Only in Beaufort: Cypress Wetlands a hidden cathedral of nature

Sometimes, the best things are the hidden ones, those found tucked away off a beaten path know only to locals or true devotees.

Their appearance can deceive us since they sometimes don't look like much from the outside.

They can be places to eat or drink or worship God.

Or, in this case, nature.

The Cypress Wetlands is such a place, hidden in plain sight in Port Royal behind the fire station. Surrounded by houses and businesses, it's a stand-alone nature preserve in the heart of town.

It serves two obvious purposes. The wetlands are a habitat for any number of freshwater creatures. It is also a place to catch stormwater runoff from downtown Port Royal.

Birds of all types -- wrens, egrets, herons and hawks -- have found a home there.

They are not alone.

On most days, their every move is plotted and captured by amateur ornithologists and photographers. Something about the place tends to effect the observers. Some of them, strangely, dress in safari gear. While the trails and boardwalks are relatively safe, it is all very jungle-like and it apparently never hurts to look the part.

There is one wetland residents to be wary of, though. Alligators bask in the sun there, as they do in many fresh-water places in South Carolina. And where there are gators, there are rumors. Some folks talk about a massive eight or nine-footer that lurks just below the surface of the water, always watching and always hungry. But most of those that show their scales out of the water are of the smaller variety. Small or not, they're wild animals and signs warning that "a fed gator is a dead gator" abound.

Rounding out the reptile regime are box turtles, snakes and bullfrogs, giving the swarms of floating dragonflies a choice of landing pads.

Don't expect the quiet and solitude of nature, though.

The birds and frogs can get rowdy, the songs, chirps and croaks combining for one of nature's best impromptu musical performances, less symphony orchestra than free-form jazz band. Add in the crickets and cicadas and you have hundreds of different notes and no conductor to keep time or rhythm.

Not that all that racket bothers most visitors.

"I can't stay away from that place," said local writer Margaret Evans. "It's my other church. No matter what's going on in my life, or in this crazy world, the Cypress Wetlands trail just makes everything better. It restores me. It brings me peace."

And the opportunity to hear a glorious natural choir.

Ryan Copeland is a Beaufort native. He can be reached at rlcopeland@hargray.com.

This story was originally published May 9, 2015 at 1:31 PM with the headline "Only in Beaufort: Cypress Wetlands a hidden cathedral of nature."