Congaree

From Wikipedia – On the Congaree River, this park is the largest portion of old-growth floodplain forest left in North America. Some of the trees are the tallest in the eastern United States. An elevated walkway called the Boardwalk Loop guides visitors through the swamp.

• Established: 11/10/2003
• Annual Visitors: 145,929
• Size: 26,640 acres

We left Shenandoah and stayed in Staunton, VA for one night. In the morning we drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway south, continuing the spectacular views the fall has to offer. We stopped at a pull off to hike the AT, venturing into the woods for a geocache. I know I have mentioned it already, but I love these wooded hikes! The BR Parkway pull off and overlooks were packed with cars. But once we found a spot, we retreated to the AT and saw only a few people. Some backpacking and staying 2-4 nights, others, like us, just day hiking. It’s too late in the year to see thru-hikers but we did meet one guy doing a 350 mile section hike. 

Sadly, we climbed back into the car and headed out of nature toward Danville on the VA/NC border. Before reaching our stop for the night we looked for a dog friendly restaurant to sit out on a patio. We looked at the outside of the one we found online and opted to see if the next possibility looked better. Just around the corner was a full parking lot in front of Vito’s Pizza and Italian Restaurant, always a great indicator of good food….but will they take Rangeley and do they even have a patio? Bingo! Not only great picnic tables, very friendly, dog loving waitress but wonderful food! After we stuffed ourselves in the sun, we took two slices of homemade cake with us, because it’s Saturday night! Dessert night!

Sunday we drove south to Columbia, South Carolina to experience on next park, Congaree National Park.

The history of the Congaree River floodplain cannot be discussed without speaking of what used to be the Congaree Swamp National Monument (1976) now Congaree National Park (2003). It’s importance has strong roots in Native American history (Catawba and Congaree tribes); those avoiding slavery; moonshine masters avoiding the 18th Amendment passed in 1919 outlawing alcohol; and people like Harry Hampton, in the 1950’s, advocating for the protection of old-growth forests here in the center of South Carolina.

Gary, Rangeley and I thoroughly enjoyed our 2.4 mile round- trip walk on a magnificently built wooden boardwalk traversing across the wetlands, inside this fourth smallest national park on the mainland. Also, in the lower 48 mainland, Congaree has the second fewest visitors after North Cascades in Washington.

I loved the approach road full of evergreens and deciduous trees just barely starting to show their fall colors. The Boardwalk Trail is teeming with 130-150 foot tall loblolly pines, the bold cypress trees, water tupelos and dwarf palmettos. Many have survived a century or more of fires, floods and hurricanes!

The park provides a flyer for a great self-guided tour of 20 educational stops explained in a paragraph or two at each interest station. It brings you to Weston Lake where I learned a new term, an oxbow lake. Weston Lake occurred 2000 years ago when the bend in the Congaree River gradually shifted, silt built up and eventually separated what is now Weston Lake. We watched fish jump, woodpeckers making music on the trees and blue winged butterflies flitting around in the 75 degree sunny day!

We had a really pleasant picnic lunch in the woods by our car in the parking lot. Rangeley ate his lunch, curled up and fell asleep on a soft pine needle bed while Gary and I shared our mutual appreciation for each other and our decision to make the beginning of our seventh week on the road yet another incredible adventure into our country’s protected nature. 

Please enjoy the pics we took with captions, the slide shows Gary puts together and we hope you will continue with us on our journey to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park next!