A Premature Fall in Carolina Bay

The Carolina Bay Nature Preserve is a small, 15-acre park just outside Downtown Aiken, SC. During Hurricane Helene, it was struck by hurricane-force winds and at least one tornado. As Ansel Adams said once: “The world is …  within looking and walking distance—not thousands of miles away, expensive, or difficult to approach.” This park is within walking distance of my home and I pass it almost every day on my way to work.

So, right after the storm hit, and I was out of power, I stopped by the bay to see how it was affected. Like other places in Helen’s path, some trees in the bay were sent crashing to the ground, while others were unaffected. Even though I started this project the day after the storm, the Carolina Bay is such a part of my life, that I will continue to explore and document how one hurricane effected one part of my world that is within walking distance of my home.