Congaree National Park

Who would've thought that South Carolina would be home to one of the most fascinating National Parks in the country?

This park has been on my bucket list since I moved down here.
My NH family was in town for the Easter weekend so I decided it was a perfect time to visit.

Known as the Redwoods of the East, this park has some of the coolest, tallest trees East of the Mississippi.
The park is lined with cool boardwalks you see us standing on in the photo above-- they go for miles and miles.

One of the first things that caught my eye was how fat the trees were at their base.
We learned that this is because they sit in water, so the base absorbs it and becomes swollen.
This makes a great home for lots of little creatures like this one...

Crawdad. I used to play with these allll the time growing up in Indiana.
As a kid there was nothing more exciting than running outside during a rainstorm to watch these little southern lobsters crawl up out of their holes in the ground.
#SouthernLivin'
haha


On a more serious note, the most interesting part about this park is the history. Some of the biggest trees in the park were around 1,000 years old! Imagine the things they've seen...

In fact, it's been said that slaves who escaped plantations would run to this forest for refuge because with all of the trees it would be difficult to find them. I kept thinking to myself how incredible it was that maybe the tree I'm leaning against was once a resting place for a tired, frightened slave. Just wild.

The park is free.
I highly suggest checking this place out if you ever find yourself exploring the Palmetto State!
It's about 20 minutes outside of Columbia but feels like 20 minutes out of the dinosaur age.
:)