Keowee Toxaway State Park is located right in the foothills of the Blueridge Mountains. You can also access Lake Keowee from the kayak and paddleboard Keowee Toxaaway State Park launch site. State Park. In other words, you get lake and mountain views at Keowee Toxaway State Park. Let’s take a look at all the fun that you can have at this beautiful South Carolina State Park.
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Kayak and Paddleboard
After entering the state park, travel down a beautiful winding road to get to the lake and boat access.
The boat access is for non-motorized boats only, which is excellent for paddleboarders and kayakers.
Motorized boats can launch from an access point about 5 miles from the state park, so you will still see some motorized boats, but there is still less boat traffic in the state park area compared to other areas of the lake. The water was peaceful and the views were stunning. We could see the mountains as well as well-kept golf greens as we paddled.
(The golf course is located on the other side of the lake and is not part of the state park, still the views of the course are quite pretty.)
Relax along a Beach
Small sandy beaches can be found along the shores in several areas around the lake.
If a group of people is occupying one beach, you can easily paddle to another one. We found a small beach right beside the boat access.
In fact, my kids didn’t want to wait for the paddleboards to inflate so we carried our paddleboards in their backpacks as we walked along a hiking trail that lead down to the beach.
My children played on the beach while I inflated my paddleboard with the Jackery portable battery and portable electric pump.
We then paddled along the shoreline in front of “our little beach.”
Swimming
Swimming is permitted at Keowee-Toxaway State Park. In fact, we saw many people swimming and lounging on floats in front of small little beaches throughout the lake.
Camp
This South Carolina State Park has 10 RV campsites and 14 tent campsites. The RV campsites can accomadate 40 feet total vehicle length. The RV campsites have electric and water hookup. The tent sites have water, tent pads, and fire rings.
All the campsites have access to bathrooms and showers.
Fish
People can find plenty of places to fish from their kayaks and paddleboards or along the shoreline. You can find plenty of fishing spots along the half-mile trail that hugs the shoreline.
Hike
Keowee-Toxaway State Park has two hiking trails- The Natural Bridge Nature Trail and The Raven Rock Trail. The Natural Bridge Nature Trail is about a 1.3-mile long loop. The Raven Rock Trail is a 4.4-mile loop.
The Shop
The main attractions at this park are the lake and the trails, but they do have a little shop/visitor center. The shop is pretty on the outside. It sits at the top of a hill and had an old small mountain church feel on the outside.
Inside, you will find a few souvenirs as well as a giant 3-D map of sorts.
The Ultimate Outsiders stamp are located at the sign just before you get to the store.
What is Ultimate Outsiders, you ask? South Carolina State Parks have a challenge called “The Ultimate Outsiders Challenge. If you visit all the South Carolina Parks, you get an Ultimate Outsiders T-shirt. To participate in the challenge, you simply go to any state park office and ask for the stamp book.