Palmetto Bluff

Driving west toward Savannah on SC 46, a simple, unassuming wooden sign designates the entrance to Palmetto Bluff. Looking somewhat like a sign for a summer camp, the marker reveals little about what awaits visitors who traverse the nearly eight-mile drive to the heart of the Bluffton-area community. What lies ahead along the secluded, tree-lined entrance road is an expansive refuge and southern gem that seems to transcend time, while fusing it with the luxuries of modern life. The first glimpse of this fusion comes about four miles in at the “Greeters Cottage” where visitors are welcomed with a smile and offered a CD detailing the history of the 20,000-acre property and its former inhabitants – from Native Americans and early explorers to wealthy New York financier Richard T. Wilson, Jr. – who is responsible for naming Palmetto Bluff and constructing the elegant, 72-room Palmetto Lodge in 1914.