Astonishing biodiversity exists in Congaree National Park, the largest intact expanse of old growth bottomland hardwood forest remaining in the southeastern United States. Waters from the Congaree and Wateree Rivers sweep through the floodplain, carrying nutrients and sediments that nourish and rejuvenate this ecosystem and support the growth of national and state champion trees. Operating-hours data available from NPS. Entrance-fee data available from NPS.
Use this park condition page to compare map context, current alerts, facilities, weather, and planning recommendations before shaping a one-day visit.
For a perfect Congaree day, start with the official alert status, then decide which mapped stops, short walks, scenic drives, and backup options still fit your group.
Important alerts activeOfficialCommunity mappedApplication derivedAI explanation
Forecast
Partly Cloudy
Coverage: stale
Air quality
AQI 16
Coverage: stale
Sunrise / sunset
6:56 AM EDT / 7:48 PM EDT
772 daylight minutes
Major alerts
4
Important alerts active
Planning help
See what might fit this park today.
Planning help
Congaree
Application derived
Choose a park and preferences to start.
Park map layers
Congaree activity map
Community mapped
Loading mapped features...
Facilities and recreation
Mapped places to consider, with limits in mind.
Campground
2 official or mapped records available here
Place
21 official or mapped records available here
Visitor Center
1 official or mapped records available here
Sources and freshness
Where these notes come from.
Official: NPS park profile, alerts, links, and cached feature records.
Community-mapped: OpenStreetMap features and amenities where available.
Application-derived: Scoring, daylight, freshness, data coverage, and condition labels.
AI explanation: Plain-language summaries over selected facts only.
