With its compact measurement and brief checklist of issues to do, someday is all you actually need to go to Congaree Nationwide Park. With someday in Congaree Nationwide Park, stroll the boardwalk path, go canoeing or kayaking on Cedar Creek, and enterprise farther into the wilderness on one among a number of different climbing trails within the park.
Fast Information about Congaree Nationwide Park
Congaree Nationwide Park is among the smallest nationwide parks within the USA. It’s positioned only a brief drive from Columbia, South Carolina and this metropolis makes an ideal dwelling base for exploring the park.
Congaree Nationwide Park can be a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, since this park protects the oldest old-growth bottomland forest within the southeastern United States.
This park sits contained in the Congaree River floodplain. It’s not a swamp (an space of land that’s completely saturated with water), it’s a “bottomland,” an space of land that floods on a seasonal foundation. Of the estimated 30 million acres of bottomland forests that when lined the USA, solely 40% stays.
In Congaree, you may see a number of the tallest Loblolly pines nonetheless alive right this moment in addition to bald cypress timber which are over 500 years previous. Tupelo timber sit alongside sluggish shifting creeks and oxbow lakes. Fish, amphibians, deer, raccoon, feral pigs, bobcats, and quite a few species of snakes and birds all discover refuge inside this park.
Congaree Nationwide Park Signal | One Day in Congaree
One Day in Congaree Nationwide Park: Finest Issues to Do
With someday in Congaree Nationwide park, listed here are the very best issues to see and do:
- Stroll the Boardwalk Loop Path
- Go Kayaking or canoeing on Cedar Creek
- Hike the Weston Lake Loop Path
- See Smart Lake
In the event you get your timing proper (by visiting Congaree between Mid-Might and mid-June), you may also see the synchronous fireflies.
There are a lot of extra climbing trails within the park, however because the views don’t change an entire lot from what you see alongside the Boardwalk Loop Path and the Weston Lake Loop Path, you don’t miss a lot by skipping these. However when you have greater than someday in Congaree, take into account climbing a number of extra trails or taking an extended canoe or kayak journey on Cedar Creek.
For a full checklist of issues to do, learn our article Prime 10 Issues to Do in Congaree Nationwide Park.
One Day in Congaree Nationwide Park Itinerary
Morning: Boardwalk Loop Path & Weston Lake Loop Path
Boardwalk Loop Path
Distance: 2.6 mile loop | Issue: Straightforward | Time: 1 to 2 hours
The Boardwalk Loop Path is the #1 factor to do at Congaree Nationwide Park. This 2.6 mile loop is flat and really straightforward to stroll. It begins and ends on the Harry Hampton Customer Middle and takes 1 to 2 hours to stroll the total loop.
The “path” is an elevated boardwalk that loops by the bottomland, the place you get to see bald cypress and tupelo timber standing within the water.
Earlier than beginning the stroll, choose up the Self-Guided Boardwalk Path brochure on the Customer Middle. This information factors out each pure and historic websites alongside the path. It’s effectively value it, to get probably the most out of this expertise.
Weston Lake Loop Path
Distance: 4.5 miles | Issue: Straightforward | Time: 2 to three hours
This can be a longer path that heads deeper into Congaree Nationwide Park. It consists of many of the Boardwalk Loop Path, however a sequence of grime trails takes you farther into the woods, the place you may see extra bottomland forests and stroll alongside Cedar Creek. This hike is totally flat, so it’s straightforward to do and it solely provides one other hour or two onto your day.
This hike is value it if you wish to see extra of Congaree and go away a number of the crowds behind.
Beginning on the Customer Middle, hike the Boardwalk Loop Path in a counter-clockwise course. On the first path junction, comply with indicators for Weston Lake and you’ll now be on path #3 (there shall be small, white indicators on the timber with the quantity 3 on them). You’ll now be on a dust path within the forest.
The Weston Lake Loop Path will comply with alongside Cedar Creek for nearly one mile. On the subsequent path junction, go left to proceed on the Weston Lake Loop Path and head again in the direction of the Customer Middle. When the path rejoins with the boardwalk, stroll out to the perspective of Weston Lake. Then take the boardwalk again to the customer heart.
