Welcome to Pelican Perch, a tranquil, beachfront retreat on private Harbor Island. Your beautifully renovated, spacious duplex is located on the quiet Pelican Point cul-de-sac. Enjoy the sunrise with your morning coffee on one of the three back decks, each with unobstructed views of the ocean and dunes. Sit out front for a view of the tidal marsh and flocks of migrating birds searching for their own breakfast.
High-speed wifi lets you work remotely, and stream videos on the large LCD flatscreen TV in the living room. The two first floor master bedrooms each have their own bath and tv. Two more bedrooms and another full bath upstairs create comfortable sleeping space for nine guests. Pelican Perch is beautifully decorated. All rooms have sweeping views of the ocean or the tidal marsh. Our fully-equipped kitchen (We love to cook!) has all the appliances you may want, including a Keurig coffee maker. There’s also a gas grill on the private back deck (please note: propane refills are responsibility and at the cost of the guest), and a large umbrella-shaded table for family meals outside.
Harbor Island is private, accessible only to residents and guests, so it’s never busy, even in the summer or on holidays. Our beach is quiet and protected, with very calm waters, the perfect place for children to swim safely, and for adults to enjoy a peaceful float. When the tide goes out, the tidal pools are full of unexpected treasures: fish, shrimp, small crabs and shells abound! We have beach umbrellas, chairs, sand toys, fishing poles and cast nets to help you make the most of our beach.
Walk along one of the boardwalks through the dunes to the beach, or take the golf cart to any beach entrance. Enjoy the short cart ride to the Harbor Island Beach & Racquet Club, with an Olympic-sized pool overlooking the Harbor River, a kiddie wading pool, sand volleyball court, hard surface tennis courts, and fitness center. There’s a basketball court and a golf practice area by the Club. A short drive will take you to docks for fishing and crabbing. The Mainline Market at the entrance to Harbor Island sells everything you could want for fishing as well as fresh-caught seafood and other sundries.
Use the golf cart to explore the island. Visit the rookeries that house thousands of egrets, herons, and their fledglings. Walk the beach and sandbar, where you’ll find a rotating cast of bird species throughout the seasons. Harbor Island is an important resting place for egrets, herons, ospreys, pelicans, gulls and skimmers, as well as threatened species such as Wilson’s Plover and the Redbird. You’ll find a pamphlet in the house to help identify them.
Guests have rights to a season pass to adjoining Hunting Island State Park. Hunting Island has miles of unspoiled beaches, where you might be the only person to make footprints in the sand that day. Visit the “Boneyard,” a beach of uniquely-haunting and ever-changing splendor. Explore miles of well-marked hiking trails and boardwalks through natural forests and marshland. Visit the Nature Center, where staff will gladly teach you more about the land and life. May through October you can see Loggerhead sea turtle nests on both Harbor and Hunting Islands, carefully guarded by our Island Turtle Program volunteers. With luck, you may even see hatchlings make their way across the sand to their new lives in the sea.
If you feel like venturing off the island, look for the beautiful, hand-woven baskets for sale along the roadside, crafted by local Gullah residents. These sea islands are part of the Gullah Geechee corridor. St. Helena offers many historic places to visit such as the Penn Center, one of the first schools for the children of freed slaves, and where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. drafted his famous “I have a dream” speech. Stroll through nearby historic Beaufort, a lovely antebellum town, with its beautiful mansions and more than 50 historic buildings. The entire downtown has been designated an historic district, as it is one of the few Southern towns that survived the Civil War. Its tree-lined streets with hanging moss are full of quaint shops, restaurants, and coffee houses. On the way home Frogmore is a wonderful stop with its colorful shops, art galleries, and restaurants where you can enjoy authentic local food.
Relax on the screened-in porch in the evening. Feel the fresh ocean breezes as the sun and sky shift colors in a show that never fails to dazzle. Watch squadrons of Pelicans dive from the sky to the sea for their evening meal. See them skim the surface of the water, silhouetted against the fading evening light, on their way to their sandbar roost for the night, their wingtips barely clearing the sea as they show-off their low altitude mastery.
Pelican Perch is a place of true tranquility and repose. It is our happy place, and we hope it’s yours too!
Renters must be over 25 years of age to reserve our property.
*3.5 % Booking fee added to total. Vehicle gate pass fees are per vehicle, set by the Island and subject to change. Rates: day pass $25; 2 nights $35; 3 nights $45; 4 nights $55; 5 nights $65; 6 nights $75; 7 nights $85;, 8-30 nights $140; 31-365 nights $215. Starter supplies (1-3 nights) provided of paper towels, dishwasher detergent, trash bags, toilet tissue, hand soap.
*Please note that golf cart rentals are NOT permitted for renters per the Harbor Island rules. Personal golf carts also can NOT be brought onto the island per the rules.
*Disclaimer: This property is not a pet friendly rental. However, please note that service animals or owner's pets may have been on the premises at some time. Please keep this in mind when booking for guests that may be allergic to animals.
*Property furnishings are subject to change and may not reflect the property pictures. This material is based upon information, which we consider reliable, but because it has been supplied by third parties, we cannot represent that it is accurate or complete, and it should not be relied upon as such.