Burrell's Ford
Robin Carter
Directions
From the junction of SC 28 and SC 107, 8 miles northwest of the town of Walhalla, go north on SC 107 for 9 miles. Here turn left (west) onto Forest Road 708, Burrell's Ford Road, and go 2 miles to the parking area near the Chatooga River
Birds to look for
Ruffed Grouse, Northern Saw-whet Owl (w), Blue-headed Vireo (s), Common Raven, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Wood Thrush (s), Northern Parula (s), Black-throated Blue Warbler (s), Black-throated Green Warbler (s), Yellow-throated Warbler (s), Pine Warbler, Cerulean Warbler (s), Black-and-white Warbler (s), American Redstart (s), Worm-eating Warbler (s), Swainson's Warbler (s), Ovenbird (s), Louisiana Waterthrush (s), Kentucky Warbler (s), Hooded Warbler (s), Scarlet Tanager (s), Dark-eyed Junco, Red Crossbill, Purple Finch (w), Pine Siskin (w), American Goldfinch
Description
Burrell's Ford Road gives easy access to the Chatooga River in Sumter National Forest. Trails upstream from the parking area go through an exciting riverside forest, with lots of white pines and eastern hemlocks. A number of high altitude species are sometimes found here—irds that you might expect to find in the North Carolina mountains above 4000 feet—even though the elevation at Burrell's Ford is only about 2800 feet.
Burrell's Ford is by far the best place to look for Northern Saw-whet Owls in South Carolina. Listen for them on calm winter nights. During the summer you might find high altitude species such as Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, and Golden-crowned Kinglet, which are quite rare in summer elsewhere in the mountains of South Carolina. Burrell's Ford is also one of the best spots in South Carolina for Red Crossbill.
If you cross the river you are in the Chattahoochee National Forest of Georgia. Go west a few miles on the road from Burrell's Ford and you reach GA 28. Turn north on GA 28 and you soon reach the Nantahala National Forest in North Carolina. These national forests, which both reach altitudes significantly higher than the highest point in South Carolina, offer some of the best birding in the southern Appalachians.