope as Galileo did 400 years ago.
• 3rd Friday and Saturday of each month: Rock ‘n’ Roll Laser Shows

March 20 and 21 – 5PM Hypnotica, 6PM Laseropolis, 7PM Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”
April 17 and 18 – 5PM Pop, 6PM Beatles, 7PM Led Zeppelin

Here is a list with the songs played during each show.

Experience the sky legends at Ingram Planetarium!

Must see TV, entertainment it’s free for me! That’s the attitude of the Nile Crocodile, Cape Fear Serpentarium’s MVP.

We were told His Majesty is the zoo most intelligent resident. He loves to watch the weekend live feedings of his neighbor snakes.

It took some convincing but in the end the belly won and the crocodile accepted the “bribe”. Part of the show I bet

While in Wilmington visit the “The Showboat” North Carolina, the most beloved and decorated WWII battleship. It will lift your spirit!

If alligators, giant crocodiles, Galapagos turtles and green anacondas are your thing, then Alligator Adventure “The Reptile Capital of the World” is your answer. Best time to visit is April – October when the gators are “awake”.

For the past 2 years I’ve traveled up and down the Carolina Coast looking for great adventures, mysteries and memorable wildlife encounters. Here is a list of wonderful things – blessed my 4 years old – that you can do with your kids while vacationing in Myrtle Beach. All for under $10!

Fishermen unite at the outstanding Cherry Grove Pier, home to many record catches such as a 1780 lbs Tiger Shark and a 98 lbs Tarpon. Just bring your fishing talent as bait, tackle, and rods rentals are available at the pier shop. All day pass to the pier is $1.50 (free if you are lodged at the Prince Resort).

The fishing pier at Cherry Grove Beach

To get you started I’ve put together a nice Google Map with all the attractions.

Free things to do at Broadway at the Beach and Barefoot Landing
• Splash around at the water fountain. Don’t be shy, join in the fun, just remember to bring extra clothes

Water splashing fun at Broadway at the Beach

• Jump, slide, crawl at the playground, most likely the most scenic in the Carolinas!
• Sprinkle more laughs at the fish and duck feeding stations
• See up-close Bengal, Siberian, Royal White Bengal and the super stars Golden Tabby tigers playing in an outdoor environment at the remarkable T.I.G.E.R.S Preservation Station inside Barefoot Landing

Museums and amusement parks
• Let your kids imagination flourish at CMSC featuring a USS Coast Guard boat, an authentic X-ray machine, diamond mining, a magical school bus and a pizza delivery truck ($7)

Come on board!

• Climb on baby elephants and zebras at Jungle Safari mini-golf! Oh yeah when you really feel like it put that ball into the hole… “I like to move it, move it” ($8 admission)

• Test your wits and navigation skills at the mind-boggling Mirror Maze inside the Barefoot Landing shopping and entertainment center($7.99 for all day pass)

• Race into space, play astronaut, build your own constellation and learn all there is to know about planets at Ingram Planetarium in Sunset Beach. Grownups can rock on at the cool laser shows featuring songs from Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Metallica, The Beatles and more (admission is $8 adults and $4 kids 3 to 5)

I'm flying mom!

• Have a tea cup party ride at the nostalgic Pavilion at Broadway at the Beach ($3 per ride, less for bulk purchases)

Zoos, parks and historical sites
• Reward your nature loving spirit at Waccatee Zoo – The Beast Things to Do – featuring hundreds of exotic and wierd animals ($7)

• Visit the romantic Atalaya Castle inside the Huntington Beach State Park where the Wild Things Are! Beware of free roaming jaws snapping alligators! ($5 park admission, free entrance to Atalaya)

Mysterious Atalaya Tower

• Be amazed, awed and bewildered at Cape Fear Serpentarium in historic Wilmington NC home to the most venomous snakes in the world: bushmasters, Gaboon vipers, King cobras, Tropical rattlers and Fer-de-lance ($8, live feedings in the weekends at 3PM)

Enjoy your family vacation at the beautiful Carolina Coast!

