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4.5
55 votes

Poinsett State Park

6600 Poinsett Park Road, Wedgefield, South Carolina 29168 USA

  • Independent
  • Credit Cards
    Accepted
  • Pet Friendly
  • Not Wheelchair
    Accessible
  • Public
    Restrooms
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“Camp in the High Hills!”

In the High Hills of Santee, where the South Carolina Sandhills of the Midlands region meet the coastal plain region, you’ll find Poinsett State Park. Called the "mountains of the midlands," this mixed ecosystem yields a high degree of biodiversity and some of the most unique natural sightings in the park system, especially along the Palmetto trail which winds through the Manchester State Forest. The High Hills of Santee are dotted with the hiking, biking and equestrian trails that wind through the park–some of which connect to the Palmetto Trail that leads hikers through the Manchester State Forest.  Poinsett’s 10-acre lake makes for a serene setting, and can be used for fishing and johnboat rentals. The park also offers campsites, a fishing pond, a coquina bathhouse built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, pre-revolutionary grist mill ruins and rustic cabins.  Camping Information : The campground provides 24 sites with individual water and electrical hookups which rent for $18.10/site/night and 26 tent sites with individual water, which rent for $13.74/site/night. These rates include all taxes and fees. Some sites accommodate RVs up to 40 feet. The campground is convenient to restroom facilities with hot showers. All sites include water, picnic table and a fire ring.

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Reviews of Poinsett State Park

12 people have reviewed this location

Ratings Summary

3.4 Access
4.1 Location
3.8 Cleanliness
4.2 Site Quality
4.9 Noise

Cell Coverage

Verizon 4G

Confirmed by 4 users | Last reported on April 05, 2021

AT&T 4G

Confirmed by 3 users | Last reported on November 14, 2023

T-Mobile 4G/5G

Confirmed by 3 users | Last reported on November 14, 2023
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Reviewed by
monicafollowell

  • 6 Reviews
  • 4 Helpful
March 19, 2021
Rated 4.0

This park offers great hiking and outdoor activities. We camped in our 30 ft RV. Note that some campsites are paved with gravel and others are paved with dirt. We stayed in site 15, which happened to be gravel. I was thankful for that because it rained while we were there. You might want to call for a site reservation for gravel.

The park ranger was helpful to point out trails that my family would enjoy. There are lots of trails to choose from whether biking or walking. The trails each have a uniqueness to them. At the pond the park offers a variety of activities. We went in mid-March so the peddle boats ($10/hour) were offered for that time of year. They also had paddle boards and kayaks for warmer months.

The bathrooms were older, but clean. Plenty of hot water. At the RV sites there were water and electric hook ups, no sewer. The gnats were pretty bothersome at times. If the breeze picked up they were unnoticeable. We were told that the mosquitos get awful later in the season. Overall, we would go back for the hiking and outdoor time!

1 person found this review helpful
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Reviewed by
Campendium

October 29, 2016
Rated

It’s never a good thing when I’m apologizing and wondering what I’d gotten us into as we drove the narrow, windy road to Poinsett State Park. The road eventually narrowed to one-way (without any traffic control) so do your best to time your trip in/out of the park to avoid vehicles going the opposite direction. The road itself was paved, although in poor repair, until you got close to the campground entrance and then it changed to a rutted dirt road. It could be that the condition was a result of damage from Hurricane Matthew, but some of the interior roads were so rutted we avoided them altogether.

One we made it into our space, we were quite happy. While size varies, overall the sites are very spacious and level with lots of trees and vegetation between some of the sites for privacy. Some sites have water and 30amp electric, others have water only, and some have no hoop-ups. There are showers, bathrooms and a dump station. The campground did not have any staff on-site, but our space was reserved with our name on it. The park office is about a ½ mile from the campground if you need assistance.

We originally chose Poinsett for the mountain bike/hiking trails, unfortunately all the trails were still closed for repair compliments of Hurricane Matthew. Park staff and volunteers were working on getting everything opened back up by 11/5/16. There is a large picnic area and a small fishing lake adjacent to the park office where they rent paddle boats, canoes, and stand-up paddleboards.

The park is driving distance to Congaree National Park (about an hour away) and we visited there one day to hike and another to kayak Cedar Creek.

We had 2 bars of Verizon 4G unboosted and 3-4 bars of 4G with the booster.

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $22.00

Days Stayed: 3

Site Number: 23

2 Access
4 Location
4 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon 4G

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Reviewed by
Campendium

September 26, 2018
Rated

Stayed 5/11/2018 to 5/14/2018. This is a great state park to visit if you want something different from all the other low country similar areas. Meaning this is high country at this park, with some good hills and good hiking trails. Even though it is primitive in a way with dirt roads, it was very pleasant to stay at.

