day trip from Myrtle Beach: lynches River county park
Lynches River County Park is in Coward, SC and it makes an excellent day trip from Myrtle Beach. Put this one on your list if you love trails, walking boardwalks, swinging bridges, slow moving rivers, and excellent nature centers. It checks all those boxes and more.
need to know details
ADDRESS: 5094 County Park Road, Coward SC
PARK HOURS: 9am–Sunset, daily (except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve & Christmas Day)
ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER HOURS: Tues–Sat, 9a–5p; Sun, 1–5p
DISTANCE FROM MB: 1 hour – 1.5 hours. It’s located 14 miles south of Florence.
SUMMARY: This is a 676-acre park with several activities for kids of all ages: trails, nature center, kayaking, canoeing, and a summer splash pad! You can even rent a cabin to stay on the grounds.
4 big things to do here
We loved a lot but here are the biggest things you’ll probably want to experience.
ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER | It fits into its surroundings so well and inside you’ll find some unique educational components. Kids 3+ will find something here to enjoy. I loved the collection of insects, the backlit x-ray films of different insects, and the seasonal material setup. There is also a long line of critters including some Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches.
BRIDGES / CANOPY WALK | This is really great. It’s not very long – it includes 4 bridges but they are each a decent length and have platforms between them. The last one sits right at the edge of the river and offers a nice view. There is a limit of how many people can be on it at one time.
TRAILS | There are 4 trails of various lengths. You’ll access them to the right of the nature center (when looking at it). For younger kids just exploring the .25 mile boardwalk would be plenty but if you want to go farther into the woods then that is possible too.
SPLASH PAD | We went over the winter so we haven’t seen this in action. It’s open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11a–6p and 1–6p on Sundays. Def pack a swimsuit for summertime visits. The splash pad looks pretty big. Cost is $3 per person (ages 17 and younger).
what else to do
If you want to extend your day a little bit then swing down to Lake City to enjoy lunch and check out some murals! Or if you want some of the best BBQ in South Carolina then find Scott’s BBQ in Hemingway. We did them all in one trip and wrote about that here.