“If you are bitten by a Bushmaster, it is better to just lie down under a tree and rest, for you will soon be dead”

The snake is in position

Admission is only $8 and live snake feedings occur every weekend at 3PM.

There are over 100 species like the spitting cobra, black mamba, green Anaconda, 20 foot reticulated python, Gaboon vipers, Tropical rattlers, giant Fer-de-lance and even a Nile crocodile!

My favorite was the incredible blackheaded Bushmaster to which I’ve dedicated this post. Enjoy!

Blackheaded Bushmaster Facts and Trivia
• One of the rarest animals on earth it can only be found on a small peninsula in southeastern Costa Rica.

• Only snake known to exhibit courtship ritual before mating: the male performs an “upside down sawing” on top of the female.

• Although the bushmaster is the world’s longest venomous snake it has the smallest swallow threshold!

• Its environment consists of elevated forests with cool temperature and continuous drizzle. The Bushmaster adapted so it’s only basking the head in the sunlight keeping the rest of the body concealed.

• Method of catching prey: “strike and hold on” as illustrated in this video below:

What it feels like to be bitten by a bushmaster?

Cape Fear Serpentarium’s founder Dean Ripa is among the few survivors of a bushmaster bite. Initially he felt a strange euphoria. “The room seemed to have grown enormously large, and myself shrinking away. I saw beautiful purple colors.”

It didn’t last long.

Trust in me!

• 15 minutes: nausea, uncontrollable drooling, intense throbbing and fast rising pulse

• 20 minutes: projectile vomiting and explosive diarrhea

• 25 minutes: chills, blood pressure drops, burning pain in the kidney area, rapid breathing

• 30 minutes: severe abdominal pain, continued vomiting and diarrhea, fluids oozing from swollen bite area

• 35 minutes: body numbness, inability to speak, undetectable blood pressure, feeble pulse

• 40 minutes: conscious but disinterest in fate, undetectable blood pressure and pulse.

You can guess what happens next…

Ready for the thrill of your lifetime?

It’s late afternoon, the kids are restless and you’re running out of “things-to-do” options. Besides where can you take your rambunctious crowd without starting a rout and breaking the bank?

I’ll tell you where: At Jungle Safari mini-golf!

Jungle Safari mini-golf

Pretty Myrtle Beach course

It’s cheap too (unlike the much coveted Ripley’s attractions) with just $8 for adult. Can’t tell how much it’s for kids. The guy at the ticket booth let my daughter get in for FREE. That’s great customer service worth shouting about!

Jungle Safari is located on 7101 N. Kings Hwy. Here is a list and map with other great family attractions in and around the Grand Strand.

Climbing zebra at Jungle Safari

More fun things to do under $10

• Visit the wild and unusual Waccatee Zoo ($12 adult / $4 children)

• Let your imagination flourish at the Children Museum of South Carolina ($7 admission)

• Join the Pavilion tea cup party ($3 per ride), soak in the water show and feed hungry fish (FREE) at Broadway at the Beach

• Test your navigation skills at the exciting Mirror Maze inside Barefoot Landing ($7 all day admission)

• “Pet” alligators and roam the mysterious Atalaya Castle at Huntington Beach State Park ($5 park admission)

Enjoy your Myrtle Beach family vacation!

Arrrgh! Whatever happened to Queen’s Anne Revenge? Wanna rub elbows with 18th century VIPs like Blackbeard, Captain Morgan and Edward Lowe? Well come down to Myrtle Beach Ripley’s Aquarium, a haunted house filled with odd sea creatures, outlaws and monster sharks!

Welcome to the Pirates World at Ripley's Aquarium!

