Charleston, SC

While staying in Mt Pleasant outside of Charleston, I took a nature day to wander.

First, I went to St John's Island to see the Angel Oak. My friend in Savannah had suggested Angel Oak after we saw a smaller version there. Angel Oak is estimated to be 300-400 years old. The circumference of the Live Oak's trunk is 25 feet. I took dozens of pictures, but posted this one because the people at the base provide some scale so you can see just how huge this magical tree is. Being under the canopy was so calming, I found a bench and read for an hour (who have I become?!?). It was easy to imagine families picnicking in its shade decades or even centuries before me. What a great visit!

Afterward, I made my way to Sullivan's Island (of course!). Visiting the island was suggested by friend of mine from Lake Forest, IL. The beach and town there are both beautiful and very low key. The main claim to fame of the island is that Edgar Alan Poe lived there for about a year. It is alleged that he used the island as a set for at least three of his stories: “The Gold Bug,” “The Balloon Hoax” and “The Oblong Box.”

Poe wrote about Sullivan's Island: “This island is a very singular one. It consists of little else than the sea sand and is about three miles long. Its breadth at no point exceeds a quarter of a mile. It is separated from the mainland by a scarcely perceptible creek, oozing its way through a wilderness of reeds and slime, a favorite resort of the marsh hen." Despite Poe's point of view, with its proximity to Isle of Palms, real estate on Sullivan's Island is as pricey as the Angel Oak is wide.

A stroll on the beach was the prefect end to a chill-laxing nature day in Charleston, SC.