Savannah River State Parks

2019 Hiking Week 35

The Savannah River runs along the southern border between South Carolina and Georgia for over 300 miles. Many lakes have been formed along this river through man-made dams. There are 6 South Carolina state parks along the Savannah River. From west to east, these parks are Lake Hartwell State Park, Sadlers Creek State Park, Calhoun Falls State Park, Hickory Knob State Resort, Baker Creek State Park, and Hamilton Branch State Park. We’ve finally visited all of them, so I thought I would share them in one (long) post.

Since all of these parks are located along lakes and the river, they all are primarily parks for people to access the water and enjoy camping and fishing in these natural spaces. 

Lake Hartwell State Park

Lake Hartwell State Park is just off of I-85 on the South Carolina/Georgia border. The lake is a large, popular lake in the upstate of South Carolina and it covers 680 acres. The park primarily gives people access to the lake, as well as places to camp. There is a nice park office and shop at the entrance. The park is a distance away from a larger town. When we were visiting the park, we stopped by Seneca, where they have fixed it up and now they have a nice brewery, Keowee Brewing. 

Sadlers Creek State Park

South/east of Lake Hartwell is Sadlers Creek State Park. This is a small park also along Lake Hartwell that looked like a popular place to camp. It also has some nice pavilions and other gathering spaces for groups. We saw some people with the bikes about to use some of the mountain biking trails. The park is further away from the interstate but closer to the town of Anderson. Anderson has a nice downtown area with some good restaurants and shops. Also Anderson University is close to downtown and has a nice campus. 

The nice, big pavilion at Sadlers Creek State Park.

Calhoun Falls State Park

South of the town of Abbeville, Calhoun Falls State Park is just outside of the town of Calhoun Falls. This is another camping park with docks and a nice store. If you’re in the area, check out downtown Abbeville. There’s a nice square, a hotel, and some good restaurants.  

Hickory Knob State Resort Park

Hickory Knob is further downstream from Calhoun Falls park. It’s a large, nice resort with a golf course, restaurant, and group meeting facilities. We were surprised at the size of the resort. There are various types of lodging: hotel rooms, cabins, campgrounds, even a restored French Huguenot home that you can stay in. Some have views of the lake, which is called Clarks Hill Lake or Strom Thurmond Lake. We walked down towards the lake from the hotel area and there’s a nice group gathering space on the lake with a large fire pit. It seems like a nice park to have a group gathering. 

One of the lodges that faces the lake.

Near Hickory Knob, there is a road called the Huguenot Parkway. This area was settled in 1764 by a group of French Huguenots who came through Charleston. The area was called New Bordeaux. We were reading about this history in the Tom Poland book Classic Carolina Road Trips from Columbia. By following his directions on the book, we were able to find the site of their place of worship from 1764 and a cemetery for some of the families that had settled in the area. There were tombs dating back to the 1700's and as recent as the early 1900's. 

Site of Huguenot place of worship.

Also, not far from Hickory Knob park, is the town of McCormick. It had a cute downtown with some historic sites. Tom also mentioned this town in his book and talked about how it was originally settled because gold was found in the area. 

Baker Creek State Park

Just across the water from Hickory Knob is Baker Creek State Park. This is a smaller park than Hickory Knob but it still offers camping and trails for visitors. I didn't realize it but they were closed for the winter. Apparently they are only open from March through October. I was kind of surprised because my husband and I think that camping in the cooler months is preferable to camping in South Carolina in the summer. But I'm sure many visit this place when they want to cool off in the lake.

Hamilton Branch State Park

Our last state park along the Savannah River is Hamilton Branch State Park. It is also located on Clarks Hill Lake and has lake access, group gathering spaces, and camping spots.

One feature of this area that I learned about was that this area has miles of mountain biking trails. Most of these state parks have mountain biking trails and there are other parks in the area and trails for bikers to check out. Here are some I found: Forks Area Trail System and the Stevens Creek Bike Trail

Our last stop on our way back to Columbia, was in the town of Edgefield. I have heard about Edgefield before but never stopped there. There is a lot of South Carolina history from that town and one of their big claims is they are home to 12 South Carolina governors. They are also known for their pottery. We stopped in the town and walked around a little bit. We stopped in a pottery museum and workshop, and checked out some of the history murals they have painted on the buildings. There is some interesting stories from the town about the people who lived there and even some crazy murders that happened there. Since they're home of the National Wild Turkey Federation, they had all of these fun painted turkeys downtown. I would like to go back and spend some more time exploring the history of the area.

One place you have to visit if you are in the area is Ridge Spring and the restaurant Juniper's. It's a great restaurant that has won a lot of well-deserved recognition. They have lunch and dinner and a great Sunday brunch. Just check their site to make sure when they are open. It's a place that I will drive to from Columbia for any meal.

32 State Parks down, 10 more to go!