Campground Reviews

Ah, Lake Wateree State Park, full of trees and squirrels mating all over the place. Yes, my timing was absolutely perfect to see squirrel mating habits in the wild, from chasing each other all over the fallen leaves to scampering up and down trees in very, uh, creative ways. I actually never got tired of watching them bound all over the place, they’re quite entertaining little critters.

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You know that old saying “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all?” That will explain why this review of Poinsett State Park is shorter than most reviews.

The good things? It has some really lovely hiking trails. The camping sites are large and well-maintained. And it’s the closest state park to Congaree National Park, which was why we were here.

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This year’s stay at Edisto Beach State Park on the coast in South Carolina was a do-over from last year’s canceled plans. It was, as per usual for the beach, worth the wait.

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It might have an odd name (there’s a Big Pee Dee and Little Pee Dee river in South Carolina), but this is a sweet little park. Mostly, it seems to get a lot of people who grew up in nearby Myrtle Beach area and a few vagabonds like me who are drawn to it being not really near anything cool or notable. It’s on a little lake, there are some good hiking trails, and it’s quiet and dark at night. What more could you ask for in a campground?

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I’ll admit it, I only picked this park so that I could tell my friend Paris that I was staying at “her” mountain. Hey, when you’re picking places mostly to wait out the month of March till you meet up with friends in April, it really doesn’t matter where you go. And since most of the tourist sites are still closed, there’s still not much sightseeing going on (Furman University gardens were a miss here, along with downtown Greenville).

The Garmin directions had me winding through back roads and then taking a right turn away from the actual park entrance, so be sure you map this site before you drive. It’s a fairly good approach from south or west, with two-lane roads and not much traffic. The real challenge is from the camp entrance to the campground. Those Campendium reviews weren’t kidding, it’s a bunch of tight curves with little visibility and a lot of traffic until you get past the vistor center. I was once again thankful I have a small trailer and not a 40-footer with a toad on the back. Still, the forest views from the road were definitely enticing!

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