Managed IT Servicesin Folly Beach, SC

The spirited island hamlet south of Charleston shakes off mainland sophistication in favor of flip-flops and cash-only dive bars.

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It's only twelve miles south of Charleston's historic homes and manicured window boxes, but the salty little town of Folly Beach ditches the Holy City's refinement in favor of an easygoing, barefoot sensibility that feels a bit more California than Carolina. Known to locals as the Edge of America, Folly is everything a beach town should be. Surf shops line the main drag; cover-ups count as appropriate lunch attire; and nobody takes themselves too seriously (they drop a pair of LED-lit flip-flops to celebrate New Year's Eve). Here's where to stay, eat, relax, and play in South Carolina's super chill surf town.

Where to Stay

Every single room at The Tides Hotel comes with an ocean view. Perched at the end of Center Street, the town's main thoroughfare, the hotel is steps from both the beach and an array of local shops and eateries. For families looking to stretch out a bit more, there are a boatload of rentals to choose from: Opt for ocean-front properties that will sleep a crowd or cozy cottages with marsh and Folly River views. And for people who wouldn't dream of traveling without their four-legged companions, there are plenty of pet-friendly rentals too.

Where to Eat

You won't go hungry on this island. Lost Dog Café is a local staple, serving coffee and all-day breakfast; don't miss the eggs Benedict, which they top with fried green tomatoes. Fish tacos, Vietnamese-inspired lettuce wraps, and Cuban sandwiches all have a place on the colorful menu at Chico Feo, where the vibe is equally colorful. Don't let the easygoing atmosphere fool you: Rita's Seaside Grille is serious about its food...and its cocktails. Try one of the Signature Crushes, fruity sippers with flavored liquors that pack a punch. End the night at Sand Dollar Social Club, a dive bar where you're invited to come as you are, so long as you're a member; membership costs $1, so bring your cash (you won't find a credit card machine here).

Where to Relax

The island's six miles of beachfront are its main attraction, and it'd be easy to while away a week with no plans beyond putting your toes in the sand. Spend a day shelling, sunning, surfing, or searching for shark teeth. Enjoy oceanfront views while lunching at BLU Beach Bar and Grill. At the northern end of Folly Beach, the Morris Island Lighthouse provides a stunning backdrop from the shore. Get a closer look from the Lighthouse Inlet Heritage Preserve or via kayak. Several guided tours leave from Folly Beach to visit Morris Island for shelling, photography, and lighthouse history. The historic lighthouse is not open for viewing. How close you can get to the lighthouse depends on the tides.

Where to Play

For those looking to build an action-packed itinerary, there are plenty of activities that highlight the destination's natural beauty: Book a guided kayak tour or rent a stand-up paddleboard to explore the tidal creeks; stop by McKevlin's Surf Shop, South Carolina's oldest surfing outfitter, before catching some of the area's best waves at The Washout; and plan to make a trip with your fishing poles to check out the beloved Folly Beach Pier that has reopened after extensive renovations.

FOLLY BEACH, S.C. (WCIV) — Tami Bourne has lived on folly beach for over three decades.

However, because of a recent development plan on Folly's beachfront lots, she is concerned.

Folly Beach resident fears overbuilding amid ongoing legal battle over beachfront development. (WCIV)

"When you have these disasters, these hurricanes, houses blow into houses," Bourne said. "So the more you put out there, the more it's gonna' get blown into the water. So it's just a problem that way. And also with the hurting the beach as far as making it erode more."

The super beachfront lots are along East Ashley Avenue, just north of the washout down to the lighthouse.

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"These lots were platted back in at least the 1950s," Leslie Lenhardt said, "and they are the most seaward of any lots that were platted on Folly Beach."

The plots are currently held in trust by the state for the public to enjoy. Some property owners attempted to claim ownership after the 2018 Folly Beach Renourishment Project.

"So for a very short period of time after that Renourishment, these lots became high ground," Lenhardt said. "These property owners, what they are trying to do during this window of time is to develop those lots."

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This is a legal battle that goes back to 2020. A judge hear motions on whether developers could build on those lots. The legal maneuvering is ongoing, with the issue expected to go before another court in the coming months.

"The Court of Appeals has remanded the case," Lenhardt said. "Because it's a novel issue, the court said we really want a judge to determine whether or not this is a recognizable theory under the law."

Multiple preservation groups and the city say they want to figure out the boundary between private and public property while preserving the beach.

"I'd like to keep folly as it is," Bourne said. "It's unique. It's funky. And I hate to see it get overbuilt and our beaches overbuilt."

People like to call Folly Beach the “fun” beach, and maybe it is, especially if you’re visiting for the restaurants and bars.

But there’s also a measure of serenity here if you know where, and when, to look.

