The Saluda River at Dolly Cooper Park

There are those days when I just have to get outside, but the state parks are at capacity and the mountains are too far. Nearby Lake Conestee Nature Preserve is a fantastic urban green space, but sometimes I just need something a little different. Thanks to AllTrails, I’ve found some hikes in unexpected places – most recently, Dolly Cooper Park.

Although technically in Anderson County, the park is just across the Saluda River from Greenville County in Powdersville, about a 15-minute drive southwest. After cutting over to River Rd. From Anderson Road, visitors pass by the Recycling Center before entering the park. A paved parking area near the front accommodates visitors to the front ball field, and then an enormous three-level gravel lot handles additional parking for the disc golf fields and the baseball field. There is a paved, third lot near the river and canoe launch which should re-open with the conclusion of the construction.

Currently home to a full 18-hole disc golf course and a couple of ball fields, the park has enormous potential in its 40-acres. This year Anderson County Parks launched a $350,000 construction project, putting boulders up to prevent instances of vandalism, as well as constructing a new kayak launch to replace the old plastic one that kept being damaged in floods.

The shore line access trail project has yet to be completed, but a new trail has been paved that curves east along the Saluda from the pier. The trailhead to the River Walk is by the kayak launch parking lot. It meanders between the open fields of the park and the strip of forest that lines the Saluda. The ¼ mile-long trail offers access to multiple spur trails that provide views of the river, and ends near an old bridge foundation.

Dolly Cooper Park was named for M.J. ‘Dolly’ Cooper, who was elected to the S.C. House of Representatives in 1974 on a platform of bringing more health care services to Pelzer, Piedmont and Williamston, and served in House District 10 for 16 years. Cooper was known for his World War II military service, where he served as a combat infantryman with the 30th Infantry Division. He saw 11 months of combat in Europe including action at Normandy & the Battle of the Bulge, and he was awarded the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, American Defense Silver Medal and the Combat Infantry Badge.

The park was briefly closed in 2016 due to lack of funding. A proposed tax hike was not passed by the County Council, and it was mentioned that without additional funds it was too hard to keep the park maintained and safe. However the canoe/kayak launch is one of the only public launches on the Saluda, and after public outcry the park was soon reopened. While vandalism has been a problem over the years, it seems as though recently there has been a push to upgrade the park as Anderson County moves forward with a park and recreation master plan. In my opinion the park could benefit from a few work days to get the litter picked up and the kudzu under control – as could most large parks in the Upstate. There is plenty of room for a playground, and this might be a great spot for a Kids in Parks TRACK Trail. A lot of potential, but from the sound of it, only a little funding...

So as to not to end this post on a negative note, here are the things that will bring me back to Dolly Cooper:

• The hardwoods lining the Saluda put on a pretty show in autumn
• Public river access to the Saluda is rare on this section, with the boat ramp on the Saluda River in Pelzer one of the only other spots that comes to mind
• We had the place to ourselves
• With 40 acres of park it’s easy to put together a few mile walk
• It’s only a 15 minute drive
• The Saluda is a beautiful river, with little development visible on its shores
• You can always find beauty in nature, no matter how urban the park!

Good luck to the folks over in Anderson County with the park upgrade, and hopefully the boat dock is finished soon. Is there anything you would like to see happen in Dolly Cooper? Let me know in the comments!

Bombs Away: the atomic bomb impact crater in Mars Bluff, SC

Fun (little known) fact: the US has dropped a nuclear bomb on the Carolinas.... twice.

About three hours east of Greenville lies the small town of Mars Bluff. Originally known as Marr's Bluff during the American Revolution, the name was shortened to Mars Bluff at some point before the Civil War, near the end of which the inland Confederate Mars Bluff Naval Yard was established.

I had never heard of the naval yard, but the town’s name is familiar; Mars Bluff has the distinction of having been inadvertently bombed with an atomic bomb by the United States Air Force. This might otherwise not have been on my radar, but my boys are budding US history buffs and so it was a given that we would eventually visit the site.

