Kings Mountain State Park

2019 Hiking Week 36

Hope you are enjoying the winter weather we are having! It seems like in South Carolina we just skipped fall and went straight into winter. But don't let the cold weather stop you from going outside! This past weekend we visited King's Mountain State Park, about 2 hours from Columbia, outside of York, and on the border of North Carolina. It was a cold day but the sun was bright and the fall leaves were abundant.

Kings Mountain State Park is a large park that is next to Kings Mountain National Military Park. It is the site of a Revolutionary War battle victory for the Americans. The park is over 6000 square miles and has a lot of long trails for visitors. Some trails are accessible for horseback riding. There is also a campground and options for back country camping, even with your horse. There's a nice lake and a replica of an 1800's farm house. The cost for admission is $2.00 per person.

When trying to decide what trail we would hike, I wanted to do a decent hike, but not the big loops that they have, which are 14 miles or longer. I decided to try the Ridgeline Trail, which connects Kings Mountain Park with Crowders Mountain State Park in North Carolina. The trail is part of the Carolina Thread Trail that I mentioned in a previous post. I wasn't sure how far we would walk on the trail, since the trail is 8 miles long. Also, it was difficult for me to figure out how far the trail was in South Carolina before the North Carolina border. What we did was first followed the Kings Mountain National Recreation Trail to the start of the Ridgeline Trail. That was about 1.2 miles. From there, the Ridgeline Trail gradually climbs to the North Carolina state line. That was about another 3 miles. We decided to go a little further to Boulders Overlook, which is near the Boulder Access Area (there is a parking lot and bathrooms at this access area). This was about 5 miles from where we started and is a popular place for climbers. The climb to the overlook was pretty steep but that was the most difficult part of our hike. Thankfully, as we headed back, it was mostly downhill. We ended up hiking over 10 miles. It was longer that I had expected to hike but it wasn't too bad. We stopped and took some pictures of the fall leaves along the way.

The National Military Park is just down the road from the State Park and some of the trails go between both parks. The town of York is not far from the park and is a nice place to check out. Charlotte is not far either and there is a lot there to check out. See my previous posts about the Charlotte area. 

How are you enjoying the cooler weather?
Location: Kings Mountain State Park, 1277 Park Rd, Blacksburg, SC 29702, USA

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