Doug’s a complex guy with more than one motto but I’m guessing that “I like big trees and I cannot lie” might be one of them. We’ve visited the large sequoias in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, giant redwoods in California, Gus (the largest larch tree which is located in Montana), the world’s largest alligator juniper saved by firefighters known as the “Granite Mountain Hotshots” in Arizona, and Sitka Spruce in Olympic National Park and the Lake Quinault Spruce.
Acre for acre there are more champion hardwood trees in Congaree National Park than anywhere else in the U.S. and most other places in the world. Congaree boasts more than 15 species of record trees. They’re taller than the old-growth forests in Japan, the Himalayas, nearly all deciduous forests in Europe, and similar to tall hardwoods found in southern regions of South America.
These over 130 ft. tall giant hardwoods and towering Loblolly Pines sit in a “bottomland” (not a swamp which is permanently saturated in water, but an area that floods on a seasonal basis). Once there was estimated to be 30 million acres of bottomland forests but now only 40% of that remains. Here, the Congaree River overflows its banks an average of ten times per year (usually in late winter and early spring).
Given that this is one of the smallest national parks in the U.S., you can get a real feel for the area in just one day. Start at the visitor center and take the elevated Boardwalk Loop Trail. Look for birds (over 170 species can be seen here), 500-year-old Bald Cypress, Tupelo trees, Sweetgum trees that can be 15 stories tall, and the Loblolly Pines that can reach 17 stories!
If you have extra time, we hear that you can rent kayaks or canoes in the area.
Also, if you’re planning to be in the area from mid-May to mid-June try entering their lottery to obtain a limited number of passes to observe the synchronous fireflies at night. Researchers say that the males gather in groups and flash synchronously to attract females to the area. We haven’t seen them, but I imagine it’s a bit like this classic SNL skit for fireflies. LOL!
