Santee, South Carolina

From Columbia SC, take I-26 South towards Orangeburg. Stay on this road for 31.5 miles and then take exit 136 to merge onto SC-6 E towards St. Matthews. Continue about 34 miles until you enter the town of Santee. Turn left onto I-95 Northbound and continue another 3 miles. You will see a large wo...

From Columbia SC, take I-26 South towards Orangeburg. Stay on this road for 31.5 miles and then take exit 136 to merge onto SC-6 E towards St. Matthews. Continue about 34 miles until you enter the town of Santee. Turn left onto I-95 Northbound and continue another 3 miles. You will see a large wo...

Come to the low country of South Carolina to live slow, enjoy some rich culture and history, quench your thirst for a great paddling adventure, and view incredible wildlife in the process.  From Columbia SC, take I-26 South towards Orangeburg. Stay on this road for 31.5 miles and then take exit 1...

From Columbia SC, take I-26 South towards Orangeburg. Stay on this road for 31.5 miles and then take exit 136 to merge onto SC-6 E towards St. Matthews. Continue 28.3 miles along this road until you enter the small town of Elloree. Here you will turn left onto E Cleveland Street/ State Rd S-38-10...

Hike or row through this old growth swamp forest – there is an easy boardwalk trail, as well as opportunities for canoe and kayaking guided tours. You can also learn a lot about the habitat at the visitor center.

This river has several points throughout the park where you can launch your kayaks and canoes. The river is marked with mile markers along the way so you can count down to the next launch point. This river is actually so slow moving that you can kayak upstream or downstream. All along the river y...

The Boardwalk Loop begins at the Harry Hampton Visitor Center where you can get a Self-guided Boardwalk Tour brochure. There aren't any water refilling stations along this trail, so be sure to fill up your water bottles before you descend down an elevated platform that leads into the forest. Alon...

Start your adventure at the parking lot for Congaree National Park and make your way to the Harry Hampton Visitor Center. There you can find clean bathrooms, drinking fountains, a gift shop, and trail guides. When you're ready to begin your hike, begin on the boardwalk and follow the signs for th...

If you're looking for a longer hike in Congaree National Park than just the Boardwalk Loop, try adding another 2.0 miles to the Boardwalk Loop by hiking the Weston Lake Trail.   From the visitor's center, take the Boardwalk Trail and stay straight at the intersection with the Bluff Trail. The ele...

Carolina Bays go by different names. In the Mid Atlantic they're known as Maryland Basins or Delmarva Bays. Sometimes they're generically referred to as pocosins, an Algonquin word for "swamp on a hill." But these elliptical depressions don't always contain bodies of water; instead they derive th...

The Swamp Fox Passage is a portion of the larger Palmetto Trail, which travels from the Western mountains of South Carolina, Eastward to the Atlantic Ocean. This adventure hikes along a 29 mile section of the Swamp Fox through the Francis Marion National Forest in Eastern, South Carolina. The S...

This trail is a short 2.5 mile loop through what used to be the Guinard Clay Quarry in West Columbia, SC. The old pits from which clay used to be harvested have formed a bunch of ponds which attract wildlife. There are alligators in this area as well as deer, hogs, bobcats, snakes, turtles and bi...

There are several different things you can do here. Tour the gardens, boat tour, tram tour, Audubon tour, plantation tour, etc. There is a lot to see and it's a very enchanting place during the spring through summer. View birds nesting and flowers blooming! 

If visiting Magnolia Plantation and Gardens for the day, consider paying the extra $8 admission to walk around the Audubon Swamp Garden.  Parking for these gardens is on the way out of Magnolia Plantation on the left side.  The trail begins to the left side of the parking area, and you will have ...

Right in the center of the University of South Carolina's campus there is a gorgeous horseshoe. It is one of the most historic pieces of campus. While walking along the horseshoe, you can stumble across college students hurrying to class, people hanging in their hammocks, a photographer capturing...

The South Carolina State House was built in 1855 and it's architecture proves that. From the gorgeous stone columns to the copper roof, this structure is picture perfect. The state house is in the middle of 11 acres of gorgeous scenery. Benches, statues, large trees and all sorts of plant life sp...