Harbor Tour

We had about four days to spend in Charleston, so we decided to start out by doing a harbor tour on the Carolina Belle. It was so hot on the day we decided to go, but luckily with the breeze over the harbor, it was at least 10 degrees cooler on the water.

We saw Fort Sumter - where the Civil War began in 1861. I did not actually know prior to this tour that it was a tiny little island fort unattached to land.

Fort Moultrie (below) played a role in the Revolutionary War, but was then abandoned in favor of Fort Sumter during the Civil War since Fort Sumter was more easily defended.

Another island in the harbor was apparently the final resting place for pirates captured and sentenced to death. They were hanged and then buried shallowly on the shore (according to our guide). Charleston has a pretty rich history concerning pirates - Blackbeard blockaded Charleston in the early 1700s.

The harbor is also home to military ships, so we got to see submarines and even an aircraft carrier, the Yorktown (below).

We were also taken out under the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge which is fairly new to Charleston and connects the city to Mt. Pleasant.

The Charleston skyline from the water was beautiful, as were all the houses that lined the shores of the city. While we were out there, we saw a tug boat called Katherine pulling a giant barge out to sea. I only took a picture because we share a name :)

Great way to spend the morning seeing parts of the city that you can't see on land. Our tour guide was pretty good, as well!