SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019
72 BACKPACKER.COM
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WATEREE SECTION
Palmetto Trail
Try a slice of the Palmetto Trail
near Columbia, hiking an 11-mile
point-to-point through the Wateree
Section. A scend from a swa mp
to one of the county’s highest
points, Molly’s Bluff, for views of
the stream-threaded wetlands.
Trailhead Poinsett State Park
(33.8051, -80.5481) 45 miles south-
east of Columbia Shuttle car
Farmstead Rd. (33.8442, -80.6487)
28 miles east of Poinsett State Park
Season Ye a r - r o u n d Permit None
Info palmettoconservation.orgOVERNIGHT
SASSAFRAS LOOP
Ta b l e R o c k S t a t e P a r k
Take the long way to South
Carolina’s high point on this 23
miler. Start fast: The Foothills Trail
gains 1,959 feet in 3.7 miles en route
to 3,563-foot Sassafras Mountain,
where an observation tower offers
views of the wrinkled hills below.
Backtrack 1 mile to the Roundtop
Mountain Passage of the Palmetto
Trail and camp around mile 12.
Nex t day, follow the Pa lmetto
Trail 8.9 miles back. Trailhead
Nature Center (35.0322, -82.7005)
131 miles northwest of Columbia
Season October to April Permit $5/
day to park Info foothillstrail.orgColumbia, SC
MULTIDAY
LAUREL VALLEY TO
BAD CREEK
Foothills Trail
The Foothills Trail racks up almost
25,000 feet of elevation change
over 77 miles of hard hiking. But if
you don’t have a week, the Hesters
recommend a three-day, 34.7-mile
chunk, which burns up climbs and
cools down in waterfalls.
Starting from Laurel Valley,
travel along tree-shrouded streams
until mile 8, where Laurel Fork
Falls’ braided white ribbons reach
wider than they are tall. Camp
around mile 12. The next morning,
ascend a hillside on hundreds of
wooden steps. Wind your way for 10
miles to scattered sites along Bear
Creek. Nex t day, head out 9 miles
to the visitor’s center at Bad Creek,
taking a short detour to overlook
Lower Whitewater Falls, which
tumbles in tiers for hundreds of feet.
Trailhead Laurel Valley (35.0509,
-82.8128) 139 miles northwest of
Columbia Shuttle car Bad Creek
Visitor Center (35.0124, -82.9989)
33 miles west of Laurel Va lley.
Foothills Trail Association offers a
hiker shuttle (donations accepted).
Permit $2/day; pay at trailhead
kiosk. Season October to May Info
foothillstrail.orgA thru-hike on
the Foothills
Tra i l y i e l d s
surprises like
multistory
Virginia Hawkins
Falls.April & Bernie
Hester
AMBASSADORS, PALMETTO
TRAIL
WHEN APRIL AND BERNIE
Hester started hiking in January
2017, they had no idea how far
they’d get. April has multiple
sclerosis, which, on bad days,
makes walking a struggle. The
pair had dreams of hiking the
Appalachian Trail, but thought
MS would prevent it.
While out hiking one day, they
spotted signs for the Palmetto
Trail, a 350-mile trail in South
Carolina that starts on the sea-
shore and ascends to the Blue
Ridge Mountains. They decided
to try it. “As we hiked, April just
got stronger and stronger,”
Bernie says. When they were
about 100 miles into the trail, her
daily mileage grew to 22.
Having proven their fitness on
the Palmetto Trail, they’ve now
finalized plans to hike the AT in- “If you just keep going, you
can do anything that you put your
mind to,” April says.
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