Prime 11

Off to Charleston!

Posted on by Jackie Schanz
Our route into Charleston

Our journey today will take us 45 miles through the ICW to Ashley Marina in Charleston. Our luck regarding the nice weather ran out today. Whether I jinxed it, or we had it coming, I do not know. But our journey today was stormy with little visibility making for a slow go.

Getting darker out
I’m no meteorologist, but I predict a storm.

Captain Tom relies heavily on the radar to see other boats and stay on course. The only other crazies out here are some hardy sail boaters. Although a unique vessel does catch our attention.

Perhaps one of the weirdest ships we have ever seen on the water. This barge is known as “Point Counterpoint II”. She is 195 feet in length with a beam of 38 feet. She is the only vessel of its kind in the world boasting of a 75 foot wide stage with a retractable acoustical shell that rises for performances. She has been present at major events all over the world and has traveled over 500,000 miles. She will eventually make her way to her new home in Philadelphia. She is docked here apparently for repairs and renovations.
A picture of her during a performance

We make it into Charleston just as the weather clears. The rainy stormy conditions made for a long day.

Ashley Marina

We will spend the next couple of days seeing the sights of Charleston. First stop, of course, is the famed carriage ride.

The most interesting fact of the tour…our strong work horse was named Ellwood!

I wasn’t overly impressed with our tour quite truthfully. You are assigned one of 5 possible routes, so perhaps we got the less impressive one. We did see many churches and cemeteries. With over 400 churches and 121 cemeteries, I now understand the nickname “The Holy City” for Charleston.

St. Matthews Lutheran Church all lit up at night. Like many Lutheran Churches, their door is painted red, representing the blood of Christ and our salvation and sanctuary from evil.
St. Philip’s Episcopal Church Cemetery.
An interesting fact is that all graveyards are cemeteries but not all cemeteries are graveyards. To be considered a graveyard, the burial ground must be part of a church’s land. A little lesson in the proper usage of the English words!

And of course we visited Fort Sumter and The Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon.

Fort Sumter and the ferry that takes you there.
Since we were the first ferry of the day, we had the honor of raising the 33 star flag; one star for every state then in the Union. This flag is the one that flew over Ft. Sumter on April 12-13, the beginning of the Civil War, when the Confederate forces bombarded the fort. On April 14th, the federal forces surrendered. Fort Sumter remained a confederate stronghold for 587 days.
Completed in 1771, The Old Exchange was originally the property of the British. During the American revolution, the bottom floor of the exchange became a dungeon for prisoners of war. Here they were subjected to its harsh confines.
Captain Tom in the dungeon

Charleston is an unique, diverse and historical city with wonderful restaurants (not one bad meal), plentiful shopping, from the local vendor city market to the high end and well known retailers at Charleston Place Mall, and likely a tour or museum for any interest you might have. Combined with the cobblestone streets and the large old beautiful homes interspersed throughout, the charm of the city is undeniable and a lovely place to visit.

If there is one thing to criticize about Charleston, it would be the state of their sidewalks! They are definitely a tripping hazard and I ,unfortunately, became a victim of their danger. So, another foot injury in my already checkered past of broken foot bones.

I’m much safer sitting!

Our last night in Charleston, we decide to skip the pricey meal and uber costs by chilling on the boat. We will grill some steaks, play our addiction, Rummikub, drink some wine, and watch the sunset. A PERFECT ENDING! Tomorrow we head to Georgetown, SC.

Goodnight to all!

2 thoughts on “Off to Charleston!”

  1. Thanks for great pictures of storm clouds and historic Charleston. Charleston is a very interesting town. We visited there once including some nearby plantations. For me the memory of slavery hangs over the place and tarnishes the beautiful buildings. But still a place every American should see.
    Cousin David

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *