Boat Through a Garden
At Brookgreen Gardens, one of the most popular attractions on U.S. 17, a breeze stirs when I board a tour boat to see the former ricefields that are now part of a 9,000-acre wildlife sanctuary. Alligators laze along the banks. On the 45-minute ride, a narrator gives guests a fascinating overview of life in the Lowcountry in the 19th century.

left: Visitors take boat tours to see alligators and other wildlife in the nature sanctuary that is reclaiming vast ricefields at Brookgreen Gardens.