I forgot my Fanny-Pak

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! We had a fairly decent weekend... Today we're just winding down, getting the laundry done, rooms cleaned up... etc etc etc [I'm not sure why but I always seem to get in these massive cleaning moods on Sundays. Aren't Sundays supposed to be for relaxing??].

Yesterday we decided to head out to Fort Pickens in Pensacola. We've been living here for almost 10yrs now and have never visited this Fort before and me being the oober nerdy history buff that I am [for reals] I was super excited to go on this little adventure.

Just a little background- Fort Pickens was built in 1834 and was used to defend Pensacola Bay during the Civil War AND... it was one of only 4 Forts in the South that was never occupied by Confederate troops. As the years passed 10 concrete gun batteries were built and used through the 1940's. By the end of World War II the Army abandoned the Fort and it became part of a Florida State Park until it was turned into the Gulf Islands National Seashore in 1971.

When you first walk in, it's all open. The entire fort is in the shape of a 'Star' and around the inside edges were areas that used to house cannons.

Than you walk up the stairs to the tops of the Fort.

And the view overlooks the Gulf of Mexico.

It was such a beautiful day!

Back down the stairs we go!

Jayden was slowly creeping down the insides of the Fort walls. The long narrow path creeped him out a bit I think... as it did me!

The other side of the Fort had more 'inner' rooms that just went around in circles and around corner after corner. It felt like a maze of brick.

Reminds me of a window you would see in a Medieval Castle, doesn't it?

Apparently Civil War soldiers had a sense of humor.... HA! ;)

More long and narrow paths where artillery used to be.

Than we walked outside to go to another corner of the fort and this was off to the side. It was pitch black and im not sure how far it went down.

After a good 5mins adjusting the settings on my camera [I don't use flash], I was able to snap this pic once inside the long tunnel and it just went on and on.

I walked a little more and faced the opening to take this picture. I'm not sure how far that tunnel went but it was creepy and oh so quiet!

Back inside we go!

This led to a large open room, atop those stairs. It had two open windows.

Another room inside the Fort.

The architecture just amazes me. To think someone that long ago placed these bricks by hand... The history behind just one simple brick super excites me!

I'm happy to report that Jayden had a blast! :)

So there is the tour of Fort Pickens. It was such a beautiful day and it was nice to get out of the house, just the 3 of us. Fort Pickens is about a 45min. drive west from where we live so it wasn't that bad... we took the scenic route and drove down the long narrow stretch of road that goes along the Gulf and the Sound is on the right. I can see us making another trip here again in the future. Maybe bring some bikes because they have a large bike path and some walking trails!