ACE Basin, 6th wonder of SC

As correspondent to the South Carolina 7 Wonders expedition we spent a month exploring the state, our last week of July in the Edisto River area and ACE Basin, the 6^th Wonder of South Carolina. Want to know more about this ecologically unique area that checks all the boxes for a fantastic weekend in the Lowcountry? Keep reading to find out what the ACE Basin is, and how best to see it!

ACE Basin? What’s that?

Three rivers – the Ashepoo, the Combahee and the Edisto (ACE) – come together at St. Helena Sound in South Carolina’s Lowcountry to form a rich estuary. This 350,000-acre ACE Basin watershed contains one of the largest areas of undeveloped wetlands/uplands ecosystems remaining on the Atlantic Coast, and features a remarkable interlocking web of ecosystems including forested uplands, wetlands, tidal marshes, barrier islands, and peatlands. According to The Nature Conservancy, it supports 33 types of natural plant communities and provides critical habitat for waterfowl, migratory birds and endangered species. In 2014, National Geographic featured the ACE Basin as its cover story, and The Nature Conservancy has declared the area “one of the last great places.”

Egret and roseate spoonbill

From the early 1700s to mid-1800s, much of the ACE Basin was home to large plantations that primarily grew rice. In the late 1800s many of these plantations were purchased by wealthy sportsmen as hunting retreats, who managed the former rice fields and adjacent upland estates for a wide range of wildlife – ensuring that the region remained relatively undeveloped.

Sounds cool! But how can we see it?

The principal road through the ACE Basin is U.S. Highway 17, the ACE Basin Parkway, which skirts the north end of the protected areas connecting Charleston to Yemassee. Small communities within ACE Basin include Bennetts Point, Green Pond, Jacksonboro, Wiggins and Willtown Bluff. There are numerous access points to the public lands of the ACE Basin including 23 boat landings, allowing visitors opportunities to experience it by land and by water!

Edisto Learning Center & Edisto Beach State Park

Edisto Spanish Mount Shell Midden

A good place to start is at Edisto Beach State Park. The park’s environmental education center is a “green” building with exhibits that highlight the natural history of Edisto Island and the surrounding ACE Basin. One of four oceanfront state parks in South Carolina, it features trails for hiking and biking in addition to the 1.5 miles of beach renowned for its shelling.

Edisto Beach State Park is also an excellent home base for additional ACE Basin explorations; if camping or staying at a cabin there, you are within an easy drive of the Edisto River side of the region including ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge and Botany Bay!

View from Dawhoo Bridge boat ramp

ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge

Driving north from Edisto Beach there is a boat ramp at the Dawhoo Bridge that offers westerly views (great for sunset viewing!) over the salt marsh and towards Ernest F. Hollings ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge. At just under 12,000 acres, the Refuge is key in protecting the Edisto portion of the estuary. In addition, the Refuge office is a former rice plantation house that was built in 1828, one of only a few antebellum mansions that survived the civil war in the area; today it is protected on the National Register of Historical Places.

While the Grove Plantation House is temporarily closed to visitors, all Refuge grounds remain open to a variety of recreational activities such as hunting (in season), picnicking, hiking, fresh and saltwater fishing, canoeing, wildlife watching, photography and environmental education. Special events and programs are held throughout the year for visitors to learn more about the ACE Basin and National Wildlife Refuges; see the Fish & Wildlife Service website.

ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge

Botany Bay

The 3,363 acre Botany Bay Plantation Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is located in the northeast corner of Edisto Island, and is important to numerous wildlife species including the federally-threatened loggerhead sea turtle and the state-threatened least tern. Cultural sites including the Fig Island Shell Rings, outbuildings from Bleak Hall Plantation and elements of the Alexander Bache U.S. Coast Survey Line – all listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The causeway to the beach is wheel chair accessible, and the designated driving tour provides excellent viewing opportunities for the mobility impaired; for more information, please visit the SC DNR website.

Edisto River & State Parks

A great way to see the Edisto River is from kayak or canoe. For more on the Edisto River Canoe and Kayak Trail, Edisto River Adventures tubing, and the two SC State Parks that provide access to the Edisto (Givhans Ferry and Colleton), see my article on the Edisto River and Givhans Ferry here. The blackwater river is the longest of its kind in North America, and is a favorite for cooling down on hot summer days.