Here’s the best way to find it: Get here early; 7 a.m. should work — before the traffic on the only road in and out becomes a nightmare.

Bring the dog if you have one: From May through September, they’re allowed on the beach before 10 a.m. and after 6 p.m.

Check the tides online before you arrive: at high tide, part of this walk is underwater.

Park in the grass just outside Folly Beach County Park. Make sure your tires aren’t on the pavement or you’ll have a ticket when you get back.

Take a right when your feet hit the sand.

Keep going, past the pelicans flying so low they could dip their toes in the water, past the last jetty trying to keep the sand from washing away.

Before you’ve walked a mile, you’ll reach a bend in the beach. This is the spot.

To the left, waves lap at the coast. To the right, still water.

It feels like you’ve reached the end of the ocean. Or the beginning.

Sit in the sand. Before you head back to civilization, let the scene wash through your eyes and into your body.

Explore

The Washout

Head to the other end of the island if your companion is a surfboard instead of a dog. A spot off East Ashley Avenue known as The Washout is a favorite for surfers. A bit farther along the street, a paved trail covered in graffiti leads to a small beach with views of the Morris Island Lighthouse.

If you’re brave enough, join the kite surfers being pulled along the water on windy days, sometimes soaring high above the surface before splashing back down.

Folly Beach pier

The pier reopened in December 2022 after a two-year, $14 million rebuild. It’s 1,049 feet long. The pier has been a part of Folly Beach — you can’t miss it if you head toward the sand — since the 1930s. Pay $5 for an all-day fishing pass or just walk to the end and listen to the water.

The pier is open from 8 a.m. to sunset.

Eat and drink like a local

Lost Dog Cafe

For brunch, the go-to meal for late sleepers or early drinkers, try Lost Dog Cafe. Located in a former laundromat on West Huron Avenue, you can find breakfast and bloodies on the menu all day. Try a breakfast burrito, or grab some fried green tomatoes and a chicken salad croissant from the lunch menu. And like many other eateries in Folly, your dog is welcome to join you.

Jack of Cups

A favorite of The Post and Courier’s food editor, Jack of Cups on Center Street has a menu built for the adventurous eater. Boasting a bevy of vegetarian options on a menu the owners describe as “globally inspired,” the kitchen also cranks out dishes you probably never come across at home: Among them: Cap’n Crunch deviled eggs, dill pickle soup and unicorn pop rock cheesecake.

The Bounty Bar

Created by the owners of The Royal American in Charleston, The Bounty Bar on Center Street aspires to serve “better than it has to be” bar food. It’s open until 1 a.m. daily and has you covered whether you’re craving seafood, chicken or steak.

Chico Feo

Head to Chico Feo on East Ashley Avenue for tacos, beer and live music. Check their calendar for musical performances. Or show up on a Monday for soapbox night, when you can sign up to take the stage and show off your talent, whether it’s singing, spoken word or parlor tricks.

Shopping

If you need groceries or a quick snack, try Bert’s Market on East Ashley Avenue.

A smattering of surf and beach shops in the heart of town will have everything you need for a day on the beach, including the towel or sunscreen you accidentally left at home.

While you’re indoors — easily the worst place to be at Folly Beach — you can also pick up some souvenirs for the family members who couldn’t join you.

If you plan to spend most of your time on the beach, there are some rules you should remember:

No alcohol, glass containers, plastic bags, balloons, Styrofoam, open fires, fireworks or littering.

Surfing without a leash is prohibited. From May 15 to Sept. 15, surfing is prohibited from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. from 2nd Street East to 3rd Street West. From Sept. 16 to May 14, surfing is allowed in any area. It is prohibited within 200 feet of the fishing pier.

Stay off the dunes and use public walkovers.

To protect sea turtle hatchlings, no lights are allowed that illuminate the front beach between 10 p.m. and dawn from May 1-Oct. 31. For a full list of beach rules, check visitfolly.com.

FOLLY BEACH, S.C. (WCIV) — The City of Folly Beach has been evaluating ways to improve safety, mobility, and accessibility on Arctic Avenue.

Take a drive down Arctic Avenue and you’ll see people walking or biking— alongside cars and golf carts.

Public input on Folly's Arctic Avenue changes due Monday (WCIV)

The city's plan suggests transitioning the road to one lane for vehicles while maintaining emergency vehicle access.

There would be a 12-foot wide shared-use path on the side of the road.

“The user is trying to get to the beach obviously. So we want to have them spaced, traverse up and down the road whereas today they're essentially walking in the road,” Project Manager Richard Turner said.

The design team has come up with two alternatives for both the commercial district and the residential district.

Read More: Folly Beach is addressing safety on Arctic Avenue

The commercial district runs Arctic Avenue from 2nd Street West to 2nd Street East. The two options include:

“We're utilizing the pavement that's out there to create and improve parking areas on the right or the left side. However, the opposite side of the road will still remain as an unimproved shoulder available for parking,” Turner said.

