Mountainlike bluffs overlooking national park targeted for protection near Columbia
The state is moving to acquire more than 450 acres near Columbia that feature an unusual stretch of high bluffs across from Congaree National Park, a potential acquisition that would add to a corridor of protected land with sweeping views of the park.
At up to 200 feet above the Congaree River, the bluffs being sought by the state are among the highest points in the mostly flat land around Columbia and are rivaled by only a handful of properties with similar characteristics. The bluffs are in Calhoun County, just across the Congaree River from the national park in Richland County.
South Carolina wildlife officials are pursuing the 482-acre tract as an addition to the Congaree Bluffs Heritage Preserve, a state protected area that includes other stretches of high bluffs. Also nearby is land being protected by Audubon, the non-profit conservation group.
If the state succeeds in acquiring the property, it would be part of about six miles of riverfront land in Calhoun County that is protected from future development, Audubon officials say. It also would roughly triple the size of the state heritage preserve.
“Additions to Congaree Bluffs Heritage Preserve, less than an hour’s drive from Columbia, would be an asset to the public and add to the natural and cultural significance of the area through ... beautiful scenic hikes and views,’’ according to the proposal by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources.
Projected to cost $2.5 million, the land includes rare plants, mixed hardwood forests and vital stream habitat, state records show.
The area is significant, not only because it has high bluffs, but it also contains features of both the coastal plain and the mountains of South Carolina, Audubon’s Tim Evans said. The area in-and-around the heritage preserve contains both mountain laurel, a plant found mostly in the Appalachians, and Spanish moss, a plant familiar to many people on the coast. Spanish moss hangs from trees and is a signature species of the Lowcountry.
“This is kind of where the mountains and the Piedmont and the coastal plain all meet,’’ Evans said. “There are little elements of all of them in that one little band of bluffs along the Congaree.’’
The state Joint Bond Review Committee approved spending $30,000 Tuesday to study the acquisition, which would be complete in June 2027. The state Heritage Trust Advisory Board has recommended funding for the acquisition. The land is being offered for sale by the Creech Family Limited Partnership of Sumter County, records show.
If the sale goes through, it would follow a major acquisition two years ago by the Audubon Society. A landowner sold about 400 acres for $1 million. That land is near the state heritage preserve. Audubon is also working to secure other property along the riverfront.
Rebecca Haynes, state director of the Audubon Society, said efforts by both the DNR and Audubon will help protect an important area from development.
“We think it’s great for DNR to acquire more property on the bluffs,’’ she said. “They’re so pretty.’’
The high bluffs being sought for protection are unusual, but not unique to the Columbia area. A handful of other properties along rivers contain notable elevation. Those include Cook’s Mountain, at 400 feet above the Wateree River. It has been protected from development as part of a state heritage preserve.