Cedar Creek seen from the Weston Lake Loop Path
Bald Cypress Timber | One Day in Congaree
Bald Cypress “Knees”
One in every of a number of bridges on the Weston Lake Loop Path | One Day in Congaree
Elective Detour: Smart Lake
In the event you plan to hike the Weston Lake Loop Path, this brief detour is effectively value your time. Weston Lake is good, however Smart Lake is among the prettiest locations we noticed in Congaree Nationwide Park.
From the Boardwalk Loop Path and the Weston Lake Loop Path junction, stroll 0.6 miles on the Weston Lake Loop Path till you get to the path junction with the River Path. There are indicators right here that direct you to Smart Lake. From this junction, you’ll stroll about 100 meters to get to Smart Lake.
Smart Lake | One Day in Congaree
Noon: Lunch
There are not any eating places in Congaree Nationwide Park, with very restricted choices simply exterior of the park. The perfect factor to do is to pack a picnic lunch. In the event you select to drive to Columbia, it’s a 30-minute drive a technique, so doing this may deplete a whole lot of your helpful time right this moment. However Columbia makes an ideal place to get dinner!
Afternoon: Canoe or Kayak on Cedar Creek
Canoeing on Cedar Creek was our favourite expertise in Congaree Nationwide Park. We spent two hours canoeing on Cedar Creek, beginning and ending on the Cedar Creek Canoe Launch. For us, two hours was the proper period of time.
We didn’t see a lot in the way in which of wildlife, however Cedar Creek is gorgeous, and to float alongside the water, listening to the birds and the crickets, and to see these majestic previous timber, was a really memorable expertise.
Cedar Creek is a really sluggish shifting creek. We paddled downstream first. Paddling upstream, to return to our start line was straightforward, and actually not any more durable than going downstream, at the least after we did this.
As water ranges change, you might need obstacles alongside the creek that impede your progress. Water ranges have been low after we did this, which allowed us to duck underneath some fallen timber. There’s a likelihood that downed timber can block the creek, forcing you to show round or pull your kayak/canoe up onto land to hold it across the downed tree.
Cedar Creek | One Day in Congaree
Renting a Canoe or Kayak
We rented a canoe from River Runner Outside Middle. You possibly can both choose up the canoe from their workplace in Columbia (within the morning earlier than driving out to Congaree), or, for a further charge, have them ship it proper to the canoe launch. We selected to have it delivered, since we didn’t need it sitting on prime of our automobile after we have been out climbing.
At 2 pm, our canoe was delivered by Gus from River Runner Outside Middle. Gus gave us an ideal overview of Cedar Creek and instructed us what to maintain a watch out for as we paddled on the creek. For 2 hours, Tim and I paddled on Cedar Creek and as soon as we have been completed, Gus picked up the canoe and we have been on our means. Having the canoe delivered to Cedar Creek made the logistics tremendous straightforward.
Canoeing on Cedar Creek | One Day in Congaree
Elective: Bates Ferry Path and the Basic Greene Tree
By strolling the Boardwalk Loop Path, the Weston Lake Loop Path, and spending a while on Cedar Creek, you lined the highest experiences in Congaree Nationwide Park.
In the event you nonetheless have time and wish to do one thing else, I like to recommend climbing the Bates Ferry Path to the Basic Greene Tree.
The Basic Greene Tree is the most important bald cypress tree in Congaree Nationwide Park. It’s named for Revolutionary Conflict normal Nathanael Greene.
You possibly can choose up a replica of the instructions to the Basic Greene Tree on the Customer Middle and/or comply with our instructions beneath.
From the Bates Ferry trailhead, stroll 0.4 miles. On the left shall be an unmaintained highway. To the appropriate is a metallic path marker with a #7 on it. Stroll about 20 toes farther and to your proper shall be a path main into the woods. Take this path.
On this path, you’ll cross a metallic bridge over a creek. The path narrows past this bridge. As soon as the path bends to the left, search for cypress timber standing in water off to the appropriate facet of the path. The Basic Greene tree is positioned right here.
Basic Greene Tree | One Day in Congaree
The entire distance from the Bates Ferry Path to the Basic Greene Tree is 0.2 miles.
In the event you proceed previous the Basic Greene Tree, in about 0.1 miles you attain one other unmaintained highway to the appropriate. Comply with this for an additional tenth of a mile and also you come to this low space, crammed with tupelos and bald cypress timber. It’s a fantastic a part of Congaree Nationwide Park.
