National Great Outdoors Month

National Great Outdoors Month is celebrated in June and serves as a reminder to enjoy and appreciate our state parks and wildlife refuges. This observation, begun in 1998, encourages us to explore our parks and enjoy the beauty that awaits us in our natural world.

National Great Outdoors Month is celebrated in June and serves as a reminder to enjoy and appreciate our state parks and wildlife refuges. This observation, begun in 1998, encourages us to explore our parks and enjoy the beauty that awaits us in our natural world.

Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 3
Episode 4

Video

Before making their way to the next stop, Rudy and Jim come across an Eastern Mud turtle resting under a bush.
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 4
Episode 5

Video

At the next stop, Rudy and Jim analyze more of the plants found in the area: Hackberry trees, and Switch Cane dominate the area. A healthy Poison Ivy can be seen completely encasing a dead oak tree.
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 4
Episode 6

Video

Rudy and Jim find a young Bald Cypress tree, and a Papaw tree, which flowers in the early springtime.
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 2
Episode 2

Video

The Edge - Here, where the high ground meets the flood plain, we see more plant diversity. Large Cinnamon Ferns, Dog Hobble, Loblolly Pine trees, and American Beech trees frequent the area. With a...
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 3
Episode 3

Video

As Rudy and Jim make their way closer to the Flood Plain, we see more tall canopy trees: Red Maple trees, and Sweet Gum trees. Several flowering plants grow in the area as well: Elderberry, Winged...
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 7
Episode 11

Video

At this last stop at Congaree Swamp, Rudy and Jim find another Sweetgum tree, which grows very well in this wet, muddy environment. A record size Willow Oak tree, toppled over by the wind, knocked...
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 5
Episode 7

Video

Oxbow Lake – A Laurel Oak tree has found a way to support itself in the muddy, wet soil. Water Tupelo trees, Bald Cypress trees, and Loblolly Pines dominate the areas closer to the swamp.
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 6
Episode 10

Video

Closer to the water, Rudy and Jim find more Cypress-Tupelo trees, and come across two Clubtail dragonflies in the process of mating.
Congaree Swamp (S.C.) Stop 6
Episode 9

Video

Congaree Swamp is abundant with insect life. Rudy and Jim come across a newly emerged dragonfly, and a Zebra Swallowtail butterfly is seen feeding on a White Clover flower. A Clubtail dragonfly is...