When you feel the need to venture out of the Shell Hall neighborhood you won't find a more exciting and more adventurous area than Bluffton. Situated on a "high bluff" overlooking the magnificent May River, it is a place where families have come since the early 1800's to escape the summer heat.

Boating, swimming, crabbing, shrimping and oystering the days away along the May River is a "tradition" that is still enjoyed today. People are not only drawn by the breezy bluff, the river and the weather, but most of all by a feeling of what can only be a wonderful mixture of independence, community and a flair for fun.

For an up-to-the minute update on what, when, where and how -- you can visit the Hilton Head/Bluffton Chamber of Commerce at: www.hiltonheadchamber.org.

A variety of land types can be found throughout the lowcountry: salt marsh, forestland, brushland, fallow fields and freshwater ponds. They all can be found in the Bluffton/Hilton Head area at the Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge. Established in 1975, the 4,053 acre refuge contains some of the most pristine salt marsh habitat for wildlife in the South Carolina coastal zone. Protected from sea storms by Hilton Head Island, the refuge offers a safe haven for migratory birds and native animals.

Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service the refuge offers many opportunities for wildlife-oriented recreation.

Closer to home Shell Hall is embraced by more than 1,475 acres of protected wetlands-home to an abundance of lowcountry wildlife.