Had a wonderful couple days with my extended family in Sumter. I never did get a picture taken, so I borrowed one that was hanging on the wall. That little white dog (Violet) and I played a whole lot of tug-o-war and don’t be surprised if you see that little girl on the LPGA, or her daddy in a Bassmasters tournament of champions. See y’all again soon.

Sumter to Charleston is a fairly short ride so I decided to take Dawn’s advise and check out the Angel Oak just south of my end of day destination. This tree is HUGE. In the past it was thought that the tree was 1500 years old but more recent estimates are less than a third of that. Regardless though – dang big tree. And if trees could talk – this one would have some tales to tell. The Revolutionary and Civil Wars for sure, but here’s something you likely didn’t know. Back in late May, 1718 Edward Teach, more commonly known as Blackbeard lead a multi day siege of Charleston. As part of the attack his pirates took some prisoners and the ransom paid was a chest of medical supplies.

It is plenty warm down here not to mention the humidity. I was thinking about doing some more exploring but my comfort level was getting lower by the second so I headed for a more controlled climate – inside my friend’s house over on the north side of town.

The ride down from Sumter wasn’t a long one so I stayed on the back roads all the way until I got close to Charleston. Gotta get off city surface streets at any cost.