Down an unremarkable and dusty gravel road in Johns Island, South Carolina, just a stone’s throw or two from the Circle K on Maybank Highway 700, lies a small, modest park, Angel Oak Park. A few port-a-potties are scrunched into one corner. An unassuming gift shop sits near the entrance. There are no drinking fountains, no swing sets, nor grassy play areas that are generally expected at a park. Yet in this humble abode you will witness something of the grandeur and majesty of nature, and it just may stir your soul.
Rising just over 65 feet, and providing a canopy that shades 17,000 square feet of earth, stands one of the oldest living things around: the Angle Oak Tree. With a circumference measuring 28 feet and branches reaching out to a length of 187 feet, the Angel Oak has survived hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and humans. Relatively recently, this magnificent tree was severely damaged during Hurricane Hugo in 1989. While the park is often crowded with visitors taking photographs, the colossal scale of the enormous oak presents a sensation that you are all alone. This is simply a must-see for any nature lover passing through the Charleston, South Carolina, area.
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