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Nightly Rate: $29.00

Days Stayed: 2

Site Number: 14

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise
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Reviewed by
Campendium

August 23, 2020
Rated

I write this review with mixed feelings I want to love this campground but, I would not go back to this campground until the roads are fixed. They are all washed out. The road up to the campground is very narrow and uphill. We ended up driving the car, down so I could block traffic for my husband to drive down safely. The road to the campground is paved with lots of cracks and potholes. So is the road into the park. The campground roads are washed out, and very uneven. If you have a big rig, you best be very comfortable with driving on bad roads, low hanging trees and close turns. The park and grounds beyond the roads are very very pretty. My husband said the trail he road was very well marked. The park office, and beach are far away and downhill. We ended up driving down to the area. We did not Kayak. We left a day early because there was bad rain predicted and we didn't want to get stuck. I want to go back to the park and hike the trails and kayak on the lake. Almost nobody was wearing masks. Some people came uncomfortably close and didn't give us time/space to get by.

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Nightly Rate: $24.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: 22

3 Access
3 Location
4 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

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Reviewed by
Campendium

February 22, 2021
Rated

Poinsett State Park is absolutely beautiful and a true hidden gem. We recently visited South Carolina and after spending the weekend visiting nearby Congaree National Park, we opted to stay at Poinsett State Park for 4 nights in our Mercedes Sprinter campervan. As we had read online, the roads into and around the park are truly in desperate need of repair, but once in the campground, the sites are very nice. Site 24 was perfect as it is the last one with hookups and that allows RVs. The hiking is fantastic - I was able to easily hike several miles each day with my dogs and most of the hiking trails are very peaceful and pretty. Even though we were there in early February, we did encounter some gnats/mosquitos and we had to be incredibly vigilant about picking ticks off of our dogs. The only negative is that the park host was incredibly rude to us. We travel with our two well behaved dogs and ALWAYS keep them on a leash. I spent several hours a day hiking with them and walked through the campground with them on several occasions, which I know the host saw since we walked past him multiple times. On the third day of our stay, as I was bringing one of our dogs back and we were switching leashes and harnesses, our other dog jumped out and got away from us for a minute. We immediately ran after her, and after calling her name, she turned around and came back. She was out for less than a minute, and we were actively pursuing her with leash in hand the entire time. My husband was literally running after her without shoes on. The camp host came and yelled at us claiming that our dog "almost attacked his dog." She's a 9 year old Golden Retriever that is literally the most friendly dog on the planet. She was in our view the entire time and never barked or growled, only went up somewhat near them (several feet away) to say hello. It was clearly a mistake that she got out and something we rectified immediately. He kept yelling at us well after she was in our control. While I 100% understand and agree that all dogs should be on leash, it was clearly a mistake and absolutely nothing happened. It made us feel really awkward and uncomfortable. Then, on top of that, the next day, we couldn't even walk our dogs because there were 2 loose dogs running all over the campground with literal bells on - the camp host of course didn't address what was actually a flagrant violation of the rules by a neighboring camper. Other than that, our 4 day stay was perfect, but this really negatively impacted our stay.

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Nightly Rate: $18.00

Days Stayed: 4

Site Number: 24

4 Access
5 Location
4 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
4 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon 4G

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Reviewed by
Campendium

April 01, 2021
Rated

Poinsett SP is a beautiful park with CCC buildings, lake, trails, etc. located in a fairly remote area. The drive to the park from the north leads you past a large fenced area with "Do Not Enter - Air to Ground Bombing Practice" signs. You can hear some of the practice from the park, but it isn't excessively loud. The park has many hiking trails, mtn. biking trails, kayak and canoe rentals, and even a little Jr. Ranger program. It was generally a very quiet peaceful place.

The roads are another matter. The entrance road is in terrible shape and very narrow with trees lining it. And the turn off road to the campground is only wide enough for one vehicle at a time to transit it. It is a fairly long, winding hilly road and nowhere to pull over if one rig is coming down while you are trying to go up. You can not see from one end to the other. Unhook your tow car before going on the road to the campground.

The campground was also a mixed bag. There are a few sites that had been improved and were level gravel pads. The other sites are mud/sand and a big mess. Most of the sites were relatively level, except site 3. Sites have water and 30 amp hookup and there is a dump station.

There is a camp host supposedly. We never saw him in 4 days. No one checked us in and the host does not take the paper occupancy tags off when a camper leaves, so they were falling off and disintegrating into litter.
Not really sure what the hosts role was?

The biggest drawback were the blanket of gnats that covered us the moment we arrived. It was almost like a black cloud surrounding you. Fortunately, there were times that the gnats were not as intense, but it limited our ability to be outside. Another camper said that 2 weeks previously there were no gnats, but bug repellent didn't phase them. Fortunately, they generally didn't sting or bite, but we probably ingested quite a few inadvertently.

The park is about an hour drive to Congaree Visitor Center and an hour to Columbia.

Verizon was 2 bars with a booster and enough bandwidth for email, but not a lot else.