GETTING TO THE BATES FERRY TRAILHEAD: This path is positioned within the far jap part of Congaree Nationwide Park on Freeway 601. As you drive south on Freeway 601, the flip off for the trailhead is positioned simply previous the bridge that crosses Bates Previous River.
Whereas in Congaree Nationwide Park, please observe the seven rules of Go away No Hint: plan forward, keep on the path, pack out what you deliver to the climbing path, correctly eliminate waste, go away areas as you discovered them, decrease campfire impacts, be thoughtful of different hikers, and don’t method or feed wildlife.
Night: Dinner in Columbia
We spent a number of nights in Columbia, South Carolina so we had plenty of time to pattern totally different eating places.
Bourbon was our favourite restaurant. The bourbon checklist is intensive and the meals is superb (Cajun and Creole). Motor Provide Firm Bistro serves farm-to-table fare for lunch and dinner and the menu adjustments day by day. Saluda’s serves southern fare with a twist and it’s a tremendous eating restaurant.
For any of those eating places, make your reservation prematurely.
Finest Time to Go to Congaree Nationwide Park
The perfect time to go to Congaree Nationwide Park is within the spring and the autumn. Within the spring and fall, temperatures are heat (daytime highs can stand up into the 70’s) and mosquitoes are low. In each the spring and fall, Congaree will get about 3 inches of rain monthly.
Peak fall colours happen at first of November. We visited Congaree from November 8 by November 10. Daytime highs have been within the excessive 60’s to mid-70’s and at night time it acquired down into the 40’s. We had shiny sunny skies every of the three days that we have been right here.
In the course of the summer season months, Congaree is scorching and humid. Temperatures steadily stand up into the high-90’s and even up over 100°F. The humidity makes it really feel worse and mosquitoes are at their highest ranges presently.
Flooding tends to happen through the winter months. Temperatures might be chilly however snow is uncommon.
PRO TRAVEL TIP: This park floods regularly. After a heavy flooding, the Boardwalk Loop Path, and different trails within the park, can quickly shut. Earlier than planning your journey, and simply earlier than your go to, go to the Nationwide Park Service web site for updates on park circumstances to keep away from any unlucky surprises. We needed to postpone our journey a number of instances within the spring since lots of the trails flooded and closed proper earlier than our go to.
Get to Congaree Nationwide Park
The closest main airport is positioned in Columbia, South Carolina, which is a couple of 30 minute drive from Congaree Nationwide Park. Charlotte Douglass Worldwide Airport, which is positioned in Charlotte, North Carolina, is a bigger airport with extra flight choices. It takes 2 hours to drive to Congaree Nationwide Park from right here.
In case your go to is a part of a much bigger highway journey, listed here are the driving distances and instances to close by locations:
- Columbia, South Carolina: 18 miles, half-hour
- Charleston, South Carolina: 105 miles, 2 hours
- Myrtle Seaside, South Carolina: 130 miles, 2.5 hours
- Charlotte, North Carolina: 112 miles, 2 hours
- Asheville, North Carolina: 180 miles, 3 hours
- Savannah, Georgia: 150 miles, 2.5 hours
- Augusta, Georgia: 90 miles, 1.5 hours
The place to Keep
Within Congaree Nationwide Park, your solely possibility is tent tenting. There are two campgrounds, the Longleaf Campground and Bluff Campground, and you need to make your reservation prematurely.
Exterior of the park, Columbia is the very best place to remain. It’s only a 30-minute drive to get between Columbia and Congaree Nationwide Park.
There are quite a few inns in Columbia to select from. We stayed on the Hilton Columbia Middle and had an ideal expertise however the Graduate Columbia, Staybridge Suites Columbia, Aloft Columbia Downtown, and the Courtyard Columbia Downtown all are extremely rated and have an ideal location in downtown Columbia. From these inns, you may simply stroll or Uber to some nice eating places.
On the outskirts of Columbia, the Courtyard by Marriott Columbia Cayce will get fantastic opinions. It has an onsite restaurant and it’s 10 minutes nearer to Congaree than the inns in downtown Columbia.
Sensible Data
Entrance Charge: Free! There isn’t a charge to enter Congaree Nationwide Park.
Hours of Operation: The park is open 24 hours a day, 12 months per yr.
Get updates on highway circumstances and path closures, as you propose your journey and simply earlier than your go to, on the Nationwide Park Service web site.