Sea masters, privateers and just brilliant marketing pioneers…a world of mystery, wits and terror. Most romanticized the pirates’ “rise against the machine”, others spited it for their ruthless and savage ways. Either way, the buccaneers stories were the first blockbusters fascinating the mankind to this day.

Pirates Exhibit highlights, funny facts and trivia:

Extreme Fear Factor
Pirates preferred to rule through terror and worked hard building their brand. Contrary to popular belief most pirates hated fighting! Fights led to injuries, deaths and major treasures loss. So they often engaged in sadistic rituals that killed all but few captives…’cause “dead men told no stories”…

Legend has it Edward Lowe chopped off the lips of an opposing captain then forced him to watch his 32-crew being decimated before his eyes.

Ruthless intimidation tactics

Not all pirates were fond of torturing. Edward England for one left his opponent go free after he won a fierce battle. His crew didn’t appreciate it and threw him out! England spent his last days as a beggar on the streets of Madagascar. Nice guys finish last after all…

Do you have what it takes to be a buccaneer?
The successful ones (those that lived pass 30s) possessed charisma, brains, brawns, nautical skills and lots of luck. Here’s a pirate typical profile: 27 years old, uneducated (those who could read became captains!), low social status, a criminal record, and sea life experience. Interested? Here are some possible pirate career paths:
• Captain – educated (aka knows how to read). You’re in charge only during missions
• Quartermaster – “chief of justice”
• Cook – low culinary standards yet you’re expected to sew some skin!
• Surgeon – rarely on board, most likely the cook and carpenter played doctor!
• Master gunner – bomb baby bomb!
• Musician – well regarded to cheer up the crew.
• Carpenters, boatswains, shipwrights – the browns doing all the heavy lifting and the never ending repair work…

Runaway Design Show take notice!

Pirate Flag Designs

Pirates boasted incredible Black Flag designs and a buoyant outwear fashion. I guess if you gotta kill then do it with style! Bond, James Bond…

Here is a slideshow with more exhibit photos…just in case you need more convincing!

Ripley’s Aquarium hours, admission and location
The Aquarium is open Sun – Thu 9AM to 7PM and Fri – Sat 9AM to 9PM. General admission includes dive shows and special exhibition hall (sales tax is additional):
• Adults: $18.99
• Children (6-11): $9.99
• Children (2-5): $3.99
There are group discounts and Ripley’s attractions combo tickets available. Call 1-800-734-8888 or visit their website for details.

Ripley’s Aquarium is located inside Broadway at the Beach off of 29th North Avenue.

What else is fun for kids around Myrtle Beach for under $10?

Blackbeard Ruthless Pirate of the Carribean!

• Watch grumpy longhorns kicking emus, undecided black bears, roaring lions and impassable Sony and Cher at Waccatee Zoo the “Beast Place” on the beach…($8 adults, $4 kids)

• “Mirror, mirror on the wall, haven’t I been here before?“…lose yourself at the awesomely fun Mirror Maze located inside Barefoot Landing shopping center ($7 multiple entries all day admission)

• Yearlings, toddlers, and babies of all ages kick it up a notch at the Children Museum (you can even hunt for diamonds!) ($7 everyone)

• The Gators are here…no really they are…at Huntington Beach State Park at least. ($5 adults, under 5 get in FREE).

Ahoy Mates! Ahoy!

Authentic, real and totally unexpected. Fun, fun, fun that is…just 15 minutes drive from Myrtle Beach’s hustle and bustle. There are hundreds of animals from classics like lions, tigers, black bears and chimps to most unusual species like the South American peccarts, Patagonia Maras and the half zebra half donkey ones…

Tip! Spend $1-2 on a bag of popcorn or boiled peanuts to feed the beasts. Kids love it, animals love it (that’s how I got the bear to dance for me!) and you can snack along the way.

I asked the longhorn if Texas will beat Oklahoma. He responded promptly by hooking a poor bystander emu…if you can’t get your horns on a sooner, the emu will do

The Zoo is open daily from 10 AM to 5 PM. Admission is $4 for children 1-12 and $8 for adults. Here is a customized Google Map showing Waccatee Zoo and other Myrtle Beach attractions worth shouting about.

