Boardwalk Trail in Congaree National Park

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See the Hiking Trails web page for a trail map, tips on hiking in Congaree National Park, and a link to reviews of the other trails in the park.

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Length:  2.4-mile loop
Time:  1 hour
Difficulty: Easy

The Boardwalk Trail is the most popular trail in Congaree National Park, and other than stopping at the Harry Hampton Visitor Center, walking it is about the only thing the majority of visitors to the park do before leaving (based on a 2011 visitor study). There are 20 numbered stops along the boardwalk that correspond to information on a brochure that is available in the Visitor Center, so if you want to learn about the ecology of the area, be sure to get a copy before departing.

Numbered stop on the Boardwalk Trail at Congaree National Park

The Boardwalk Trail is comprised of an elevated section and a section at ground level. The Congaree River averages ten major floods each year, typically from late winter through early spring. As much as 90 percent of the park south of the Visitor Center can be flooded, and most of the trails end up underwater. When this happens, walking out and back on the elevated section of the boardwalk is the only thing visitors can do, and even it can be underwater during extreme flooding.

Elevated section of the Boardwalk Trail at Congaree National Park

Boardwalk Trail is underwater during a flood at Congaree National Park (photo by National Park Service)

The trail begins at the back of the Visitor Center. From there, walk .2 mile until coming to where the loop portion of the trail begins. While you can go around in either direction, the trail was meant to be hiked counterclockwise, so stay straight at the fork. The reason for this is that by walking around in the counterclockwise direction you will come to the numbered stops in chronological order.

The Boardwalk Trail is wheelchair accessible. There are benches along the way for those who want to sit and relax, but other than in the late fall through early spring, you won’t want to stop for a break because the mosquitoes will eat you alive. I visited the park in mid-October, and while there were mosquitoes, there were never enough for me to apply insect repellent (which I hate to do). I did find that if I stopped long enough, mosquitoes eventually found me.

Bench along the Boardwalk Trail at Congaree National Park

The trail takes visitors through a section of old-growth bottomland forest, one of the few such forests in the United States that was never logged. Growing in the dryer areas are loblolly pines, beech trees, and switch cane.

The Boardwalk Trail at Congaree National Park passes through an old-growth bottomland hardwood forest

In the swampy areas along the Boardwalk Trail are bald cypress and tupelo trees. Both grow in waterlogged soil and are characterized by swollen bases, which give the trees a broader footprint needed to stabilize them in the wet soil. To tell the two apart, look at the bases. Tupelos are smooth while the cypress bases are rough looking, as if somebody took a pilar of clay and raked their fingers down it. Furthermore, cypress roots stick out of the ground like straws or periscopes near the base of the trees. Such roots are called cypress knees.

Swampy area along the Boardwalk Trail in Congaree National Park

Cypress and tupelo trees in the swamp along the Boardwalk Trail in Congaree National Park

At the southeastern corner of the Boardwalk Trail is a detour to an overlook of Weston Lake. This was the location of a former bend in the Congaree River, but when the river changed course over 2,000 years ago, this deeper section, still filled with water, was left behind to create what is known as an oxbow lake. Today the lake is about twenty feet deep, but over time it will gradually fill in with organic debris and become a swamp. There are no streams that flow into and out of it to provide a continuous supply of fresh water, but it does get fresh water when the Congaree River floods the area. It is connected to guts at either end, which when filled with water appear to be streams, but these only contain rainwater and the same Congaree flood water as the lake.

Weston Lake in Congaree National Park

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