On a spring day in 1958, a B-47 Stratojet was en route to the U.K. to take part in “Operation Snow Flurry.” A fault light lit up, indicating the bomb’s harness locking pin had not engaged, and Captain Bruce Kulka went to investigate. As he reached around the bomb to pull himself up he accidentally hit the emergency release pin; the 8,500-lb. device hit the bomb bay doors, broke through them, and went screaming towards earth.

Aerial photo of the Gregg home after the bomb (Photo credit: Columbia Star)

Luckily for Walter Gregg and his family, the bomb wasn’t armed with its nuclear rod; its fission core was stored in a separate part of the plane. Unluckily for Walter Gregg, it was loaded with about 7,600 pounds of explosives; the resulting explosion destroyed his house, flattened his garden & surrounding forest, and created a mushroom cloud that could be seen for miles. By some miracle, not a single person was killed in the blast. The military reimbursed Gregg giving him a chance to start over, and the property was passed through the hands of several owners over the next fifty years. The hole was never filled in.

The original bomb crater was 30 feet deep and measured 75 feet across, although today not much remains to indicate that this was the site of a local footnote in Cold War history. A historical road marker on the north side of Interstate 76 marks the entrance to an overgrown road that leads to a hard-to-follow trail. Wind your way through a pine thicket past the foundation of the Gregg house, and you’ll come to what is now just a leafy depression in the woods, most easily recognized by the large plywood cutout of a bomb and kiosk with newspaper stories that were prepared for a 50th anniversary event. At one point the crater was used as a burn pit, giving the rainwater a murky appearance.

Crater Road

Because the property remains in private hands, visitors need the owner’s permission to visit the site. There is a second, much easier access point off Lucius Circle – also on private property. To round out the trip, make sure to stop by the Florence County Museum after stops at the crater and historical marker; it houses several fragments of the bomb. 

After the Mars Bluff incident all flights were required to ensure that bombs were locked down properly before takeoff. That still wasn’t enough to prevent a second Carolina event, as on January 23, 1961, a B-52 bomber broke up mid air, dropping two Mark 39 hydrogen bombs over Goldsboro, North Carolina. Information declassified in 2013 showed that one of the bombs came very close to detonating; it had its trigger mechanisms engage and its parachute open, two things that only happen when the bomb is intended to explode on target. Only one low-voltage trigger kept the bomb from detonating upon landing. In July 2012, the State of North Carolina erected a historical road marker in the town of Eureka, 3 miles north of the crash site, commemorating the crash under the title "Nuclear Mishap" – maybe a future destination for our crew?

"Commander Admits Crew Error Possible" and "It Was a Bad Day in Mars Bluff"

TRACK Trails - A Kids in Parks Program

“Get Unplugged. Get Outdoors. Get Cool Prizes.”

This is the Kids in Parks motto, on the free TRACK Trail program designed to get kids to have fun outdoors. With TRACK Trails in twelve states as well as an e-Adventure and Backyard Adventure option, Kids in Parks is an expanding network of family-friendly outdoor adventures that has been another way our family gets outdoors to explore new places.

Each TRACK Trail features self-guided brochures that turn your visit into a fun outdoors experience as you learn about the things you see all around you. Most trails have multiple brochures available, so that your kids can choose a topic that interests them and is appropriate for their age level. Common topics include insects, geology, animals and plants, and it is common for my boys to each choose a different brochure and end up sharing what they have discovered with each other.

The Glassy Mountain TRACK Trail at Carl Sandburg Home NHS

The program in South Carolina has really grown since I first wrote about it! There are currently 66 adventures, including ones in our National Parks - in Congaree, another in Cowpens National Battlefield, and one Ninety Six National Historic Site. The Swamp Rabbit Trail has a TRACK Trail in Travelers Rest, and there's another on the Peak to Prosperity Passage of the Palmetto Trail. Many of our State Parks have implemented TRACK Trails, such as Table Rock, Landsford Canal, Hunting Island, and Oconee Station and Musgrove Mill Historic Sites. And several of the County Parks and a few Heritage Preserves also have gotten in on the game: Nalley Brown, Chau Ram and Glassy Mountain. In addition, there are numerous adventures in North Carolina that are easily reached on a daytrip, including several in places that you’ve likely already visited: Gorges State Park, Pisgah National Forest, Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site, Chimney Rock State Park and the NC Arboretum.

