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Old 08-05-2015, 08:23 PM
 
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I'm interested in camping out on Capers Island and I wanted to know if any folks know of a way to get out there if you don't own a boat. I've been out there on one of the eco tours, but I'm not sure if there is a ferry or service that takes folks out there. Any suggestions?
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Old 08-05-2015, 09:06 PM
 
Location: James Island, SC
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It's not a bad paddle from the IOP marina if you can borrow or rent a kayak. Or someone in the various tour/fishing boats might be prompted to drop you off/pick you up for the right fee. The folks at the marina might know who to ask about that. I don't think there's a regular ferry like there is to Bulls Island.
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Old 08-05-2015, 09:25 PM
 
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Thanks for the reply. I don't mind taking a kayak out, but I know the folks that are coming with me will not do that. I'll take your advice and talk to some folks at the marina. Just sent a message to Barrier Islands Eco Tours as well.
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Old 08-06-2015, 07:57 AM
 
Location: Sumter, SC
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I have always kayaked out there. There are three routes. One is to use IOP marina and simply take the ICW to the inlet. Need to go out on an outgoing tide. Otherwise the incoming tide is like a raging river and difficult to paddle against. Plus, this route is choked with boat traffic and you spend the entire trip riding through the wakes. It takes about 2 hours. The next trip is to go out the back way of the IOP marina and stay in the creeks. This will eventually dump you out at the inlet to the island between Capers and IOP (forget the name.) then paddle in the surf around that island to get to Capers. This was a much more relaxing paddle and much more scenic. The difficulty is in timing the tides. You want to be in the open ocean at a cresting high tide. We hit it wrong and hit it at an outgoing/low tide. There was a large sandbar between Capers and the other island. We either had to paddle well offshore and around it or drag our kayaks across the sandbar. We did the latter. But at high tide, this would not be an issue. The easiest way is a landing at the end of a road off Hwy 17. It is basically a straight shot across the ICW to the island. It only took about 90 minutes this way and was relatively easy until you had to cross the boat traffic on the ICW.
I know you don't want to paddle out there, but I certainly wouldn't want to spend the night without some form of emergency escape. I guess you could just arrange with the Eco tours to drop you off one day and pick you up the next. We love it out there and plan another overnight before it gets too cold.
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Old 08-06-2015, 08:16 AM
 
Location: James Island, SC
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I have also paddled straight off the IOP beachfront, past Dewees to Capers. Probably the most direct route but maybe not for beginners and certainly not for the OP's trip. We did that one camping weekend and a front came in while we were there. The water was a lot rougher when we were ready to return so we went the back route to the marina.
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Old 08-06-2015, 08:35 AM
 
Location: Sumter, SC
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Originally Posted by LocalHero View Post
I have also paddled straight off the IOP beachfront, past Dewees to Capers. Probably the most direct route but maybe not for beginners and certainly not for the OP's trip. We did that one camping weekend and a front came in while we were there. The water was a lot rougher when we were ready to return so we went the back route to the marina.
The first time we did the trip we did it from the landing across the ICW. You could not access the landing at a low tide. It was just a field of oyster beds. So we put in as the tide got high enough and paddled out to the island. We set up camp and explored the island a bit. Then as were lit the fire for dinner, my brother in law had an emergency weather radio with him and it went off. We had checked the weather before we left and there was a small disturbance way to the south but nothing notable. But when that radio went off, it said that disturbance had been upgraded to a tropical depression and was heading straight for us. Since it was getting dark and since we could only access the landing at a higher tide, we had only about 10 minutes to decide wether we were staying or going. If we waited too long, there would be no option. We would be stuck on the island overnight. We decided to pack up quickly and get back to the landing. Glad we did. The next day we checked the closest weather station (either Deewees or Bull Island) and there were 30mph sustained winds with gusts up to 70mph. We would have been left exposed in tents on the beach in that.
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Old 08-06-2015, 09:08 AM
 
Location: Sumter, SC
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Oh. And a little advice. If you are planning to venture off the beach and into the interior of the island, be prepared! The Mosquitos can be the worse you have ever seen. Bring long sleeves, DEET repellant (not some weak skin so soft) and I would also suggest a mosquito net over your head and neck. They can really be that bad. The first time I went, I had all of this and it was still unnerving walking into the woods. It was like a horror movie. The sound around your head is unreal and the come at you in swarms. Last summer, we went again and it wasn't nearly as bad. But we still wouldn't go in there without the nets.
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Old 08-06-2015, 09:16 AM
 
Location: James Island, SC
3,861 posts, read 4,595,248 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Iam4USC View Post
Oh. And a little advice. If you are planning to venture off the beach and into the interior of the island, be prepared! The Mosquitos can be the worse you have ever seen. Bring long sleeves, DEET repellant (not some weak skin so soft) and I would also suggest a mosquito net over your head and neck. They can really be that bad. The first time I went, I had all of this and it was still unnerving walking into the woods. It was like a horror movie. The sound around your head is unreal and the come at you in swarms. Last summer, we went again and it wasn't nearly as bad. But we still wouldn't go in there without the nets.
Ditto! First time I went there we had full mosquito netting jackets as well as head nets and it was incredible the amount of mosquitoes that were bouncing off that netting. It was as thick as I've ever seen them. There's not enough reason to go back into the interior imo. The beach/river front of Capers is great though!
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Old 08-09-2015, 05:59 AM
 
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The stories of weather changes, being stranded are all very real. You need to be aware.......
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