Great Pee Dee River in South Carolina

by  guest-paddler

A self-supported trip created by guest-paddler

Trip Overview

one canoe, two people, and one black lab. We used kayak paddles.

We put in at Dewitts Bluff and paddled a 14' canoe 5.2 miles down the Great Pee Dee river to Bostics landing.

The river was at 13.6 ft and was flowing at at about 2mph on most sections. our max speed was 6mph and our median speed was 3mph. It took about 1-1/2 hrs with one stop along the way to see an interesting rock formation that seems to be someone building a landing. There is a strainer there formed by over hanging trees and we had to back paddle and make a sharp turn to avoid it. A little further down the river we slowed down to pick up some trash floating along that some careless person left behind. The only wildlife we saw was a large cat in the woods but we heard a lot of birds. It rained a little and was a bit chilly out but not too awful bad. We saw a few strainers but the river is wide enough to avoid them without even trying. We did come close to a couple just to see what types of material was caught.

The river is quiet and peaceful. We didn't see anyone else even fishing from the banks. At Bostics landing be sure you look for it when it should be close. There is a cliff of yellow clay washed out just before you get to the landing. You should start going to toward the cliff when you see it so you don't miss the landing. It's hidden just behind the cliff and can't be seen from the main flow. There is no shelter there but there is a small parking lot up a small hill.

If you walk across the parking lot to the path just beside the river you can get a nice view of the water and a quiet walk. this time wasn't so nice. I would suggest walking up the road to stretch your legs instead. someone left two dead wild boars at the entrance to the path.

It was a nice trip. No real difficulties or mishaps. The hardest part of the whole trip was loading and unloading the canoe in the truck.

Accommodations:

There are hotels in both florence and marion counties. The Pee Dee is the border between the counties. There is nothing close by. You can camp along the river but watch out for areas that look solid as you may sink to your waist when you step out of the boat. there are a few sand beaches when the river is really low.

Fees:

no fees, no permits.

Directions:

from Florence, SC go down the Pamplico hwy. when you get to Pamplico slow down to 25mph it's a speed trap town though I go the speed limit anyway. Just around the curve turn beside the library and go straight until you get to old river rd and turn left. turn right onto bluff rd and at the end you will see a shelter and the landing.(interesting fact) - some people take the clay from the cliff on your right and boil water to make a tea with it to get the minerals from it.

To get to get to Bostic landing turn right on old river rd and it is at the next intersection after Evans farm rd to your left. I forget the road name at the landing. It's easy to find on Google, Bing, or any other map.

Resources:

I used Google maps and Bing maps. The satellite view prints well and it a better guide than the regular map view. I also used Black star (www.blackstarnavigation.com ) on my blackberry for navigation and recorded my speed and distance.

Trip Details

  • Trip Duration: Day Trip
  • Sport/Activity: Kayaking, Canoeing
  • Skill Level: Beginner
  • Water Type: River/Creek (Up to Class II)

Trip Location