Gorges State Park

Gorges State Park hosts 8,000 acres of temperate rainforest including waterfalls and incredible Southern Appalachian biodiversity. At least 250 - 500 acres of Gorges is old growth, likely protected from historic logging by the steep terrain. While the trees have not been dated via trunk cores, it is believed the oldest parts of the forest are estimated to have remained undisturbed by humans since at least European settlement of the area.

Gorges State Park sits along the blue ridge escarpment, the topological termination point between the Appalachian Mountains and the lower elevation piedmont. It is host to 125 protected species including the charismatic Oconee Bells (Shortia galacifolia), Green Salamander (Aneides aeneus), and a variety of other rare ferns, mosses, and vertebrate creatures. Gorges SP hosts extensive natural communities such as Montane Oak-Hickory Forest, Chestnut Oak Forest, and Acidic Cove Forest, and widespread Pine-Oak/Heath Forest. Rich Cove Forest and Spray Cliff Forest, uncommon natural communities, also occur in small patches within the park. Other attractions to Gorges are numerous waterfalls, hiking down to Lake Jocassee, and travelers of the Carolina Foothills Trail pass through the park on their 70-mile trek.