Nature Adventures Outfitters

The guides and instructors at Nature Adventures Outfitters possess the knowledge and experience to unlock the secrets of the Charleston area’s rivers, creeks, swamps and harbors, the foresight to protect and preserve the flora and fauna that prosper beneath, amid and around its fertile waterways and the sense of civic pride to give back to the Lowcountry communities they serve.

The 12-member staff at Nature Adventures Outfitters, all with college degrees and all certified by the American Canoe Association, collectively have amassed more than a century of experience on South Carolina’s coastal waterways. During that time, they have shared their knowledge of kayaking, canoeing and Nature in general with serious sportsmen and nautical beginners, and the company has shared the fruit of its success with environmental organizations and other worthy causes.

According to Kathie Livingston, who owns the company and also serves as one of its guides, Nature Adventures Outfitters gives thousands of dollars a year to environmental organizations, including the Sewee Association, the South Carolina Center for Birds of Prey, the National Audubon Society, and Rein and Shine Therapeutic Riding Center. In addition, Nature Adventures holds an annual fundraiser for the Multiple Sclerosis Society, the Kayak for the Kure for MS, and was honored as the “Outstanding Corporate Partner” by the Mid-Atlantic chapter of the National MS Society in 2009.

Nature Adventures’ guides and instructors do their part by volunteering for various programs of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, turtle rescue, bird rescue and research projects.

“We feel like it’s important to give back to the environment we’re using,” Livingston commented. “We go green as much as possible to help save our natural resources. And a percentage of every tour and rental goes to an environmental cause.”

Located on Shem Creek in Mount Pleasant and in the Francis Marion National Forest, Nature Adventures Outfitters offers 10 different guided tours, ranging in duration from around two hours to the full-day excursion, which covers a distance of seven to eight miles.

Saltwater tours include Shem Creek and Crab Bank Island, home of the second largest pelican rookery in South Carolina; Sewee Indian ruins; Awendaw Creek; Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge and the McClellanville harbor; and Capers Island State Heritage Preserve. Nature Adventures Outfitters offers black water tours through the Wambaw Swamp Wilderness Area and on Quenby Creek.

For those who would rather explore on their own, Nature Adventures Outfitters rents sea kayaks, recreational kayaks and canoes.

For more information on all Nature Adventures Outfitters has to offer, call (843) 568-3222 or (800) 673-0609, or visit www.natureadventuresoutfitters.com.

by Brian Sherman