Audubon's Beidler Forest

A portion of the headwaters of the Edisto River and ACE Basin is Four Holes Swamp, which visitors can experience through Audubon’s Beidler Forest. This 18,000-acre bird and wildlife sanctuary in the South Carolina Lowcountry is the world’s largest virgin cypress-tupelo swamp forest, home to thousand-year-old trees and a wide range of wildlife. It is a great place to visit for families, as the entire 1.75-mile trail is a boardwalk: easy to follow, and provides safe viewing of wildlife without getting muddy or wet. 

Ravenel Caw Caw Interpretive Center

This nature center has over six miles of walking trails that wind through its diverse habitats, with interpretive exhibits, displays, and an assortment of programs. Boardwalks take visitors through the wetlands and rice fields dating to the eighteenth century. Caw Caw is a birding hotspot for coastal SC, but is also important historically: it’s one of the important sites of the Stono Rebellion, a Member of the National Park Service’s National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program, and features thousands of naturalized tea plants from a 20th century tea farm.

Caw Caw Interpretive Center

On your visit you can expect to see American alligators, swallow-tailed kites, and bald eagles! Admission is $2/person, for more information see the Charleston County Parks website. 

Bear Island Game Management Area

It was a hot day in July when we found ourselves turning off Highway 17 towards Bennetts Point a few weeks ago. Much like many of the destinations on this side of Charleston – Edisto Beach, Hunting Island, Hilton Head – there is a significant drive from the main highway to reach the ocean. Over the next 15 miles we wound our way along live oak-shaded lanes, the giants draped in Spanish moss functioning almost as curtains to the lands beyond. After crossing the Ashepoo River we entered Bear Island Game Management Area, home to countless waterfowl and protected species such as wood storks and bald eagles. The miles of dikes on Bear Island provide plenty of wildlife-viewing, hiking, biking and hunting opportunities.

ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve

Soon after passing Bear Island we arrived at the Michael D. McKenzie Field Station. Headquarters for the ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR), the field station serves as a community hub for coastal science, education and collaboration. The NERR encompasses nearly 100,000 acres of ACE Basin, and is managed in a joint effort by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SC DNR) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA). Adjacent Mosquito Creek was living up to its name, but luckily we were able to escape the insects by boarding a boat and heading out on the Ashepoo River as part of the South Carolina 7 expedition.

NERR, photo credit Charlie Whitney

Viewing the ACE Basin from the water is an excellent way to not only get away from the bugs, but also to get a feel for the enormity of coastline and estuary protected by the NERR and other entities.  There are numerous science, education and training programs operated by the SC DNR out of the field station including ones off and on the water; the facility contains offices, wet/dry labs, a conference room and an outdoor classroom, while science related school groups and naturalists visit the field station for a variety of educational outdoor activities. For more on the programs and workshops offered, please visit the ACE Basin NERR website. Our boat tour with the SC7 team included an orientation to the ACE Basin watershed, and contained a look at the oyster reefs, plenty of wildlife-viewing, and discussions of salt marsh and estuarine diversity. For those wishing to tour the ACE Basin by boat, but looking for an option other than the NERR, a number of outfitters in Charleston, Beaufort and Colleton counties offer guided kayaking trips on the three rivers, as well as tours for those who prefer to enjoy the scenery from the comfort of a motorboat.

Islands only accessible by boat!

If traveling by water in the area, you more than likely will pass through or near the St. Helena Sound Heritage Preserve, a collection of coastal and barrier islands only accessible by boat. Otter Island is part of this Heritage Preserve, and receives special protection because of its significance for rare plants, threatened and endangered species, and as an historic site. With developed islands to the north (Edisto) and to the south (Harbor, Fripp and Hunting), Otter Island is the only spot where wildlife species can rest, feed and reproduce without development pressures for a long stretch of coastline. Another barrier island only accessible by boat but providing ample wildlife viewing is South Fenwick Island.

