Givhans Ferry State Park

Givhans Ferry State Park encompasses a total area of about 988 acres of land near the town of Ridgeville in Dorchester County, South Carolina. To get to the park, just travel 35 miles from Charleston off the I-95. This park is one of sixteen South Carolina State Parks that was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) a New Deal Program that sought to provide a livelihood to many Americans that were unemployed during the Great Depression in the 1930s. Some of the amenities built by the CCC include four comfy two-bedroom cabins on a bluff along the banks of the Edisto River and one Riverfront Hall overlooking the Edisto River.

Besides these CCC buildings, other special features that attract visitors to the park include a Heritage Trust site that seeks to protect rare and diverse plant species that survive along the limestone bluffs. Other attractive plant species within the park include Sundew, Jack-In-The-Pulpit, and Black-Eyed Susans. Other special features of the park include sinkholes that are created as a result of underground streams eroding limestone rock.

Besides the geography and biota at the park, some of the other attractions to the park include several activities including boating, camping, interpretive programs, fishing, and hiking. Some of the amenities available at the park to facilitate these activities include four cabins, restrooms with showers, 25 campsites, canoe trail, primitive group camp, picnic area, two picnic shelters, hiking trail, meeting building, and a comfort station.

Dogs are also allowed to park as long as they are well-behaved and as long as the dog owner follows standard South Carolina Park rules. Some of the rules that must be followed include keeping the dog in a secure confinement or on a leash no longer than six feet long. Ensuring that the dog does not wander in or around lodge areas and generally avoiding any disturbance to wildlife in the park is expected.