Things to Do in North Charleston

With their fleet of Robinson R22 utility helicopters, the aviators at Charleston Helicopters take joy in breaking the laws of gravity. They whisk passengers high above Charleston for flight lessons and photo tours, and while passing over the harbor, guests can snap shots of the Battery, Shem Creek, and various forts. Viewers may also zoom over the Charleston skyline to admire buildings soaked in red-and-orange sunsets and the flickering lights of surrounding towns. Many of Charleston Helicopters's tours invite guests to toast airborne triumphs upon landing with champagne, instilling an extra sense of victory without having to drag race passing geese.

Designed to look like an island retreat, Whirlin’ Waters Adventure Waterpark is more than just a place to beat the heat. It’s a fun-filled playground complete with slides, squirt guns, and a wave pool. The Big Splash Tree House is outfitted with 66 interactive features, including a giant bucket that drenches visitors with more than 1,000 gallons of water. The Tubular Twister sends riders shooting down a trio of 300-foot slides, while the Big Kahuna recreates the ocean’s waves in a 27,000-square foot pool. Little ones can play in gentler areas such as Lily Pad Lagoon and Otter Bay, which has a six-lane racer slide. In between aquatic activities, you can relax in the lazy river or stop by the concession stands for a quick bite.

Disguised by a helmet and mask, a quick figure darts past paint-splattered woodland trees, diving into a trench before blasting a nearby opponent with brightly colored marker fire. On nine fields spread across 60 acres of land, other paintballers similarly dart, dive, and duck behind tubes and barrels in their pursuit of the opposing team's flag. Referees ensure that competitors practice safe and fair play in each bout, and an optional chronograph range makes sure each rental or player-supplied marker fires at a safe velocity. In addition to accommodating participants on its courses, Paintball Charleston's store supplies gear such as CCM markers and matching barrels with the same Hello Kitty decals on them.

Since 1982, Perry Green has been putting his PGA membership to good use, hosting private and group golf lessons, camps, and clinics for all ages. His innate golfing expertise, which netted him the 2005 Illinois PGA Senior Masters Championship, is bolstered by a video-analysis system that allows him to examine every aspect of his students' form and point out faults in the arc of their swing or the creases in their chinos.

Named the South Carolina Golf Course of the Year by the South Carolina Golf Course Owners Association in 2010, Legend Oaks' 18-hole course winds through 7,011 yards of pristine Lowcountry terrain. As guests approach the club, an avenue lined by 300-year-old oak trees gives way to the emerald roof and wraparound porch of the plantation-style clubhouse, a site that recalls centuries of rustic Southern gentility. Wetlands, oaks, and fragrant pines buttress every hole across the club's picturesque par 72, ensnaring wayward golf balls. The par 4 14th hole exemplifies how course designer Scott Pool incorporated natural features into a treacherous but breathtaking layout, positioning water hazards directly in front of the tee box, a grove of pines on the right side of the fairway, and a green fortified by bunkers and picketing mashie niblicks from a bygone era. Golf carts with built-in GPS devices help clubbers traverse the emerald labyrinth, computing yardages from players' lies to the target pin, detailing nearby obstacles, and tracking every untrustworthy pelican within a five-mile radius.

Steps from the golf course, four hard-surface tennis courts and a swimming pool with a shaded gazebo round out the club's outdoor amenities. Guests can also make their way to the clubhouse for a splendid dining experience at Bistro One 18, where a diverse menu features everything from hot dogs to chicken marsala to sautéed driving-range balls.

Course at a Glance:

• Designed by Scott Pool
• 18-hole, par 72 course
• Length of 7,011 yards from farthest tees
• Course rating of 73.5 from farthest tees
• Slope rating of 132 from farthest tees
• Five tee options
• See the scorecard

It was February 17, 1864. The USS Housatonic floated in Charleston Harbor atop calm, cold waters. Below the surface, a group of Confederate soldiers sweated bullets as they cranked the propellers of the H. L. Hunley, speeding toward the Union's Housatonic on a historic mission: they would become the first submarine crew ever to sink an enemy ship. A 135-pound torpedo struck the Housatonic's stern, detonating a fiery explosion that sank the vessel within minutes. The Hunley then surfaced just long enough for the crew to flash a blue magnesium light, signaling to fellow forces on the shore that the mission succeeded and the submarine would return. And it did—but not until almost 140 years later, when it was raised from the harbor's sandy bottom on August 8, 2000, after author Clive Cussler discovered the wreck intact.

Today, the leaders of the nonprofit H. L. Hunley Submarine seek to conserve, restore, and ultimately exhibit this historic vessel, as well as solve the mystery of how it completed its mission only to vanish moments later. They welcome visitors to see the submarine in its current condition—within a 90,000-gallon conservation tank—and educate guests on the vessel's many details. Guides walk guests through features such as the manual-propulsion system and automatic moon roof, and illuminate exhibits such as a lifesize model from the TNT movie The Hunley.