Charleston, South Carolina---

Well, it looks like it has happened again....I am slow updating this blog.

It only took a few hours to make the trip from Savannah, Georgia, to North Charleston, South Carolina, the location of Charleston AFB. Since we had to leave our campsite in Georgia before eight a.m., we got on the road very early! We took I-95 north and stopped at the South Carolina Welcome Center. It was not open, so we sat back and enjoyed breakfast in Sol while waiting for the opening. We picked up brochures for the areas of South Carolina that we would be visiting and then we got back on the road.

Once we arrived at Charleston AFB, we were assigned the last full hook-up site! If we had arrived any later, we would have gotten a water and electric site since those were the overflow sites.

We spent the afternoon going over our brochures and planning our stay in the Charleston area. The following day we drove to the visitor's center in Charleston. We decided to spend the day walking through the historic district. I always enjoy seeing the old houses with the main entrances on courtyards, instead of facing the street.

Of course, some are more elaborate than others.

 It was a breezy day, but we enjoyed our stroll along the river.

After our walk down King Street to the battery, we walked back to Market Street to stroll the marketplace. Near the marketplace we spied an escape room. Unfortunately, it didn't open until much later in the day.

 We had a late lunch in an old pub and then headed back to the car and Sol.

Our next adventure took us to Fort Sumter. We have been to Charleston several times, but the weather was not nice enough on those trips for us to brave the ferry trip to the historic fort. This time, the weather cooperated! This sign is at the entrance to the museum and ticket office for the ferry.

 The ride out to Fort Sumter was interesting. The land you see beyond the fort's walls is the result of dredging the river to make it more accessible for large ships. During the Revolutionary War, the fort had water all around it.

 This view from the fort gives more of an idea as to how the fort defended Charleston, keeping ships away from the harbor.

We returned to Sol after our Fort Sumter trip. It was time to plan our adventure to Francis Marion National Forest. We drove to the visitor center to check out the hikes and to get directions to the campgrounds. We walked the nature loop around the visitor center and viewed the red wolves the forest service it trying breed. I thought we had pictures of the wolves, but evidently we didn't take any pictures this day. We enjoyed our hike and then moved a few miles further north to Buck Hall Recreation Area. It is on the coast and has RV campsites with not hook-ups. Bob checked on-line and found that it is booked for the spring camping season. It looked like a nice place to stay. We parked in the day use area and hiked a portion of Palmetto Trail. This trail takes you from the mountains in northwest South Carolina to the Atlantic Ocean.

We drove a different route back to our campground, making a stop at Snafu, a local craft brewery in North Charleston. The beers were good and it was a nice break after our hiking.

Our next adventure took us to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens located on Ashley River.  The plantation was originally settled in 1676. The house was rebuilt after the Civil War.

We hiked around the historic rice fields and enjoyed the spring blossoms on Japanese magnolias and  azaleas.

 Our stay in the Charleston area was coming to a close. It was time to take care of chores like laundry and grocery shopping before continuing our trip.