There is also a plan for the residential district- which is Arctic Avenue from 2nd Street East to 12th Street East and West Arctic Avenue from 2nd Street West to 3rd Street West.

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“We have a lot of flow of traffic out here and the more parking we can offer them the better it is,” parking lot owner Andy McClellan said.

These designs were based on results from the city's off-season traffic counts in the spring. The city plans to conduct a second traffic count during peak tourist season.

They also analyzed crash data to see where crashes took place and held public meetings for input.

Once they receive additional public input, the project will move forward.

Beach Information: Folly Beach

“There will be another public meeting in October where we provide our recommendation to the city for the for the project,” Turner said.

Public input for this project is due on Monday.

To let the city know what you would like to see, visit www.arcticavenueplan.com/online-meeting.

FOLLY BEACH — It’s been an expensive task for this beach city to keep its head above water in recent years.

Fresh loads of sand have been dumped five times on Folly Beach in the last three decades, a feat totaling $77 million in federal tax dollars and local funds arranged from the city, according to data from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The federal government has allocated another $27 million for the emergency replacement of the equivalent of 90,000 dump truck loads of sand here in early 2024.

A number of factors have contributed to the frequent erosion seen on the beach. Scientists believe climate change, sea level rise and increasing storminess is at play.

But Folly Beach is a special in the eyes of the federal government because it is located down drift of the Charleston Harbor and its federally created jetties. These underwater rock walls span three miles into the water from the shorelines of Sullivan’s and Morris islands. They trap sand around Sullivan’s Island which prohibits the sand from flowing naturally down to Folly Beach, said Nicole Elko, president of Elko Coastal Consulting.

“For that reason, the only addition of sand that Folly receives is from renourishment,” said Elko, who is working as a consultant for Folly Beach.

The last few coastal storms to reach South Carolina took a toll on Folly Beach, too. Emergency renourishments were done in 2005 because of destruction from Hurricane Ophelia and in 2018 because of hurricanes Irma and Matthew.

Folly Beach lost a good bit of sand during Ian last year, too. And the city had already hit its renourishment triggers prior to the storm.

How it works

The process for renourishment is tedious and includes several steps. Engineering and design plans need to be on par before crews begin the work.

But once ready, contractors use a vacuum-like drill to agitate sand down at the seabed of a body of water. The sand then makes its way through the dredge itself. And depending on the distance from the selected seabed to the shore, the sand can be pumped directly on the beach.

Earthmoving equipment, primarily bulldozers, are then used to settle and shape the sand based on the desired design, said Jeff Livasy, the head of civil works for the Army Corps’ Charleston District.

Sand can come from several “borrow areas,” but it has to be compatible with the beach. The Folly River has been used in the past for Folly Beach.

There have been hiccups with this, though.

Rocks or cemented sands were deposited on the beach during a previous renorishment. It is unclear what year it happened.

“We assessed it and it looked like the right type of material,” Livasy said. “But how much of it was cemented together and how, yes, it can come through in large chunks like it did in that renourishment cycle, was unfortunate.”

The next renourishment project is now in the design phase, and Livasy said the Corps will try to avoid a repeat of the last mishap.

“But at the end of the day, we have the borrow sites that we have, and we will make use of them the best we can,” Livasy said.

Preserving new sand

Renourishment projects are part of the bigger beach preservation plan on Folly Beach, Elko said. Putting the sand back on the beach is the most important part.

“But then dune restoration, which includes sand fencing and native vegetation planting, is another piece of that preservation project,” Elko said.

Another important method is land management, or not building structures on the beach. This pertains to homes built on super beachfront lots that sit further out toward the shore than others.

“You want to build your houses behind the dunes,” Elko said. “You don’t want them out, exposed to wave energy, and you don’t want the environment to be affected in that way.”

Elko said the city is currently trying to stop such construction.

After the 2018 renourishment, the South Carolina Environmental Law Project filed a lawsuit challenging the ownership of newly created land on behalf of the city, Coastal Conservation League, Save Folly Beach and a group of homeowners.

The law project said a group of homeowners of super beachfront property claimed ownership of the new dry ground and took steps to pursue development there before the property reverted back to beach and ocean.

Houses on these super beachfront lots have been condemned repeatedly and add to the erosion issues.

“Are we really okay with people building houses that we know are going to be underwater within a year or two after a renourishment?” asked Amy Armstrong, an attorney with the law project. “Is that a good policy for the state?”

Folly Beach Mayor Tim Goodwin said although the case is very involved, it’s meant to protect the city’s natural resources.

Oral argument for the case were heard before the S.C. Court of Appeals on May 11.