The trailhead for the Sewee Trail located on Salt Pond Landing Road. The conditions were nice here, and the walk only took about an hour. These mounds are only located onthe coasts in northern Florida up to South Carolina. This area was hit directly by Hurricane Hugo in 1989, then two years later suffered a major wildfire.

1:38:26 PM    comment []

Welcome to the Clam Shell Mound and Oyster Ring in the Francis Marion National Forest along the Intracoastal Waterway. The mounds are approximately 4000 years old.

1:31:20 PM    comment []

Here is a closeup of the clam shells at the first mound. Later on, the ring of shells in mounds is made up mostly of oyster shells, so it seems like the early inhabitants here sorted their trash.

1:28:11 PM    comment []

The Clam Shell mound is the first stop on the trail. It seems to have been worn down over time, but still covers something like a 20x20 foot area. Trees grow out of it, helping to hide the real size.

1:24:59 PM    comment []

This shows the large quantity of shells even along the walking path. The mound here rises about 8-10 feet for a long stretch of the path. Trees now grow out of the top and sides of all the mounds, but probably help anchor the shells as well.

1:19:54 PM    comment []

Standing atone corner of the ring, looking across the front and the signpost. The front is lower than the back side, probably from tidal effects. The center is very open.

1:15:34 PM    comment []

Here's the sign for the Seewee Shell Ring, located on the intracoastal waterway side of the oyster ring. This area is about 4000 years old and is on the National Registry of Historic Places. This ring is quite large, certainly 75-100 feet across. The pictures can't really show just how large and how many shells are here.

1:11:30 PM    comment []

This is a view from the Seewee oyster rings overlooking the marshes.

1:07:55 PM    comment []