Hilton Head lifeguards dish on 2016 season

The 2016 tourism season is wrapping up and many Hilton Head Island lifeguards are heading back home. As things wrapped up, they took a moment this week to reflect on the good, bad and funny of the 2016 tourism season.

1. Of sand and sewage

A rusted pipe on the beach — must be oil. That is one of the many conclusions some tourists jump to about the Town of Hilton Head Island’s renourishment project. The project pumps sand from a dredge at sea to refill erosion on the town’s beaches.

Lifeguards manning those beaches say answering questions and teaching guests about the project has consumed a large portion of this summer.

Lifeguard Luke McGowan said a common question was — “Why is the sewage being pumped out to the water?”

2. The real poop on poop

From dog waste to diapers, lifeguards are always watching and know when that poop doesn’t quite make it to the trash. Sometimes it even ends up in some fairly curious places.

“I always like people who recycle poop,” Lifeguard Robert Murdock said about beachgoers who throw the waste where it shouldn’t be - in the recycling can.

3. Thar she blows

The job can be exciting and adventurous, such as the two times lifeguards rescued killer whale rafts this summer.

“It can be interesting how specific people can be about seeing a person waiving,” Mike Wagner, Hilton Head Beach Shore’s Operations Manager, said. “We get out there and it is a Shamu float.”

Like whale rafts, driftwood is another object that often is confused with a drowning person because of its color scheme.

4. Daring to bare it all

That beige colored swimwear might not be the fashion statement you are hoping to make. Sure, it will bring some attention from a lifeguard as they scan the crowd, but do you know why?

“You will scan and you think, wait, I have to make a double take because you think someone is naked,” Murdoch said.

5. Please don’t sing to the lifeguards

Singing to the lifeguards might seem like the perfect way to serenade but its unlikely you will receive that hopeful date at the end of their shift.

“A guy with a guitar once came up and ran around my chair,” Laine McIntyre said. “He then started playing a song. It was awkward because I had to continue watching the water.

Despite the fact that lifeguards jobs are to keep the public safe, delivering your best pick-up line while someone is working is never a good idea.

6. When dogs are behind the wheel

Creativity in interpreting town law is something some dog lovers excelled at this summer.

“One woman had a mini motorized remote control car,” McIntyre said. “Her dog was riding around in it. I told her she can’t have her dog on the beach. She said, ‘The dog isn’t on the beach, he is in the car.’”

Dogs are not allowed on Hilton Head beaches during certain times during tourist season.

Motorized vehicles are also banned from the beach at all times.

7. Don’t ask us

Sure, lifeguards may see a little more marine biology than the average tourist, but they aren’t marine biologists.

“Two to three times a day, people come up and ask ‘what is this,’” Murdoch said.

“I don’t know.”

With that said, the lifeguards do have a handy book people can use to identify fish or shells they find on the beach.

Sometimes, the marine questions leave lifeguards scratching their heads.

“One woman thought she caught “the jellyfish” ... that was stinging everyone,” Murdoch said.

8. So far away

You might get a name such as “Westin swimmer” if you spend your day at the beach swimming out further than is safe.

You also could become the star of radio chatter between the lifeguards. This is because they are concerned you won’t make it back to shore.

“It doesn’t matter how good of a swimmer you are,” McIntyre said. “If our staff is not allowed to swim out that far without someone else, you shouldn’t either.”

9. Salt water and electronics don’t mix

Want to keep your phone, camera, tablet?

Don’t take it into the ocean.

If its really cool, it might end up at the beach patrol office after it washes up days or weeks later, like the drone found by lifeguards this summer.

“If you lose it in the ocean, it is likely gone,” Wagner said.

10. Put down the phone and look around

Stop checking your phone, playing Pokomon go or taking more pictures than you need.

Relax and enjoy the natural setting around you that lifeguards make their second home.

“People will be taking pictures with friends and missing the dolphins swimming right behind them,” McIntyre said.

This story was originally published September 10, 2016 at 10:00 AM with the headline "Hilton Head lifeguards dish on 2016 season."