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Best Trails of South Carolina

This list represents the most popular trails in South Carolina (learn more about Top Trails). Use this list to plan your next South Carolina outdoor trip. Select a state and/or activity below to find even more top trails.

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#1. Chattooga Trail

  
A two day backpack on an undulating trail along the Chattooga river; a pristine National Wild and Scenic River. The Chattooga is a wild, rushing river with crashing waterfalls, coves lush with mountai…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Walhalla , SC - Hiking - 15 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#2. Raven Cliff Falls

  
A day hike to one of the highest and most scenic cascades in the eastern United States. Raven Cliff Falls was an extraordinarily popular hiking destination even before a swinging footbridge was recent…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Greenville , SC - Hiking - 6.6 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#3. Kings Mountain

  
A two-day hike through shaded hardwood forest over ridges, down rocky ravines and across numerous brooks and streams. This hike runs through the southern portion of the Kings Mountain Range, a small s…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Rock Hill , SC - Hiking - 14.5 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#4. Carolina Low County Challenge

  
This ride travels through the Low Country south of the historic Charleston peninsula. The route hops from island to island past tall palmettos, sprawling live oak canopies, and salt marsh lining the…
From the guidebook "Best Bike Rides in the South"
Charleston , SC - Road Biking - 61.8 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view allBestRoad Biking Trail - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by The Globe Pequot Press

#5. Foothills Trail: Bad Creek Access to Rocky Bottom

  
This is one long and spectacular section of trail. It is hard to find 30 miles of trail in the East without crossing a major road, but the Foothills Trail delivers. It occasionally passes by normally…
From the guidebook "Long Trails of the Southeast"
Salem , SC - Hiking - 30.3 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Menasha Ridge Press

#6. Foothills Trail, Jocassee Gorges Segment

  
A challenging three-day journey around the north end of Lake Jocassee. Scenic waterfalls, steep-sided river gorges, lush vegetation, and solitude are among the attractions of the Jocassee Gorges. The…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Walhalla , SC - Hiking - 31 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#7. Table Rock State Park

  
A very difficult but immensely rewarding day hike featuring spectacular views from the top of the dramatic cliffs of Table Rock Mountain, as wall as a visit to the summit of Pinnacle Mountain. Table R…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Greenville , SC - Hiking - 10 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#8. Chattooga River

  
Big, brawling trout water. Rising in Cashiers Lake in North Carolina, the stream gathers force from a score of tributaries before crossing the state line at Ellicott Rock. The rock was placed there in…
From the guidebook "America's 100 Best Trout Streams"
Clayton , SC - Fly-Fishing Best Trail in SC - Click to view allBestFly-Fishing Trail - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#9. Jones Gap Trail

  
A relatively easy day hike along the scenic Middle Saluda River from Jones Gap State Park to Caesar's Head State Park. The Jones Gap Trail is full of delights, chief of which is the relative ease of t…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Greenville , SC - Hiking - 10.6 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#10. Huntington Island State Park Campground

  
Beachfront property is expensive and in high demand these days, making ocean camping a difficult proposition is some places. Luckily, the state of South Carolina owns 4 miles of beachfront on quiet Hu…
From the guidebook "The Best In Tent Camping: The Carolinas"
Beaufort , SC - Campgrounds Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Menasha Ridge Press

#11. Foothills Trail, Chattanooga Valley Segment

  
A long 3-day backpacking trip, offering waterfalls and the majestic beauty of the Whitewater and Chattooga rivers. This segment of the Foothills Trail is described east to west, beginning at the north…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Walhalla , SC - Hiking - 33 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#12. Foothills Trail: Burrells Ford to Bad Creek Access

  
This slice of the Foothills Trail is composed of several diverse landscapes. Leave Burrells Ford and ascend Medlin Mountain on the edge of the Ellicott Rock Wilderness. The Medlin Mountain section of…
From the guidebook "Long Trails of the Southeast"
Walhalla , SC - Hiking - 14.6 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Menasha Ridge Press

#13. Devils Fork State Park Campground

  
Have you ever seen Lake Jocassee? Others may disagree, but I believe this impoundment to be South Carolina’s most beautiful lake. A richly forested shoreline overlooks emerald water against a backdrop…
From the guidebook "The Best In Tent Camping: The Carolinas"
Pickens , SC - Campgrounds Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Menasha Ridge Press

#14. Foothills Trail: Rocky Bottom to Jones Gap State Park

  
This challenging and long parcel of the Foothills Trail offers many rewards to those who traverse it. Leave Rocky Bottom and begin the ascent of Sassafras Mountain, highest point in South Carolina. Pa…
From the guidebook "Long Trails of the Southeast"
Rocky Bottom , SC - Hiking - 24.4 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Menasha Ridge Press

#15. Foothills Trail: Oconee State Park to Burrells Ford

  
This most southwestern section of the Foothills Trail starts at one of South Carolina’s oldest state parks, a destination in its own right. Oconee State Park makes for a good jumping off point, whethe…
From the guidebook "Long Trails of the Southeast"
Walhalla , SC - Hiking - 16.4 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Menasha Ridge Press

#16. West Ashley Greenway

  
West Ashley Greenway parallels U.S. Highway 17 from South Windermere Shopping Center to Main Road, a few hundred yards short of the drawbridge over to Johns Island. This linear, grassy trail, once lin…
From the guidebook "Mountain Biking South Carolina"
Charleston , SC - Mountain Biking - 21 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#17. Huntington Beach State Park

  
A day hike through freshwater and saltwater marshes, pristine sandy beaches, and maritime forests in one of the state's most generous bird habitats. Huntington Beach State Park is a relatively seclude…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Myrtle Beach , SC - Hiking - 8.7 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#18. Foothills Trail, Sassafras Mountain Segment

  
A one or two-day hike to the summit of South Carolina's highest mountain and down to Laurel Valley and the Jocassee Gorges area. Follow the trail along Carrick Creek toward Pinnacle Mountain over gent…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Pickens , SC - Hiking - 14.1 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

#19. Huntington Beach State Park Campground

  
Campers come to Huntington Beach for a variety of reasons. Many like to enjoy the beach and other natural aspects of this 2,500 acres preserve in a fast developing coast. Others like to relax in the c…
From the guidebook "The Best In Tent Camping: The Carolinas"
Murrells Inlet , SC - Campgrounds Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Menasha Ridge Press

#20. Paris Mountain State Park

  
A rugged half day's hike on a mountain trail at the edge of South Carolina's largest metropolitan area. Paris Mountain is a monadnock, an immense rock that endured when the mountains around it weather…
From the guidebook "Hiking South Carolina"
Greenville , SC - Hiking - 6 miles    Best Trail in SC - Click to view all (About Top Trails)
Published by Falcon Publishing

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