Loggerhead sea turtle nesting area

Donnelley Wildlife Management Area

Heading back out from Bennetts Point you’ ll pass the 8,000-acre Donnelley Wildlife Management Area just as you reach ACE Basin Parkway (Highway 17). The nature trails here offer birdwatching, hiking, biking, riding and hunting opportunities; check the website for seasonal closure information, as the WMA is closed during certain hunt periods. 

When should we visit?

As anyone who has spent time in the Lowcountry knows, each season down near the coast comes with advantages and hindrances. Summer days can be hot and buggy, especially in the marsh, however a hot August day might just be perfect for tubing the Edisto or enjoying the ocean surf. Spring and fall offer excellent birdwatching, cooler temperatures and fewer bugs, but some areas might see closures for hunt seasons. And while winter might mean you have the trail/boardwalk to yourself, it also brings cold & unpredictable weather… As with any trip, planning ahead can really pay off in terms of knowing what to expect and what adjustments might have to be made. Our year-round basics include protection against the weather & insects, water and snacks, and comfortable clothes & footwear.

But snakes, alligators and spiders?!

Before we took our boys tubing on the Edisto, I asked how often they see alligators on that stretch of the river – the answer was never. However if you are kayaking the Four Holes Swamp, chances are you might see one or two. In any case, the key is to follow the basic guidelines as you would with all animals - keep your distance, and don’t feed or harass the wildlife. For our family, the fear of encountering the animals that get all the bad press has slowly turned to hopes of catching a glimpse of one of them: a gator from a causeway as we head out to one of the barrier islands, a snake from the safety of the boardwalk at Francis Beidler Forest, or a shark feeding out beyond the break as we sit safely on the shore of Edisto Beach. Know what to do in case you come across a venomous snake, and know how to tell the difference between the ones that can hurt you and the harmless ones that help keep the rodent population in check. And finally, stay on the trail, be mindful of where you are stepping, and exercise caution when out in the wilderness; animals are a part of the outdoor experience, and will add so much to your ACE Basin adventure!

Something for everyone!

More than 130,000 acres of land have been protected through public/private partnerships in the heart of the ACE Basin, qualifying it as one of the most acclaimed freshwater natural areas found on the East Coast. It is open to hiking, biking, boating, driving, riding, diving, viewing, tasting (we enjoy stopping at local stands for fresh produce and seafood – but that’s a whole other post!)… Each time we visit, we discover another thing we love about the area, and I hope this article has inspired you to visit the ACE Basin and find something of your own to love. Happy adventuring!

Four Holes Swamp, Beidler Forest

For more on the ACE Basin, check out The Nature Conservancy page. 

This article first appeared on Kidding Around Greenville in conjunction with the South Carolina 7 Expedition as Here’s How to See Amazing Wildlife and Plants in South Carolina’s ACE Basin.

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.

Little River Canyon

For millions of years, the Little River has flowed down from the top of Lookout Mountain to Weiss Lake, carving a canyon that is one of the deepest and most extensive canyon and gorge systems in the eastern US. The canyon and surrounding areas became part of the National Park Service in 1992, the 15,000+ acres in Alabama forming the Little River Canyon National Preserve.

We had crossed the border into northern Alabama the previous evening after a stop at Kennesaw Mountain, opting to stay the night in Fort Payne for easy access to the Preserve the next morning. The drive had in fact taken us up and over Lookout Mountain. For most of its length Little River actually flows along the top of Lookout Mountain, making it one of the cleanest and wildest rivers in the southeast, undammed aside from an old hydroelectric project at DeSoto Falls on the West Fork near Mentone, Alabama. Before it was the Little River Canyon NP, most of the canyon was part of DeSoto State Park, and after breakfast we opted to begin our explorations of the Canyon in the State Park, at DeSoto Falls.

DeSoto Falls is named for Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto. The A.A. Miller Dam and upper falls can be seen from the parking area, but to view the 104-foot waterfall, visitors must descend stairs to the overlook.

From the DeSoto Falls Picnic Area we drove south about 16 miles, passing through DeSoto State Park and then climbing back up the Cumberland Plateau to the Little River Canyon Center. The LEED-certified building is a Jacksonville State University public facility with programs, events, gift shop, classrooms, movie theater and National Park Service offices. From the Center there is a trail that connects to Little River Falls picnic area.