Signing up is easy; you just create an account, and then start logging your hikes. Register here: https://www.kidsinparks.com/user/register. If you would rather not create an account, you can still participate; the brochures at the trailheads are free, and you’re sure to still have fun even if you don’t log your hikes online. First, find a TRACK Trail near you, and then let the adventures begin!

A luna moth caterpillar near Bolin Creek, Carrboro, NC

In return for registering hikes, kids receive cool gear. With their very first hike they’ll get a nature journal in the mail, where they’ll be able to put their trail stickers (each trail has its own sticker) and write down cool things that they saw or did. Additional hikes earn prizes like bandanas and hand lenses, with a total of eight prizes for those who have hiked eighteen TRACK trails.

The program isn’t just about hiking… In addition to the hiking trails there are also biking trails, geocaching trails, paddling trails, nature trail disc golf courses, and even adventures you can do in your own back yard. The Nature Trail disc golf courses have their own prizes, such as a course dogtag for each course played, and the Bike TRACK Trail gear includes a bike light and bell.

The NC Arboretum TRACK Trail near Asheville NC

The miles add up quickly! You’ll be able to track your adventures in online nature journal; see how many trails you’ve visited, how many miles you’ve hiked, and earn virtual medals for accomplishing extra goals within the program: TRACK Trail Traveler (visiting more than one TRACK Trail), State TRACKer (visiting TRACK Trails in multiple states), and Outdoor Adventurer (more than 1 type of TRACK Trail).

You can read more about some of the TRACK Trails in our region by following these links:

Congaree National Park, Hopkins SC

Cowpens National Battlefield, Gaffney, SC

Ninety Six National Historic Site, Ninety Six SC

Swamp Rabbit Trail, Travelers Rest SC

Table Rock State Park, Pickens SC

Landsford Canal State Park, Catawba SC

Hunting Island State Park, Beaufort County SC

Oconee Station State Historic Site, Walhalla SC

Musgrove Mill State Historic Site, Clinton, SC 

Nalley Brown Nature Park, Easley SC 

Chau Ram County Park, Westminster SC 

Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve, Pickens SC

Peak to Prosperity, Alston SC

Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site, Flat Rock NC

Chimney Rock State Park, Chimney Rock NC

NC Arboretum, Asheville NC

Crowders Mountain, Kings Mountain NC

Oconaluftee River in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Blackrock Summit Trail in Shenandoah NP

Carrboro, NC (Charles Herman Wilson Park)

Jockeys Ridge State Park, Nags Head NC

Lake Benson, Garner NC

Antietam National Battlefield, Sharpsburg, MD

Crowders Mountain TRACK Trail

To sign up for the Kids in Parks program, click here.

For a map of all the TRACK Trails, click here.

To learn more about the prizes the kids will receive in return for logging hikes, click here.

And to see examples of the brochures you’ll find on the TRACK Trails, click here.

On the Blackrock Summit TRACK Trail in Shenandoah National Park

Congaree National Park with the SC 7 Wonders Expedition

As we made our way to the Harry Hampton Visitor Center, sweat was already dripping down the small of my back; the heat index was somewhere close to 100˚ and it was only 9am. I had Zintis in the carrier and a backpack loaded down with extra water, and each of the other three boys had on their own packs with water bottles. We had woken early in order to make the 2-hour drive to South Carolina’s only National Park, and now were making our way to the Visitor Center to meet up with South Carolina 7 Wonders Expedition. I was already wondering if this wasn’t a mistake on my part; the older boys could hold their own on most hikes, but would we be able to keep up with the team on what was turning out to be one hot day? Not to mention the logistics were to be a little different – Zintis was not yet 2 months old and this would be my first solo hike with all four boys...

