Longstreet Observation Tower

I love visiting Gettysburg and think the Longstreet tower is a key place to visit. One of the great things about the battlefield is being able to see the breadth of the field and make connections about what happened (in contrast, Antietam is more segmented and harder to piece together). Three spots at Gettysburg are great vantage points for the action on Days 2 and 3. They are Longstreet Tower, the top of the Pennsylvania Memorial, and Little Round Top. Little Round Top is obviously the most authentic view, but Longstreet Tower offers the best panoramic views. It is a climb to get to top and not for people who are moderately afraid of heights. If you plan in advance, take binoculars with you. It will enhance the view.

Walking through history. A great way to see the surrounding battle fields. It was not full and it was free to climb the tower. There is a bench at the top. The climb is a good work out as we were all sore the next day. But it was worth the climb.

This is a great place to visit to enhance your understanding of the battlefield as it offers a bird's eye view of the surrounding areas along with several informative plaques explaining the action which took place upon the fields within view of the observation deck. The only draw back is that if you have a fear of heights it may not be the place you want to visit as it is a very tall tower and the stairs can be mildly wobbly in some places which could easily enhance some people's anxiety.

Super afraid of heghts....sent my wife up with to take pics. She got some great pics of me on the ground...where i belong.

This was the first tower we stopped at and it really gives you a good point to view different areas of the battlefields. You also have incredible views of the mountains in the distance. It's not an easy climb up the 100 steps to the top but it is worth the effort. At the top their is multiple information placards describing different parts of what you are looking out at. Definitely worth it.