At minimum visit the ever mysterious Atalaya Castle inside the Huntington Beach State Park where among other wild things you can rub elbows with free roaming alligators!

Happy family fun on the Grand Strand!

Art lovers, sculpture aficionados and nature enthusiasts watch out! As you stroll Brookgreen Gardens’ peaceful trails showered by a rainbow of extravagant floral arrangements, as you admire one of the most magnificent outdoor sculptures collection in the country, it’s hard to imagine the pain and suffering soaked in these grounds.

“Bloodstains of the dead…Tread them down; walk them out; cover them up. All in vain!”

Brookgreen Gardens

Yes, is slavery blood and all the misery that came along with it. During the Civil War this land was part of the Brookgreen Plantation.
Most of the time the owners were out traveling, leaving the business operations to Fraser the overseer. And Fraser “never failed to draw blood”.

“When someone is in the bull pen they have to take a ride on the pony…The overseer gave my mama forty lashes with the strap…A pool of mama’s blood was on the barn floor.”

Once freedom came to Waccamaw River the people tried hunting Fraser down for payback. He was never found. Yet the blood stains in the barn were still there, a painful reminder of their ordeal.
“We didn’t want to pass through the barn…We tried to get rid of them. Tried to wash them off. Wash! Scrub! Stains came back. We walked back and forth…Stomp! Stomp! Stains came back.

Brookgreen Gardens Yellow Sea

More than 50 years later, in 1930, Archer Huntington came in, bought the plantation and transformed it into Brookgreen Gardens. “He saw the bloodstains and he tore down the barn. Yep. That was the first thing Huntington did when he bought the plantation…Until he did that, the bloodstains stayed right there.”

Joe, the gold-watcher at Atalaya

Here’s another story that sheds light into Mr. and Mrs. Huntington character and the incredible Atalaya Castle. As a young boy “Archer’s energy seemed unlimited, and his quick mind grasped everything he saw and read…He intended to spend his live giving his father fortune away.”

People in the area were enthuziastic about the jobs prospects from the start of the outdoor museum (Brookgreen Gardens) and a future house (Atalaya). It was Depression time after all. “When they earned a few dollars, they looked at them and counted them, and figure out how far they would go. They didn’t go very far.”

Joe was one of them. He got a job as loading and removing sand but he failed miserably…wrecking the truck on the first day right in front of Mr. Huntington. He was fired on the spot.

Atalaya Castle Huntington Beach

Few weeks later Anna Huntington needed a “scrawny horse” to carve the statue of Don Quixote. Joe found a “nag with bones showing through its rough coat and a head hung nearly to its knees”. Mrs. Huntington was delighted and she pledged to nurse the horse back to health. Joe volunteered for the task. Things looked much rosier with his employers.

Indeed, at Christmas night his trustworthiness was put to the test. Archer Huntington asked Joe to help him move a heavy oak table into the master bathroom. “As the glowing fire reflected on the table, the table itself seemed about to burst into flame. For there, on the table, were stacks of gold, real gold, coins…varying in size from a watermelon seed to a silver dollar”

“Joe, I want you to remain here in the bathroom and keep an eye on it. I will come for it in the morning”. And so he did. To this day, Joe doesn’t know where the gold came from or where it went. He only knows that Huntington trusted him with his fortune that night. “A job that started out so badly ended with each man respecting, and even liking, each other.”

Come to Brookgreen Gardens and Atalaya at Huntington Beach State Park for a once in a lifetime inspirational vacation!

Disclaimer: All the quotes in this post are from Nancy Rhine’s riveting book “Tales of the South Carolina Lowcountry”, an engaging collection of folklore, ghost haunts, and real stories from remote Lowcountry lanes old-timers.