Fort Pulaski - Part I

Leaving my sister's place last week we headed to Savannah, Georgia.  The evening we arrived we drove through the city towards Fort Pulaski National Monument, on the seaward side of town.

We knew we wanted to take time to go through the fort, but due to a desire to avoid Atlanta traffic we hadn't gotten as early of a start in the morning as we had originally hoped.

We arrived in town less than an hour before the fort closed, but we still figured it was worth stopping by.  Our last Interagency Annual Pass had expired and while we'd saved up money for a new one we hadn't had a chance to purchase one yet.  Passes are only $80 and last for over 12 months (through the end of the month one year from when you buy it) and we always make sure we have one whenever we're travelling so that we can use it for access to any National Parks site we go to.  So once we arrived we bought our pass and briefly checked out the visitor center and the fort.

 A new bridge is being built right next to the old one, so the old one is down to one lane of traffic and regulated by a stoplight.

The visitor center was closed (due to repairs from hurricane damage I believe), but they had quite nice portable restrooms on-site.

The next morning when we arrived there was only one car waiting, but while we pulled off to the side other cars just waited in line, so we drove around and joined the end of the line.  A couple minutes after 9:00 we showed our pass and drove on to the bridge.

The fort is located on Cockspur Island in the middle of the Savannah River so that it could guard the approaches to the city.

The visitor center is closed as I mentioned above, but I heard signs of work from inside, so hopefully it will open up again soon.  I'd like to see what it has to offer the next time we're in the area.

A small cemetery is located outside of the fort.

Controlling tidal flow over the island was a critical first step in the construction of Fort Pulaski,  A complex system of ditches and dikes drain water away from the fort.  Designed in 1829 by young Army engineer Lieutenant Robert E. Lee, the system created and maintained dry land to support the massive fort.
~exhibit signage

The canal and moat carried supply barges to the fort during its construction and operation.  The moat feeder canal is still used to flush and maintain the moat.
~exhibit signage

The moat is seven feet deep.  As you walk up to the fort you cross over the moat into the outer area called the demilune (French for "half-moon") that protects the entrance.  The area now consists of earthen mounds that could be used to protect other materials in vaulted chambers.

 You can see several recessed doorways in the earthen mounds.

 I walked down the steps with the girls and out the other side.

We even found a large vaulted chamber.

View to the left as you approach the drawbridge.

View to the right.

This is a 360° view just outside the drawbridge.

 The girls really liked the idea of crossing over a drawbridge into the fort.

This 360° view is from the center of the ground inside the fort.

Somebody had a great idea when it came to theming the fort's trash and recycling barrels.

That's all I have time for now.  Next time I'll cover the walk up to the top of the fort's walls and walking around.

~Matt