If you plan on hiking or biking the Peak to Prosperity Passage of the Palmetto Trail, be sure to pack your smart phone along with a water bottle.
The 10.8-mile rail trail now features a dozen small, round signs with QR codes you can scan into your phone or tablet to learn about the history, culture and natural resources of the area.
The mobile tour is the first created for the cross-state recreational trail system. It includes audio, video, photographs and text information that will add to your outdoor adventure.
At one of the first QR stops, you'll learn that the pilings seen in the water from the 1,100-foot Broad River trestle were from the original bridge. It was destroyed during the Civil War by the Confederates in an effort to delay General Sherman's troops as they made their infamous march to the sea, burning towns along the way.
If you don't have a smart phone with online access, you can dial (803) 234-4346, and enter the stop number to hear the audio version of the tour. You also can download audio MP3 or video MP4 files on your electronic device from links you'll find on the Palmetto Trail Website. (Click here to get to the links.)
The trail starts on the banks of the Broad River at Alston in Fairfield County and runs west through a piedmont forest into Newberry County. Along the way, you'll cross 15 wooden trestles over Crims Creek, including Nathan's Trestle. The original bridge also was burned in 1865 by the Union cavalry while withdrawing from Confederate forces advancing from Newberry.
The Palmetto Conservation Foundation, the nonprofit organization building the Palmetto Trail, plans to create mobile device tours for other sections of the trail network. Next up is the Wateree Passage in Sumter County.
To date, 315 miles of the planned 425-mile trail have been open to the public. Built as a series of passages showcasing the unique history, culture and geography of the Palmetto State, the trail will eventually run from Oconee State Park in the Upstate to Charleston on the coast.
Mobile Tour Along the Palmetto Trail
