Francis Marion and Sumter National Forests

Spanning from the Lowcountry coast to the Blue Ridge escarpment, Francis Marion and Sumter National Forests offer extraordinary ecological diversity across 629,000 acres in three distinct South Carolina landscapes. The Francis Marion division near Charleston features longleaf pine savannas, blackwater swamp forests, and coastal plain ecosystems still recovering from the devastating impact of Hurricane Hugo in 1989, which flattened vast tracts of forest. This coastal unit harbors one of the largest populations of endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers in the nation and provides critical habitat for swallow-tailed kites, fox squirrels, and numerous amphibian species. The Sumter division in the upstate includes the Chattooga Wild and Scenic River, made famous by the film Deliverance, offering Class III-IV whitewater through a deeply forested gorge along the Georgia border. The Foothills Trail traverses 77 miles of the Sumter's Blue Ridge terrain past waterfalls including the stunning Whitewater Falls. Together, the forests provide over 450 miles of trails, exceptional fishing, and hunting opportunities that reflect the full range of South Carolina's natural heritage from sea level to 3,500 feet.