45-foot Little River Falls marks the beginning of the canyon. A short boardwalk leads from the parking area to an overlook with a view of the waterfall. Being that a storm system had passed through the previous evening the falls were considerable, and we took a moment to enjoy the view before continuing on ¾ mile Little Falls trail. The trail winds south along the east rim of the canyon, with a final steep descent to the river at the end.

The bottom of the canyon was once the floor of a shallow sea during the Paleozoic Era, while the sandstone cliffs consist of sandstone and conglomerate shale, siltstone and coal. It was interesting exploring the rock formations along the river at this point, with the sound of Little Falls (also known as Martha’s Falls or Hippie Hole) accompanying our examination.

Having returned to the car, we drove over the bridge and then turned south on Little River Canyon Parkway. The first 12 miles drive along the rim of the canyon follow State Road 176, while the next 9 miles make a steep descend on Canyon Rim Drive. The Parkway features multiple overlooks and trailheads, while Canyon Rim Drive is mostly a connector to Canyon Mouth picnic area on the south end of the Preserve. While 176 is curvy and steep, Canyon Rim Drive is considered impassable to trucks, trailers and RV’s; I would suggest asking at the Visitor Center if you are unsure about the state of the road and suitability of your vehicle.

View from Little River Falls Overlook

The first overlook is Little River Falls overlook. Having seen the falls from a much closer vantage point, we took a look but then headed to the next one, Lynn Overlook. A sandstone rock glade stretches along the length of the parking area, allowing easy access to the eight rare plant species that live there. One of those is Elf Orphine, a small red plant about an inch tall. We were lucky to spot some blooming, and the kids enjoyed catching glimpses of lizards as we explored the rocks.

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The red succulent leaves of #diamorpha reflect light and hold water. Found in seasonal pools and shallow basins on rock outcrops, #elforpine becomes active in late fall and winter, blooms in late March, then dies. #Diamorphasmallii #littlerivercanyon #findyourpark #springbreak2019 #alabamahills

A post shared by Liene | Femme au Foyer (@femmefoyer) on Apr 16, 2019 at 7:55pm PDT

The next pull-off is for Beaver Pond Trail. The easy 1.24-mile loop trail is a favorite for bird watchers, winding through the woods to an area that used to be a pond dammed by beavers; be warned, the pond is no longer there. We opted to continue on to Mushroom Rock. This rock formation cannot be missed – it is literally right in the middle of the road. Legend has it that the road crew constructing the original scenic drive refused to remove the giant mushroom, and instead built the road around it. On the rim side of the road is a series of rock outcrops, and the kids had fun climbing and exploring before we continued on.

There are three trails that lead from the Parkway down to Little River. The first is Lower Two-Mile Trail, up next after Mushroom Rock. Although the shortest of the three, it is proof that the quickest way to the bottom of the canyon is straight down. We opted to skip these trails, no matter how short, as we had already descended into the canyon on Little Falls Trail, and were planning on a second exploration at Canyon Mouth.

View from Canyon View Overlook

Subsequent scenic overlooks include Hawks Glide, Canyon View, Wolf Creek and Crow Point. At Eberhart Point we took the left turn onto Canyon Rim Drive and immediately saw some steep, winding sections of road. There is really only one turn-off on this section, which is for Powell Trail. We continued down to Canyon Mouth Picnic Area, paid a parking fee, and pulled into the parking lot to discover we had the entire place to ourselves.

Canyon Mouth Trail was a quick 1.6-mile hike that led us up the banks of Little River to the point where Johnnie’s Creek flows in. There was quite a bit of poison ivy, we saw a snake or two, and the trail kind of petered out with no particular scenic view. On the other hand, there were a couple of sandy spots along the river that made for a nice place to sit and enjoy the river, and we spent a considerable amount of time there just listening to the sound of rushing water.

Little River, near Martha's Falls

Overall, Little River Canyon was a nice surprise. An excellent visitor center combined with a variety of trail options and the scenic drive make for an easy one-day exploration. The Preserve could be combined with time (and camping) at DeSoto State Park, and it’s only about 4 hours from the Upstate – doable for a long weekend. For us it was just day two, as we continued west across Alabama into Mississippi…

The ascent of Kennesaw Mountain

At over 420,000, the population of Atlanta is more than seven times that of Greenville. Occasionally we’ll make a stop in the 'big city', such as on our recent trip to see Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrors exhibit at the High Museum of Art, other times it’s just a race to beat the traffic as we follow the brake lights through to Florida. Most recently it was a combination of both as we bounced around the perimeter to Marietta, and Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield.

