Visit Wilderness

Search for a wilderness as the destination for your next outdoor adventure.

Bob Marshall Wilderness Area, Minnesota

Why Visit Wilderness?

While wilderness can be appreciated from afar—through online content, television, or books—nothing compares to experiencing it firsthand. Activities like camping, hiking, or hunting allow you to fully enjoy the recreational, ecological, spiritual, and health benefits that wilderness areas offer. These areas provide “outstanding opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation,” chances to observe wildlife, moments to renew and refresh, and the physical benefits of outdoor exercise. In many wilderness areas, you can even bring your well-behaved dog.

Learn more about the diverse ways in which we benefit from wilderness and threats wilderness areas face today.

Swamps and wetlands–that's what you'll find on all four Wildernesses in the Francis Marion National Forest. From June through August (the wettest season) much of the ground is usually submerged in 2 to 18 inches of standing water.

On September 21, 1989, Hurricane Hugo swept through with winds in excess of 135 miles per hour, devastating decades-old second-growth forest. Virtually every tree that reached nine inches in diameter fell to earth, and trails and old roads were washed away. Wildlife suffered greatly, especially the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker. On the four Wilderness areas, nature has begun to rebuild without human interference.

Insects abound, with mosquitoes, chiggers, and ticks reaching peak irritability from summer through fall. Many snakes, including poisonous water moccasins, copperheads, and rattlesnakes, make their homes here.

Within most of the areas visibility is poor due to dense vegetation and getting lost is easy. There are precious few spots dry enough for camping. If you desire a true South Carolina Wilderness adventure, bring shoes that will hold up when wet, insect repellent, and courage.

Hell Hole Bay, one of the four Francis Marion Wildernesses, takes its name from a large opening in the forest probably formed by wildfires dating back to before the 1700s.

For much of the year the Hell Hole Canoe Trail (6 to 12 inches deep, 6 to 8 feet wide, and just over a mile long) crosses the bay, but during the "dry" season it becomes a mushy hiking trail. The trail passes bald cypress, tupelo, and spreading maple. There are no other trails in the area.

Leave No Trace

How to follow the seven standard Leave No Trace principles differs in different parts of the country (desert vs. Rocky Mountains). Click on any of the principles listed below to learn more about how they apply in the Hell Hole Bay Wilderness.

Plan Ahead and Prepare
Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
Dispose of Waste Properly
Leave What You Find
Minimize Campfire Impacts
Respect Wildlife
Be Considerate of Other Visitors

For more information on Leave No Trace, Visit the Leave No Trace, Inc. website.

Location

Maps

Digital and paper maps are critical tools for wilderness visitors. Online maps can help you plan and prepare for your visit ahead of time. You can also carry digital maps with you on your GPS unit or other handheld GPS device. Having a paper map with you in the backcountry, as well as solid orienteering skills, however, ensures that you can still route-find in the event that your electronic device fails.

Online Maps

Interactive Map of the Hell Hole Bay Wilderness
FS Topographic Map
Google Earth

South Carolina Wildernesses

Printed Maps

Fetching MyTopo from Database

USGS Store

Rules & Regulations

Motorized equipment and equipment used for mechanical transport is generally prohibited in all wilderness areas. This includes the use of motor vehicles, motorboats, motorized equipment, bicycles, hang gliders, wagons, carts, portage wheels, and the landing of aircraft including helicopters.

Wilderness-Specific Regulations

Learn more about why regulations may be necessary in wilderness.

Contacts

Applicable Wilderness Law(s)

Public Law 96-560

Date: December 22, 1980
Acreage: 1,980 acres

Colorado Wilderness Act - Public Law 96-560 (12/22/1980) To designate certain National Forest System lands in the States of Colorado, South Dakota, Missouri, South Carolina, and Louisiana for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System

For more information (To download or see all affected wilderness areas) visit our law library for 96-560 or special provisions for 96-560 or legislative history for 96-560.

Want to Volunteer for Wilderness?

People who volunteer their time to steward our wilderness areas are an essential part of wilderness management. Contact the following groups to inquire about volunteer opportunities. Groups are listed alphabetically by the state(s) in which the wilderness is located.