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Nightly Rate: $23.00

Days Stayed: 4

Site Number: 3

2 Access
4 Location
3 Cleanliness
2 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon 4G

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Reviewed by
Campendium

April 05, 2021
Rated

On first impressions, we want to like this place. The sites are roomy and rustic... shaded and wooded. There are nice trails and overall it’s a pretty park. As others mentioned, the road in is rough. We didn’t think it was too crazy, but we’ve been fulltiming for 2 years and pretty much seen it all. The worst part is right before the campground. Just go slow and you’ll be fine.

That being said, this place is rough for those who need internet to work. 2 bars (boosted) with Verizon. It works, but it’s slow.

The bugs here are the worst we have ever experienced. They seem to be mostly gnats and they aren’t biting much, but you are swarmed every time you step outside. It’s pretty much like those reality tv shows of people in the Alaskan bush who have to wear a mosquito net over their heads. They land all over your face, in your eyes, up your nose.. we’ve swallowed several. I don’t think we’ve ever talked about bugs before in a review but they really are bad to the point that it’s close to unbearable to be outside. Not exaggerating!!! Bug spray helps for about 5 minutes. We are supposed to stay here 9 nights but have been here 3 and we will likely leave early.

Overall, pretty park but really can’t recommend, especially those who need decent internet. Maybe at a different time of the year it would be better.

Oh apparently there is an air to ground bombing center nearby. We haven’t heard anything yet which is why we gave noise 5 stars.

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Nightly Rate: -

Days Stayed: 9

Site Number: 2

3 Access
3 Location
4 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon 4G

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Reviewed by
Campendium

May 12, 2021
Rated

I’m new to camping and just set out on an adventure with a truck/camper. Everything here was as expected or better. The sites are clean, spacious and spread out. The hiking trails are well-marked and originate from campsite. The bathrooms are clean and well-maintained (with hot water). There is a large field for my dog to run around and get out some energy. Some reviews mention bugs... they did keep me inside sometimes but it’s nature and I’m new at this so I’ll be getting a bug deterrent / zapper when I get into town.

PS - I used a booster (bc I work from the road with a lot of video calls) and it took both AT&T and T-Mobile up 1 bar.

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Nightly Rate: $25.00

Days Stayed: 4

Site Number: 24

5 Access
5 Location
4 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

T-Mobile 4G

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Reviewed by
Campendium

October 19, 2021
Rated

Stayed mid-Sep 2021. Chose this park based on proximity to Congaree NP and not wanting a private cg. It is a pretty park but the roads into the park, the campground roads and the facilities really need some attention. They are improving the sites with fresh gravel (we had one of those) but it seems to be lacking in funds and even a camp host to maintain the facilities. Sites are spaced out nicely and are spacious. Our site's 30A connection was sporadic (shorting) to had to use the 20A. Tried to tell a ranger but we never found one. Hope SC Parks directs some funding to this park to do it justice.

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Nightly Rate: $18.00

Days Stayed: 2

Site Number: 21

3 Access
4 Location
1 Cleanliness
3 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

T-Mobile

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Reviewed by
Campendium

November 14, 2023
Rated

We travel full-time in our RV and work remotely. Although this felt way out in the middle of nowhere, it did not disappoint! Sites are large, clean, and quiet. In the woods, yet we were able to call Jim calls with use of T-Mobile & AT&T together. They also have some great hiking trails that we absolutely would recommend checking out!

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: -

Days Stayed: 4

Site Number: 16

4 Access
4 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

T-Mobile 4G

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Poinsett State Park

6600 Poinsett Park Road
Wedgefield, South Carolina
29168 USA
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  • Unavailable
    Parking
  • Check
    Pets Allowed
  • Check
    Restrooms
  • Check
    Wifi
  • Unavailable
    Wheelchair Accessible
  • Check
    Credit Cards Accepted
Affiliation
State park or forest
Back In RV Sites Count
20
Last Nightly Rate
22.0
Longest Vehicle Length Reported
34.0
Lowest Nightly Rate
18.0
Max Length
40ft
Max Stay
14
Sites Count
50
  • Unavailable
    Paved Sites
  • Unavailable
    Fifty Amp
  • Unavailable
    Full Hookup
  • Unavailable
    Pull Through
  • Check
    Tent Sites
  • Check
    Dump Station
  • Unavailable
    Big Rigs
  • Unavailable
    Open Seasonally
  • Unavailable
    Age Restricted
  • Check
    Back In RV Sites
  • Unavailable
    Boondock
  • Check
    Cabin Sites
  • Unavailable
    Dispersed Sites
  • Unavailable
    Firewood
  • Unavailable
    Fulltime Residents
  • Check
    Group Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Laundry
  • Unavailable
    Mobile Homes
  • Unavailable
    Permit Required
  • Check
    Potable Water
  • Unavailable
    Propane
  • Check
    Public Water
  • Unavailable
    Pull Through RV Sites
  • Check
    Reservations
  • Unavailable
    Sewer Hookup
  • Check
    Showers
  • Check
    Sites
  • Check
    Standard Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Vehicle Wash Permitted
  • Unavailable
    Water Hookup
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