5 State Parks You Must Visit in South Carolina If you love the outdoors, a visit to South Carolina is a must! The Palmetto State has more than 47 state parks scattered from the Atlantic coastline to the Blue Ridge Mountains. We list five of the best state parks which offer the perfect opportunity to experience the state’s diverse landscape and cultural treasures. Huntington Beach State Park: Huntington Beach State Park is the result of a lifetime of efforts by two individuals, Anna Hyatt Huntington and her husband, Archer Milton Huntington. This place also includes the couple’s winter home, the Atalaya Castle which was built during the Great Depression to employ Georgetown’s local workers. The couple bought four plantations and combined them to form one single property. It was later leased to the state and was named the Huntington Beach State Park in honor of the Huntington family. Marine conservationists have made great efforts to restore the oyster beds along the estuary. Edisto Beach State Park: The Edisto Beach State Park is an hour’s drive from Charleston and offers a wonderful glimpse of some of the tallest Palmetto trees in the state. There are plenty of hiking trails, most of which are handicap-friendly, including one specific trail that leads to a 4,000-year-old midden that’s 27 meters long and 3 meters high. Hampton Plantation State Park: The Hampton Plantation may seem a quaint and serene place now, but it was a hub of activity during the 18th and 19th centuries, when hundreds of workers toiled on rice and indigo plantations. At the peak of its glory, the plantation owned more than 300 slaves, all of whom lived and worked on the property. However, during the Civil War, these numbers dwindled to a little more than 100. The highlight of this state park is the huge Georgian style mansion that was once home to one of the richest and most affluent families in the country. During the Civil War, the home was a refuge to other slave-owning families that were displayed. When the house was purchased from the last owner, it was in a state of disrepair. The state, however, carried out some restorations so that visitors can see the house at its best.
The Andrew Jackson State Park:
The Andrew Jackson State Park is named after America’s seventh president Andrew Jackson, who spent his boyhood in and around this region. It is the perfect place for camping and picnicking and a favorite for anglers who love to fish for bass, catfish, and other fish in the 18acre lake. The place is also famous for a bronze statue of Andrew Jackson sculpted by Anna Hyatt Huntington. With more than 80,000 acres of state park land, there’s plenty of activities to keep you busy in South Carolina. Resource Box: The Author is a nature lover and has visited almost all the state parks in South Carolina, including Huntington Beach State Park.