Once in a while, I get out and go someplace a little unusual. My family and I decided to go to the NASCAR Chase Race at Darlington Raceway, South Carolina. It was a great time and I learned a lot about Darlington and the town we stayed in, Florence!
1. Fly FLO. I love this airport! I simply couldn't believe it when I saw it. All 4 gates and the garage door that opens when there's a flight that comes in. It's amazing. This airport began in 1929, helped the postal service, was part of the military in WWII, and has endured. Since 1990, it has been updating and becoming quite the little regional airport. Do you fly American Airlines? I hope so. They're the only ones who fly here.
Oddly enough, this tiny airport has everything you need. They have a baggage claim, 4 boarding gates, ticket counter, restrooms, 4 car rental counters, a fire department in case of emergency, TSA, Homeland Security, Sheriff's Department presence, and one of each of the pieces of equipment you need to load, unload, fuel, and maintain the planes. They even have one set of stairs, since they have no jetway.
Just under 50,000 people come through this tiny airport each year. They have a library, mini market, business center, drone center, snacks to buy, and parking. It's amazing. The airport is also used by small planes, if you happen to have one. Anyway, some of the smallest commercial jets I've ever seen fly in there from American Eagle and it's quite an adventure.
https://flyflo.com/
https://www.facebook.com/flyflo.us/
https://aeronautics.sc.gov/airports/florence-rgnl-airport
https://www.expedia.com/lp/airports/flo/flights-from-florence-regional-airport
https://businessviewmagazine.com/florence-regional-airport/
2. The Mars Bluff Incident. This is the kind of history that I can never get enough of. This is such a quiet area of South Carolina that you wouldn't imagine anything much ever goes on there. Wrong! Back in 1958 our government was out messing around with a nuclear bomb of all things, on a training flight, and there was an incident.
The Air Force was flying through the area when there was a problem with some of the devices attached to a nuclear bomb they were transporting. Long story short; something jammed, one of the crew and the bomb fell onto the bay doors. It was a trainee, and he managed to stay in the plane. Not the bomb. Fortunately, the core was stored separately on the plane, but the bomb detonated in Mars Bluff. The crater is about 75 feet wide and 30 feet deep. It destroyed a local man's house in the blast, even though it was not nuclear. What a story!
Today, the crater still exists with some markers and such in the area. There's an exhibit about it at the local museum which was fascinating. We saw the trail that leads to the crater, but it looked like it might go through someone's personal property, so we didn't actually walk to it. This was the best story I'd heard of since I heard about the B-52 crash on Elephant Mountain in Greenville, Maine.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mars-bluff-crater
https://www.flocomuseum.org/featured-objects/mars-bluff-bomb/
https://www.islands.com/1725985/mars-bluff-atomic-crater-south-carolina-accidental-fascinating-blend-history-mystery/
https://supersabresociety.org/this_time_in_history/today-in-history-march-11-1958-b-47-accidently-drops-nuclear-bomb-on-house-in-mars-bluff-sc/
https://www.thestate.com/news/state/south-carolina/article290616594.html
3. The Waffle House. This is a time honored tradition when visiting a place that has one. This is a wonder created in 1955 in Avondale Estates, Georgia. They now have 2,000 locations in 25 states. They aren't in mine, so when I'm around one, I go at least once.
Waffle House is that fabulous 24 hour a day 365 day a year place where you can get breakfast anytime. They do have other food during the day, but breakfast is what they're famous for. And, you have to have a waffle. Just sayin'. Right now, they have a cinnamon crunch waffle that I tried and it is to die for.
But that's not the only reason to go to Waffle House. One of the things they're known for is being lively. To this day they will greet you with boisterous hospitality. The staff will smile and chat with everyone. You get that old time diner experience where they shout the order to the kitchen which is right in the main room. It's fun, delicious and always open. Never miss out on a Waffle House experience.
https://order.wafflehouse.com/menu/waffle-house-751
https://www.wafflehouse.com/
https://www.eater.com/2017/5/2/15471798/waffle-house-history-menu
https://dekalbhistory.org/blog-posts/waffle-house-history-a-dekalb-original/
https://wafflehousetracker.com/history
4. Florence, South Carolina. This was a truly interesting and delightful town. Actually, it's a city of 40,000 people, but it feels like a town. I was duly impressed by the airport alone, but there was so much more. This town went through an economic crisis. I don't know what it was, but they're on their way back. Wild guess; industry moved out or closed down.
It has a few colleges, including Francis Marion University which has been there since 1970 and has just under 5,000 students annually. Other things that keep the city going are the headquarters of QVC, a Honda plant, and a hub for Otis Elevator amongst other businesses. It is a county seat in the Pee Dee Region of the state. The city was founded in 1890 and has been there ever since. They have a hospital and medical center. They actually have a lot of things. You can see downtown in particular, a lot of unused buildings and can tell that the town had some tough times, but they're really coming back with a new lease on life.
We visited several businesses downtown and ate some great food throughout the city. They have a busy mall and all kinds of other shopping. As I said, they have an airport and a Buc-ee's to keep everyone busy. They have Florence Center for concerts and such. It's a very busy city these days, and the free museum is beautiful, nicely presented and a great place to visit.
Then, there's the other stuff. There are between 30 and 40 hotels in this town. They have their own short track for racing there and some minor league and college league sports. Twice a year, there's a NASCAR Race At Darlington and Florence is probably where you'll stay. We ran into race team employees at our hotel. It's a thriving spot these days in Florence. Do I recommend a stay there? They have an accidental bomb crater and a Buc-ee's. You need to check this place out.
https://www.cityofflorencesc.gov/
https://discoversouthcarolina.com/florence
https://visitflo.com/
https://peedeetourism.com/florence-county/
https://www.southernliving.com/florence-sc-8715659
5. Darlington Raceway, Darlington, South Carolina. It's "the track too tough to tame." It's been a racing venue for 75 years. It's history, meets, modern day, meets excitement. I don't go to many NASCAR races, but when my husband and son asked me if I wanted to meet up and go, I couldn't resist. This track is egg shaped. It's a 1 1/3 miles. It's one of the oldest existing venues in NASCAR. So, when you visit this one, you get history to go with your race.
We went to both the O'Reilly Series race on Saturday and the NASCAR Cup Chase Race on Sunday and it was fabulous. There was shopping for merch, there was a lot of food and drink, there were activities and trivia games, there were people everywhere, and there was noise. It was exciting and we had great seats right at the start/finish line. If you want to see a NASCAR race and you don't have the time or whatever to see a bunch of them; this may be the venue for you. It was a lot of fun and I would happily do that one again. If you go, make sure you get your tickets and your accommodations early. This place sells out.
https://www.darlingtonraceway.com/75th-anniversary/
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g54200-d1961300-Reviews-Darlington_Raceway-Darlington_South_Carolina.html
https://www.nascar.com/
https://www.nascar.com/standings/nascar-oreilly-auto-parts-series/
https://www.darlingtonraceway.com/
There you have it. If you ever thought about making that trek to Darlington, and by means of needing a place to stay and an airport; Florence, give it a try. We had a wonderful time, discovered a city I'd never given a single thought to visiting, and saw some great racing. One thing I did learn though. Don't take an umbrella to a NASCAR Race. They will confiscate it.
I will be posting some videos about my experiences on my YouTube Channel, "Adventures for Anyone with Terri Dixon." That's me!
https://www.youtube.com/@adventuresforanyone2026
Remember, always keep adventuring, always be willing to try something new, and Enjoy!