Union and Confederate forces maneuvered and fought near Kennesaw Mountain from June 19, 1864 until July 2, 1864. Today, the 2,965-acre park is managed by the National Park Service, and features a visitor center and a driving tour, as well as monuments, historical markers, cannon emplacements, and 22 miles of hiking trails. The visitor center is a great place to start your tour of the park; a short film, exhibits and knowledgeable staff will help you get oriented.

Trail to summit of Kennesaw Mountain

Although there are trails that ascend Kennesaw Mountain, we opted to take the shuttle bus to the top of the mountain. On weekends it is not possible to drive to the top; visitors have to either hike the road or trails (ranging from 1-2 miles to the mountaintop), or take the shuttle. The fee was $3/adult, $1.50/kids ages 6-12, and we felt it was well worth due to the time we saved and utilized on a couple of later hikes. From the shuttle stop near the top of the mountain there was an overlook with a panoramic view of Atlanta, and a short trail to the summit.

Atlanta, just the way I like it - from a distance

The driving tour of the battlefield includes seven major points of interest, each with parking and wayside exhibits. After descending from Kennesaw Mountain, we loaded up the car and headed on to stop #2 on the tour, the 24-Gun Battery. Located on a small, wooded rise facing Little Kennesaw and Pigeon Hill, this Federal gun emplacement is called the 24-Gun Battery because it housed four batteries, each one with six artillery pieces. From their location the Federals bombarded Confederate forces on Kennesaw Mountain for 10 days. Although it’s less than 1.5 miles from tour stop #2 to the visitor center by trail, we opted to park at stop #2 and walk in to the battery – it was less than a mile in and out. Some cannons have been positioned along the trail to assist in visualizing the emplacement.

24-Gun Battery cannons

The third point of interest is the Wallis House, dating back to about 1853 and abandoned upon the approach of Sherman’s armies. We continued on to stop #4, Pigeon Hill (where a trail leads to Confederate entrenchments where one of Sherman’s two major attacks was repelled), and then to Cheatham Hill.

View from the 'Dead Angle'

The mounds at Cheatham Hill are the remains of earthworks defended by the Confederate army; 11 miles of these defenses stretch through the park. At Cheatham Hill (tour stop #5) Confederate Gen. Benjamin F. Cheatham created an angle in their lines that due to the high casualty count came to be known as the “Dead Angle.” We hiked ¼ mile along the earthworks to the Illinois Monument, then looped around back to the parking lot, stopping to read the markers. The Illinois Monument is the largest monument on the battlefield, and near its base is a monument at the entrance of a tunnel constructed by Union soldiers intending to blow up a section of the Confederate defenses.

The Illinois Monument

Stop #6 on the driving tour is the Sherman/Thomas Headquarters where the two Union generals met to discuss the assault on Confederate Gen. William Hardee’s troops on Cheatham Hill. And finally, at stop #7 is Kolb’s Farm, where on June 22, 1864, Union soldiers repulsed Confederate General Hood’s attack. The Kolb house is not open to the public, although there is a small wayside with a placard adjacent to the Kolb family cemetery.

The Kolb Farmhouse, restored in 1964

Kennesaw Battlefield provided more than we had envisioned when we first planned our stop. Not only does it preserve a historic Civil War battleground of the Atlanta Campaign, but it interprets the events of those two years and presents it as part of the larger Civil War story. Kennesaw also provides a valuable greenspace in a what is densely populated urban area. The wildflowers and forest we saw there provided a glimpse into what the woodlands of this part of Georgia looked like hundreds of years ago.

Fire pink, found along 24-Gun Battery trail

Luckily, we were headed west, and so wouldn’t have to fight traffic once we concluded the driving tour of the battlefield. As we continued on our journey, Kennesaw Mountain shrinking in the rearview mirror, we followed the sinking sun into Alabama and another adventure.