Guide to Getting Away from the Sunnyside Traveler

2019 Hiking Week 17 Back in March I featured the Timmerman Trail and Congaree Creek Heritage Preserve . Connecting to the Timmerman Trail, and near Congaree Creek, is the Three Rivers Greenway. It's also called the Riverwalk here in Columbia. There are a few sections to this trail that will (hopefully) all connect together in the future. They follow the Saluda, Broad, and Congaree Rivers and I am so glad our community has set these places aside for trails. Year-round you can see visitors and people from the area out walking, biking, running, and picnicking along the trails. For Easter Sunday, we actually had a picnic at the Columbia Canal Riverwalk (which is part of the Palmetto Trail). The Three Rivers Greenway is made up of sections at the Columbia Canal, Cayce Riverwalk, Timmerman Trail, and the soon-to-open Saluda Riverwalk. There is also a spur of the trail that is in the Granby Mill Village area. The website says there are at least 12.5 miles of trails but I think it...

Keowee-Toxaway State Park Plus Palmetto Trail, Eastatoe Passage 2019 Hiking week 16 This past Easter weekend, I was able to visit Keowee-Toxaway State Park . It is on Lake Keowee near the Eastatoe Creek. Last year, I was able to visit this park with my mom and we kayaked part of the lake and up the river. The lake kayaking was difficult but the river section was nice.  This year, we stayed with my family at the cabin that is in the park. There’s only one cabin in this state park and it is on the lake. It’s a nice, two story cabin with 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms, a double porch, and its own boat dock. The cabin was renovated in the past few years and I was impressed by it. I definitely would like to go back, especially for a weekend with some kayaks. Also, the park is free. It's nice to have free access to the lake. Cabin This past weekend, the weather was not cooperating for much outdoor activity. Friday we had some strong storms and Saturday was co...

Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site 2019 Hiking Week 15 This weekend was full of adventures. First, my husband took me on a surprise road trip and we visited the Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site . It’s between Summerville and North Charleston. It was a pretty neat park. It was a 1697 settlement by congregationalists from Massachusetts on the Ashley River. The park is $2.00 per person to enter and you pay using the envelope system, so be sure to bring exact cash.    Once you park, there is an informational sign with a self-guided tour that starts by the river and winds its way around the settlement.  Tabby Fort There’s a fort that is built out of oyster tabby. It was originally built as a back up storage for Charleston’s gunpowder. There are also archaeology sites, tombstones, and a large bell tower from the former Anglican church. The settlement was abandoned in the revolutionary war and it didn’t recover. It’s a beautiful place on the ...

2019 Hiking Week 14 Congaree National Park A few miles outside of downtown Columbia is South Carolina’s only national park, Congaree National Park. The park is over 15,000 acres and is a floodplain and "the largest intact expanse of old growth bottomland hardwood forest remaining in the southeastern United States" (from their website). It is a great park to check out if you are in the Columbia area. There are many things to do year round here. But I wouldn’t recommend summer, since the mosquitoes  can get pretty bad. Another great thing about Congaree is that it is free!  This past weekend we did some hiking in the park. We arrived around 11:00 a.m. and it was already pretty busy. The parking lot was even more packed when we left around 1:30 p.m., so I recommend getting there early. Not just for parking but to have the best chance of spotting wildlife.  The main trail is a raised boardwalk loop that takes you out to Weston Lake. This is the most popula...

2019 Hiking Week 13 Hunting Island State Park and Sheldon Church Ruins This past weekend we were able to visit the Hunting Island State Park, outside of Beaufort, SC. On the way there, we stopped by the Sheldon Church ruins . These ruins are from a church built in 1757 but it was burned in the Revolutionary War in 1779, then, after being rebuilt, it was destroyed again during the Civil War. They are currently maintained by the Parish Church of St. Helena , which is in Beaufort. I’ve always wanted to visit these ruins. If you look up pictures, there are some beautiful images from this location. It was interesting to see the church and the grounds. There are a few tombstones from the past three centuries. The oak trees, spanish moss, and dogwoods were so pretty. You can schedule events for the location but you have to go through the St. Helena church.  After visiting Sheldon Church, we went through Beaufort and on to Hunting Island State Park . I was really im...