www.ExploreCharleston.net

The photographs for this trip can be found here in the photo gallery.

Day 1
We only hit one location Thursday evening: Sullivan's Island at sunset. I love the sunset from here. This area is around Fort Moultrie at the entrance to Charleston Harbor.

Day 2
This was definitely what I call a go-go-go day.

We started out by driving around Mount Pleasant and stumbled across the old Pitt Street Bridge that used to connect to Sullivan's Island. The Pitt Street bridge offers a very nice view of the surrounding marsh and inter-coastal waterway.

We then visited Magnolia Plantation, which we discovered is owned by the Drayton family. We went to Drayton Hall two years ago. I never thought that a swamp garden would look nice until I saw Magnolia Plantation.

We then drove towards Kiawah Island, but didn't actually visit it. The coolest thing we saw today was the Angel Oak, which is an estimated 1,400 year old Oak Tree on John's Island. It reaches 65 feet tall, 25.5 feet wide and shade area 17,000 square feet. The largest limb is 89 feet long. You have to see this tree to believe it.

Next came Folly Beach, mostly to see the Morris Island Lighthouse. We got to see a large number of surfers riding the waves. I took several photos of them. On the way back to the hotel in Mount Pleasant, Steven took several pictures of the new bridge as we crossed under and next to it.

We ate ribs at Sticky Fingers, then wandered for an hour and half, finding our way to Waterfront Park. There was a nice, relaxing rest while we enjoyed the strong breeze blowing off the bay.

We're planning to tour the USS Yorktown, the Charleston Museum, and wander downtown for tomorrow.

Day 3
We started the day at Patriots Point with the USS Yorktown Aircraft Carrier, the USS Laffey Destroyer, and the USS Clagamore submarine. We didn't have time to see the USCG Ingham, a Coast Guard vesselWe spent about 2 and a half hours walking the ships.

After a cheap lunch, we headed downtown to the Charleston Museum. They didn't allow cameras, which was disappointing. We then went down to The Battery for a little while and then wandered down Legare, King, Meeting, and East Bay Streets.

We went to RB's Seafood Restaurant on Shem Creak in Mount Pleasant. I stuffed myself with The Ultimate Combo. It including fried oysters, scallops, shrimp, flounder, and a baked potato Happy tummy followed.

We're heading to Isle of Palms beach in the morning, before it gets too hot. I plan to stop into Port City Java for a bit afterwards, then we should be heading back to Athens around 2-3pm.

Day 4
We started the day by going to the beach on Sullivan's Island, where we saw several dogs playing in the surf and the Charleston lighthouse. We returned to the hotel to wash the beach off, then went downtown one last time.

We popped into Port City Java, where I had a very tasty iced coffee...I can't seem to remember the name of it...or the one Steven had right now. There was an art show going on in Marion Square. We wandered around a bit through the market, then went looking for food. We had parked next to a pizza place called Andolini's. We decided to try it and it was awesome. It reminded me of a cross between Taco Stand and Mellow Mushroom in Athens. The mozzarella covered cheese sticks with marinara sauce were very good.