Georgia: Tybee Pier & Fort Pulaski

Day 317
May 23, 2016
No Boat Travel

After learning the location of the accommodations the "kids" were using while in Savannah, we decided that it would be faster to get to their place by taking the ferry to the Marriott stop and disembarking there. Besides dropping us closer to their place, it gave us a chance to walk through the historic Savannah waterfront along the way.

Savannah Belles Ferry Stop

Historic Savannah Waterfront

Cobblestone Streets
(note the walkways from the houses over the street)

Stairs up to the street 

The activities chosen for the day consisted of two parts - the beach and a fort. We headed for Tybee and the beach first. Before hitting the surf, we decided on breakfast / brunch at a cozy restaurant. It looked like a real "hole in the wall", but the food was excellent. The restaurant came recommended by Devon's mother who had visited Savannah recently.

After enjoying a good and filling meal, we hit the beach. Lillian needed to be pushed in the stroller so Clark took her for a walk while the rest of us worked our way toward the surf. The sand on the beach was so hot it felt like it was scorching the bottom of my bare feet, so I did something I would not normally do. I rented a beach umbrella that came with two lounge chairs. As I sat in the comfort of the shade from the umbrella, I decided it was some of the best money I have ever spent. Sierra appreciated it too. I had bought her a bucket and spade for the beach. She sat on the much cooler shaded sand and worked with her mother building a sand castle.

Clark's view of the beach from the pier while pushing Lillian
in her stroller

I did not plan well as we ended up at the beach without bathing suits for Clark and myself. Everyone else knew to bring swimwear. The rest of our family took turns taking dips in the ocean.

Jeff, Devon and Sierra with her new kick board from
Aunt Heather and Uncle Chris

After a couple of hours at the beach, we decided it was time for part two of today's activities and headed to Fort Pulaski for some history. Immediately upon arriving at the fort my mood changed to be quite somber. The first scene we came upon was the cemetery and this tribute to those who died at the fort.

The fort held numerous prisoners during the war. Barred cells made up a significant portion of one of the fort's walls.

Surprisingly (to me), the fort had a moat and a drawbridge. I thought only castles had those features.

Walking across the drawbridge to enter fort

 Many cannons were on display including the one below with a marker next to it describing how the end was blasted off and the soldiers working this cannon were killed in the blast.

Broken Cannon

We climbed to the upper level and walked around and see the various cannons.

Looking down on the courtyard from on high.
Each archway is the entry to a room - most with cannons to fire.
A similar-sized and shaped area next to this provided the none-too-comfortable
cells for war prisoners.

Spying on Heather, Chris, and Lillian below

Checking out the Earthworks around the fort

Ev, Sierra, Jeff and Devon posing by a cannon

A lot of time, effort and money has been spent on the upkeep of this fort to provide a very real feel for life in the fort during the Civil War.

Sample furnishings decorated parts of the fort
to show how the soldiers lived

The story behind Fort Pulaski’s surrender from the Confederates to the Union army is an interesting one. The south believed that they were safe within the walls of the fort because cannon balls of the day could not travel the distance required to do harm to the fort. However, the Union army had a new-shaped, pointed form of shell. An officer of the Union army politely requested the surrender of the fort from the Confederates. The Confederates scoffed at them and refused believing themselves safe.

5275 shells and 30 hours later the Confederates surrendered the fort. The shells hitting the wall of the fort had broken through, and one that went across the full width of the fort landed next to the ammunition magazine. The commander in charge knew that if that shell had been a few feet to the right, the fort would have been blown to bits. He decided not to wait for another one to make it across the fort. Large sections of the fort still show the shell-ravaged walls and the damage sustained during the Union attack on the fort.

Looking closely in the area where bricks were blasted away
above the cannon, one can see a shell still embedded in the wall
of the fort left over from the Civil War.

After our tour of the fort and grounds, we all went to dinner together at a nearby restaurant. We decided that since we had six adults and 2 small children, we should eat early to get a table. Based on the outside appearance of the restaurant, I did not expect much; however, the inside was decorated nicely and the food was very good.

Once again we passed on dessert at the restaurant as the "kids" had heard that we should try Lulu's Chocolate Bar. We drove back to their place, left the car, and walked around the city until we found Lulu's and then sat down to a sweet treat. Since chocolate does not agree with me, I could not eat many of the delicious looking items; however, I did find a lovely piece of pecan pie a la mode as did my son Jeff who is also not a chocolate fan. After dessert we parted ways with Clark and I heading for the ferry back to our boat and the "kids" heading for their lodgings.

Tomorrow the "kids" will be on their way to Charleston, S.C. by car while we will make our way by boat to beautiful Beaufort, S.C.