Fort Sumter and Angel Oak Tree

Good  night to sleep because temperature got down to 38 degrees.  We turned on the furnace to keep the chill out of the air. Sandy found the heat vent in the bedroom and slept next to it.  The rain of yesterday was forgotten.  The sky was blue and the sun shinning.  Our first stop was Ft Sumter.  We put Liberty Square in the GPS and were on our way.  When we reached the waterfront, we lost internet service and had to dig out a map to complete the drive.  We just made the 9:30 boat tour.

 The sun cooperated in making this picture of the Arthur Revenel Bridge possible.  The supporting cables are more visible.  It is a beautiful bridge.   

This is the USS Yorktown.  Like the USS Midway in San Diego, it is open for public viewing.

 

Castle Pinckney is a small masonry fort in Charleston Harbor constructed by the Federal government in 1810.  It was used by the Confederates as an artillery location.

Our first view of Fort Sumter.  

Charleston Harbor is a very busy port.  This is a container ship entering the harbor.  We saw other ships entering and leaving.

We got to the fort just in time for the flag raising ceremony.

The original flag that flew over the fort when the Federal troops were in control.

Interior of the fort.  The Confederates took over the fort from the Federal troops in April 1861.  For the next four years, Federal troops tried to retake the fort but were not able to do so.  Many bombardments by Federal troops and even ironclads failed to dislodge the Confederates.  However, the fort was nearly demolished.  As Gen Sherman's troops advanced from Savannah to Charleston, Confederates evacuated the fort in February, 1865 and the Federals finally regained control of the fort.  During WWII antiaircraft guns were installed.  In 1947 the fort was transferred to the National Park Service.  What a history!

Our ferry.

Cruise ships use the harbor.

Water taxis are busy in the harbor.

We saw brown pelicans and a dolphin.

From the fort we drove outside Charleston to see Angel Oak Tree.  It was a beautiful drive and the sight of the huge live oak tree was awesome.

It is impossible to see from these pictures how big this tree is so here are some facts.  It is 65 feet tall and 25 feet in circumference.  It provides 17,000 square feet of shade.  Its largest limb is 11 feet in circumference and 89 feet long.

I thought the tree was named "angel" because of its spreading limbs like angel wings.  I found out that the tree was on property owned by a man whose last name was Angel.  It is know as Angel Oak Tree.  It was a wonderful way to end our day. 

We got back to camp around 3:00 p.m. and decided to load the car in preparation for leaving tomorrow.  We have over 300 miles to make tomorrow so loading the car is one less thing we will have to do.  It was a beautiful day.  It is supposed to be cold again tonight.  Hopefully, it will warm up.