Picnic area · Congaree National Park
A group picnic pavilion with grills near the Boardwalk Trail.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Congaree Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Congaree National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this place
Harry Hampton Visitor Center and Boardwalk“You're approaching the Harry Hampton Visitor Center, where exhibits introduce the forest and the people who lived and worked here. Look for the wooden mosquito meter before heading out.”
Plays as you drive up to Congaree Picnic Shelter in the Parkwolf Congaree Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Congaree Picnic Shelter is a roofed group pavilion in an upland pine stand beside Parking Lot 1 at Harry Hampton Visitor Center. It's an easy place to eat before or after the nearby Boardwalk Trail, which leads into Congaree's old-growth floodplain forest. I'd make this a practical stop for a group meal or a cookout, rather than plan an outing around the shelter itself.
There are picnic tables, two large barbecue grills, and trash and recycling cans. A paved path leads from the first parking lot, and the shelter has two wheelchair-accessible tables. Accessible restrooms and an outdoor water fountain are nearby at the visitor center, rather than part of the shelter.
The shelter can be reserved; when it isn't booked, visitors may use it first-come, first-served. Check availability if your group is counting on having the space. The Boardwalk Trail and visitor-center area are close by if you want to pair lunch with a walk.
Wildlife
146 sightingsAlligatorMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
242 sightingsWild BoarMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
291 sightingsBarred OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
248 sightingsCottonmouthMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
13 sightingsWood StorkMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
61 sightingsGreat Blue HeronMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Congaree. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyBoardwalk Trail2.6 mi · 1.5 hr · At the trailheadLevel boardwalk, old-growth trees, and a Weston Lake overlook.
ModerateWeston Lake Trail4.5 mi · 2.5 hr · At the trailheadA 4.5-mile loop through old growth to Weston Lake.
EasyFirefly Trail1.8 mi · 1 hr · At the trailheadAn easy woodland walk to Congaree's spring firefly display.
ChallengingOakridge Trail7.1 mi · 4.5 hr · At the trailheadOld-growth oaks and flooded guts make this a navigation-first hike.
EasySims Trail3.2 mi · 1.5 hr · At the trailheadA level old road to a creek bridge and park history.
EasyLongleaf Trail0.6 mi · 20 min · 0.5 mi awayA short forest link from Longleaf Campground to the Boardwalk.
ChallengingKingsnake Trail7.4 mi · 4 hr · 2.2 mi awayA flat, long floodplain walk with sloughs, bridges, and tricky wayfinding.
Visitor center · At the trailheadHarry Hampton Visitor CenterMaps, exhibits, and a film make this a smart first stop.
Sight · 0.4 mi awayMoonshine Still (Boardwalk Stop 15)A distant glimpse of an iron still from Prohibition.
Campground · 0.5 mi awayLongleaf CampgroundWalk-in tent sites put you close to Congaree’s trails.
Campground · 0.5 mi awayBluff CampgroundA six-site hike-in camp tucked among Congaree’s upland trees.
Sight · 0.6 mi awayRichland County PineA former state champion with a 1750s backstory.
Sight · 0.6 mi awayWeston Lake OverlookLook for turtles beside this 2,000-year-old oxbow lake.
Sight · 1 mi awayCongaree National Park SignThe entrance marker comes a mile before the visitor center.
Sight · 1.1 mi awayWise LakeA former river channel with forested banks and a canoe approach.Parkwolf’s Congaree ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
