Congaree National Park, formerly Congaree Swamp National Monument, is South Carolina's only National Park. The park encompasses the largest intact area of bottomland hardwood forest in the southeastern United States. Frequent flooding of Congaree River brings in rich nutrients and fosters great diversity of plant and animal life. It also has a lot of very big trees. There are around 25 state champions and 6 national champions in the park that are known, and there could be even more that no one knows about yet. When we visited, we managed to find one using GPS that was about 500 feet off River Trail. It was a cherrybark oak ( Quercus pagoda ). The official circumference is 282 inches, but we measured 304. Finding these trees is extremely difficult, so if you're interested in seeing them, check out a Big Tree Walk with a park ranger. You'll be able to see some of these magnificent trees without the risk of getting lost in the swamp!