South Carolina - Nature and Scientific Wonders
- By Smithsonian.com
- Smithsonian.com, November 08, 2007, Subscribe
Audubon Swamp Garden
This wildlife refuge near Charleston offers 60 acres of the primeval beauty of blackwater cypress and tupelo swamp, traversed by bridges, boardwalks and dikes. A 45-minute nature boat tour takes visitors through ancient rice fields.
(Cape Romain) National Wildlife Refuge
A stretch of barrier islands and salt marshes make up one of the nation's most outstanding wildlife refuges. The 60,000-acre refuge is a true wilderness experience.
(Cathedral Bay) Heritage Wildlife Preserve
Cathedral Bay is an excellent example of the Carolina bay phenomenon, undrained, oval depressions in the Earth that may have been caused by a meteor shower.
Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge
The endangered red-cockaded woodpecker is among the many species of flora and fauna found on this 45,348-acre national wildlife refuge.
(Congaree) National Park
Congaree National Park preserves the largest remnant of old-growth floodplain forest on the continent. See national and state champion trees, towering to record size amid an astonishing array of plants and animals.
(Daws Island) Heritage Preserve
This island contains four Late Archaic Period shell rings dating to 4,500 years ago. Twenty-three other sites ranging from 10,000 B.C. to 500 A.D. are also present on the island. View Manatees, sharks, osprey, eagles, dolphins, sea turtles and a wide array of birds.
(Hunting Island) State Park and Nature Center
Discover the wonders of nature on a barrier island. Join a park naturalist in a search for life in the water and under the sand. And don't miss loggerhead sea turtle nesting season, first as nesting mothers, then emerging hatchlings, captivate visitors from May through October.
(Savannah River) National Wildlife Refuge
Established in 1927, the 22,940-acre refuge protects numerous kinds of wildlife, from Whitetail deer to alligators.
(South Carolina) Beaches
From the action in Myrtle Beach to the tranquility of the Sea Islands, South Carolina's beaches are a dream. Tuck your toes into impossibly soft sand, ride the waves, watch for sea turtles and let your cares dissolve.
Table Rock State Park
This park features two lakes, a campground, mountain cabins, meeting facilities and its historic, renovated lodge at the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The park has been one of South Carolina's most popular since the Civilian Conservation Corps built it in the 1930s. Many of its structures are now on the National Register of Historic Places.
Upcountry Waterfalls
Experience the magical falls of South Carolina's upcountry. Raven Cliff Falls in Cleveland is the highest waterfall in South Carolina, tumbling 400 feet as Matthews Creek descends to The Dismal in the Mountain Bridge Wilderness. Some of the shorter falls make for exciting white water paddling.
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