Recreation

If you like the outdoors, the Lakelands Region is a smorgasbord of opportunity. The weather, the land, the lakes, the wildlife, the garden . . . ours is an outdoor playground to feast upon throughout the year. Some of your choices are golfing, boating, swimming, fishing, tennis, biking, hunting, gardening, hiking, bird watching, and plenty of team sports, from soccer to volleyball, plus much, much more.

Lake Greenwood
Annually Lake Greenwood's 11,400 acre lake is stocked with over 280,000 striped bass which helps this lake rank high in the standings for crop of fish per acre. A public landing is available at Lake Greenwood State Park.

Lake Richard B. Russell
Completed in 1985, Lake Russell has about 550 miles of shoreline and covers 26,650 acres. This excellent habitat for largemouth bass, bream, crappie, catfish, and trout also
provides exceptional bluegill fishing. There are more than 12 public access points on the South Carolina side of this beautiful lake.

Lake Rabon
Covering 450 acres, Lake Rabon is stocked with bream, bass, and catfish. Northeast of Greenwood, this lake has picnic areas, boat ramps, and a comfort station.

Lake Secession
Owned by the city of Abbeville and used primarily for municipal power production, Lake Secession is located along the Rocky River above the headwaters of Lake Russell. Boat access is available at Barton's Landing on Hwy. 184 near Antreville.

Lake Thurmond
One of the largest inland bodies of water in the South, Lake Thurmond has a shoreline of 1,200 miles and covers 71,100 acres. This lake has more than 100 islands and features white, striped, and hybrid bass as well as largemouth bass, crappie, and bluegill. A commercial marina serves lake Thurmond boaters.

Lake Murray
This popular fishing lake lies between Greenwood and Columbia South Carolina. As one of the state's largest lakes, Murray is an excellent resort lake for a wide variety of water sport activites.

State parks located on the region's lakes, South Carolina state parks assist in making these lakes accessible to the public for fishing, boating, and skiing. Most have camp sites, cabins and ramps, some have extensive vacation resort amenities.

Baker Creek State Park
1305 acres located on US 378 at Lake Thurmond, 3 miles west of McCormick in the heart of Sumter National Forest on the SC/GA border.

Calhoun Falls State Recreation Area
438 acres located on SC 81 at Lake Russell, 1 mile north of Calhoun Falls.

Hamilton Branch State Recreation Area
731 acres located on US 221 at Lake Thurmond, 12 miles south of McCormick

Hickory Knob State Resort Park
1091 acres located off US 378 at Lake Thurmond, 8 miles west of McCormick
at the SC/GA border

Lake Greenwood State Recreation Area
941 acres located on SC 702 at Lake Greenwood, 17 miles east of Greenwood.

Hiking and Biking Trails abound in this gently rolling, wooded area of the state of South Carolina.

Baker Creek State Park-primary use of this trail is mountain biking
Catfish Creek/Peninsula-about 5 miles of trail
Cedar Springs Motorcycle Trail-about 10 miles of trail
Horn Creek Trail-about 5 miles of very popular biking trails
John de la Howe Interpretive Trail-almost 2 miles of hiking trail
Lick Fork Lake Trail-almost 2 miles of hiking trail
Long Cane Horse Trail-a wide variety of terrain on this 23 mile looping trail
Parson's Mountain Hiking Trails-2 trails, one climbs 400 feet in elevation, another a
self-guided, interpretive trail depicting activities of the early settlers
Parson's Mountain Motorcycle Trail-a 12 mile trail following old logging roads
Savannah River Scenic Highway---a biking route through picturesque villages and recreational opportunities
Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve-a unique site, second most outstanding site in the eastern Piedmont
Stevens Creek (Modoc) Trail-a 6 mile, challenging trail with creek crossings and steep hills
Sumter National Forest-over 100 miles of fire roads with routes that will allow a multi-day trip and epic rides
Turkey Creek/Wine Creek Trails-several hiking and mountain biking trails with multiple accesses and exits

Hunting and Recreation Areas also abound in the area around Maxwell Springs.

The Clinton House Plantation
Upland bird and duck hunting, trophy whitetail hunts and spring turkey hunts
are available at The Clinton House Plantation located on SC 56 in Clinton.

Harris Springs Sporting Clays
Located on Harris Springs Road at Waterloo, Harris Springs Sporting Clays has 15 shooting fields and 50 or 100 target round for sport shooting.

Little River Plantation
Located out of Abbeville, Little River Plantation is a lodge and hunt camp, which provides guide service with 3 or 6 day hunts for archery or gun hunting of deer, turkey, quail, and dove as well as a clay range.

Musgrove Mill State Park
An interpretive center with a primitive campground is located at Musgrove Mill State Park.

Golfers can enjoy the outdoors on the links of several fine golf courses with 8 courses in the county and over 16 in the surrounding area.

Some of the closest are listed here.

Cedar Springs GC, Greenwood-9 holes, open to the public
Cokesbury Hill GC, Hodges, ---9 holes, open to the public
Greenwood CC, Greenwood-21 holes, private club
Hickory Knob State Resort Park, McCormick-18 holes, open to the public
High Meadows CC, Abbeville-9 holes, open to the public
Hunters Creek Plantation, Greenwood-18 holes, open to the public
McCormick CC, McCormick-9 holes, open to the public
Par Three West-open to the public, great for beginners
Parkland CC, Greenwood-18 holes, open to the public
Persimmon Hill GC, Saluda-18 holes, open to the public
Pine Ridge GC, Edgefield-18 holes, open to the public
Rolling "S," Waterloo-18 holes, open to the public
Star Fort National GC, Ninety Six-18 holes, private club
Stoney Point GC, Greenwood---18 holes, open to the public
Ware Shoals GC, Ware Shoals-9 holes, open to the public

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