Between October 2021 and June 2023, the Beavers visited all 47 state parks in South Carolina. As a result, on June 1, 2023, we became Ultimate Outsiders, a designation for those who have visited all parks in the system.
If you’re curious, the map above has links to my write-ups of our visits to the different parks. I thought it might be beneficial as well for us to share some reflections from our journey, which I’ll do here. I’ll share some, and I’ll also get some reflections from my wife Tiffany and daughter Teagan.
Benjamin
First, I’m going to ignore the question ‘Which park was your favorite?’. The parks are so unique, highlighting different cultural or natural parts of our state. Yes, there are parks that I’d love to return to (Huntington Beach, Jones Gap), and there are some parks that I’m fine not returning to (Sadlers Creek, Lake Warren). Some parks I feel like we saw what there was to see (Oconee Station, Colonial Dorchester), and some parks still have things yet to discover (Musgrove Mill, Woods Bay). But overall, our visits to the park were delightful and informative.
One of the reasons I got us started on this quest was simply from reading the parks passport itself. I honestly don’t remember where I first picked it up, and maybe I was intrigued after browsing the official website. But reading through the diverse nature of all of the parks and having the challenge of visiting them all, I knew I wanted to jump in (and bring the family, too!).
I had never heard of some of the geographical features of our state, most notably the Carolina bay, seen at Woods Bay. I learned about the High Hills of the Santee, seen at Poinsett. And as someone who was born and raised in the Upstate, I became aware of just how much of our state (in the Lowcountry) is covered with wetlands, swamp, and marsh. I grew up seeing alligators in Louisiana when I would visit my grandparents. Little did I know about how many gators we had here.
The cultural and historical stories that our state parks tell are fascinating as well. To start out, I had no idea we had a preserved Civil War battlefield (Rivers Bridge). I also never expected to be amazed at a preserved clay pot from the Santee Native Americans at Santee. To know that James Henry Hammond’s plantation is preserved at Redcliffe was interesting to learn as well. Going to these sites helped push me to learn more about my own state’s history. Yes, I had SC History in 3rd grade, and I even had another class while at Clemson; however, it’s a much different story now. I have a greater appreciation for history. Additionally, it’s one thing to read words on a page; however, it’s totally different being at the place where history actually happened.
Of course, taking kids (originally 6 and 2, but 8 and 4 when we finished) is a whole different story. It made us limited in what we did at some parks, but it also provided us some more smiles, getting them to see some cool places (or just play in the dirt in the parking lot). We had our frustrating times as well, whines, tears, etc. But lots of laughs came, too. While I know Sage won’t remember much about the experience, it will be a fun story she can share later. It was also fun getting to visit some of these parks with friends and family.
So, overall, 10/10 would recommend visiting the parks here in SC. If you’re not from here, come visit, and also check out what’s available in your state!
Beavers in the Park 