Introductions were made as the hikers gathered at the Visitor Center. We were joining a team that had for most part already been hiking together for half the month, and heading up the Expedition that would eventually traverse the entire state was Tom Mullikin. Tom has dived all of the world’s five oceans and summited more than 20 mountains across the globe. The former U.S. Army JAG officer has served as a “National Geographic Expert,” and is a Fellow in the Manhattan-based Explorer’s Club & London’s Royal Geographical Society. Currently Tom serves as chair of the Governor’s S.C. Floodwater Commission, and is leading the effort to build a flood-mitigating ocean-reef off the SC coast, all the while heading up his non-profit, Global Eco Adventures. A few words on the day’s hike, and soon we were entering the shade of the floodplain forest’s canopy.

Photo credit: Megan Roe

The SC7 expedition is named for the 7 Wonders of South Carolina. Along with treasures such as the Wild & Scenic Chattooga River, the highest point in the state and the Jocassee Gorges (one of Nat Geo’s “Last Great Places”), Congaree National Park takes its well-deserved place on the list as the 4^th Wonder of South Carolina. Over the course of 30 days, the SC7 team is traversing the state to visit each of the 7 Wonders, utilizing the Palmetto Trail as the guiding pathway from the Carolina mountains to the coast. For the entire month of July, Tom and SC7 are hiking, rafting, horseback riding, and scuba diving along more than 300 miles of the Palmetto Trail, stopping along the way to engage the public in conversation on topics such as adult & childhood fitness, conservation, renewable energy, plastic waste, and flood mitigation. You can read the entire itinerary on the SC7 website and listen to snippets of interviews and the fireside chats on their Facebook page; how many of South Carolina’s seven wonders have you visited?

Source: SC7 website

As it turned out, I should not have worried about our keeping up. The SC7 team set a fast pace, but there were plenty of stops along the way – the first of which was not more than a hundred steps into our hike when we met a resident rat snake. Our guide was Chief of Resource Stewardship and Science Ranger David Shelley, who proved to be a fountain of information on every topic: flora and fauna, history of the Park, and the effects of a changing climate on the region. Tackling this topic and raising awareness was one of the main goals of the expedition, and what better place to do it than the largest remaining area of old growth bottomland hardwood forest in North America?

Ranger Shelley among the cypress knees

Ranger Shelley led the way south on Sims Trail, where we learned about cypress trees and their knees, and caught a glimpse of a barred owl roosting just a hundred feet off the trail after it startled us with a loud hoot. Zintis had fallen asleep shortly after meeting the rat snake, and now happily dozed as we kept on. I chatted with Michelle McCollum of the South Carolina National Heritage Corridor about the miles the team had already logged, plans for the second half of July, and future plans for SC7. While the pandemic might have disrupted the 2020 expedition, the hope is that next summer the team’s goal of getting Carolinians out and active in the state’s most beautiful places can be realized.

Upon reaching Wise Lake we took a breather, the Ranger telling us more about the Congaree’s unique ecosystem as we gazed out over the still waters of the oxbow lake, a former bend in Cedar Creek. It was in another of these lakes that we spotted an enormous alligator gar on a previous visit – who knows what else lurks in these dark waters! (Well, Ranger Shelley probably knows, but I still won’t be taking a swim anytime soon!)

Just beyond the lake we got our first up-close look at a giant cypress tree, not quite a champion but in the same class. The Congaree boasts the tallest known specimens of 15 species of trees, including a 167-foot loblolly pine that is just 18 feet shy of the Boogerman white pine in Great Smoky Mountains NP, the tallest known tree in the East! The Congaree has the nickname “Redwoods of the East,” altogether home to six national and 23 state champion trees.

