Landsford Canal

Nate Johnson

Park Manager

Hello! I’m Nate Johnson, manager of Landsford Canal State Park. Funny enough, I was not sure I wanted to be a park ranger until I started the job.  But in those first moments where I performed basic parts of the job, I knew instantly I was where I belonged. It was interacting with visitors—conversing, sharing thoughts and ideas, asking and answering questions—that most attracted me to being a ranger. That is still the case today.

To me, one of the most special places in the park is the Davie Mill site. It is a remote spot about a mile down the trail. You can walk on the canal’s earthen floor, passing between two immense stone walls and getting the same view as boat pilots and crews did 200 years ago.

As a first-time visitor to Landsford Canal, I encourage you to sit or stand for a while on the riverbank. Watch and listen as the Catawba River flows by. These are the ancestral lands of the Ye Iswą (or Catawba) people, who have lived in this area for at least 6,000 years.

**Our Ultimate Outsider stamp is located at the park kiosk near the stone restroom building.

Stretched along the Catawba River on the South Carolina fall line, Landsford Canal State Park is home to the well-preserved remains of the canal system that made the river commercially navigable from 1820 to 1835. 

The Catawba River is home to the largest known stand of the rocky shoals spider lily, a flower species found predominantly in the Southeast. Peak bloom season for the rocky shoals spider lily is during May and June.

Favorite activities in this Piedmont park include picnicking, nature watching and studying the canal structures. Fishing is permitted along the Catawba River, and a paddling trail runs through the park for canoes and kayaks.

Want more paddling? Check out the Edisto River Canoe and Kayak Trail at Colleton State Park.