Photo credit: Megan Roe

By now sweat was streaming down my face, but luckily the boys were in excellent spirits despite the temperature having climbed to 93˚. We fell into step with Ost Haus, the film crew that will produce the documentary of the expedition, and were able to get in some questions about their adventures so far and about the logistics of filming. All I could think about was how much the equipment they were lugging along weighed! The broadcasting and media production company followed the expedition’s every hike from the mountains to the sea, making some extra stops along the way to document epic sunrises and special places. The crew has also been conducting interviews along the way; will this be the lucky break yours truly has been waiting for? (If it is, I owe it all to my cute kiddos, who (hopefully) stole the spotlight from this sweaty mess!)

We retraced our steps on Sims Trail until we reached the boardwalk, and hiked it back towards the Visitor Center. At this point we lagged behind most of the group, as every spider was examined and the forest floor scrutinized for snakes. The Ranger entertained the boys with dozens of cool facts about all the things they spotted, and the “did you know” stories continued on the ride home and well into the next week. The boardwalk is also incorporated into a Kids in Parks TRACK Trail, forming a flat 2.4 mile loop through the floodplain forest; the Kids in Parks program is a network of family-friendly outdoor adventures that feature self-guided brochures and signs that turn your visit into a fun and exciting outdoors experience. Our total mileage of Sims Trails to Wise Lake and boardwalk loop back was over 5 miles after taking into account the detour for the boardwalk section that is still closed – the kids slept well that night!

A big thanks goes out to the SC7 team for having us along on a portion of their adventure! We really enjoyed the hike, and wish we could have tagged along the whole month. It was also a pleasure following the SC7 Expedition online, learning so much about the state of South Carolina and adding a slew of ideas to our list of places to visit. While the 2020 expedition might have come to a close in Charleston last week, the adventure continues; whether in our state and national parks or in our own backyards, the beauty and inspiration of the natural world is all around us. Can’t wait to see what is in store for us with SC7 2021!

Opossum Creek Falls

We’ve been putting in extra energy to find places to recreate that don’t have the summer crowds, and are finding that the key is to be flexible, and to be willing to put in a bit of work. The roadside waterfalls, state parks and easy-to-get-to scenic overlooks are slam full, unless you’re willing to get up early. The out-of-the-way trailheads are much better, however we always have a back-up-plan just in case. The longer and steeper the hike, the better the chance of having the place to yourself; of course, this has to be realistic to account for heat and small children. And it helps to have a reward – either a plunge pool to cool off in, or a treat waiting in the cooler for after the hike.

One of the most successful of these excursions has been Opossum Creek Falls and the Chattooga River. Located in the Andrew Pickens Ranger District of Sumter National Forest, the trailhead is off Turkey Ridge Road (FS 755, also has the trailhead for Long Creek Falls) about 1.5 hours from Greenville. Make sure to download driving and hiking instructions as there is little service out that way, although strangely enough I had a signal once I got down on the Chattooga.

The hike is 5 miles round-trip if you take the trail that leaves from the road slightly before the parking area (the trail takes off between two boulders). For 2.2 miles you will be descending down to the Chattooga River along Camp Branch. The trail is easily followed, and the poison ivy avoided if you stay on-trail. There is an elevation change of more than 750ft, so plan accordingly!

Once you reach the river, the trail continues to the left along Opossum Branch. It is only another 1/3 mile to the falls, however there are a couple of tricky spots to reach the base.

After spending some time at the waterfall, we returned to the Chattooga for a few hours on the beach. The shoals just upstream have deposited a nice sandy beach, along with a shallow area great for kids. The opposite bank is Georgia, and you’ll see rafts and kayaks coming down the river on warm summer days.

The Chattooga River is designated a Wild and Scenic River, which means no roads to the river or development of any kind are allowed on 39.8 miles of the river since 1974. This is a remote corner of the state, the river bisecting the Ellicott Rock Wilderness which straddles three states (Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina) and three National Forests (the Chattahoochee, Nantahala and Sumter National Forests). To read more about the region, see my post The Wild and Scenic Chattooga River.

 

On the way back to Greenville, you might want to check out Chattooga Belle Farm. If you have any energy left, they have you-pick peaches, blueberries and nectarines. Or, pick up fresh produce from the farm store, have lunch at the bistro, or even enjoy a tasting at the distillery. More information here.