(serene music) - South Carolina State Parks encompass more than 90,000 acres of protected lands from the Blue Ridge Mountains all the way to the sand dunes of the Atlantic Ocean.

And each of these parks offer fun and exciting programs for all interests and ages.

A guided sunrise hike in the mountains, you can do that.

Paddling down the river, absolutely.

You can even fly fish in some of our state parks' inland lakes.

The possibilities are endless.

But something you'll find in all of our South Carolina state parks?

Help and hospitality from the amazing rangers who work in them.

And today I'm seeking some of that help to make sure my first camping experience inside Poinsett State Park is a true success.

Let's go for it.

(serene music) - I'm gonna check out the park gift shop, just in case I forgot something.

Okay, here we go, here's the essentials.

Get a camp cooker, oh, a tablecloth might be good, Bug spray, literally always need bug spray.

I swear there's something about me that mosquitoes just love.

You know what, I think I am gonna get one of those tablecloths and a fire starter just in case.

- How's it going?

- It's good, I would love to get these two things.

- Absolutely.

Absolutely.

- For my camping tonight.

- Sure, can I get you any firewood or are you good on that for now?

- I think I'm good on firewood.

- All right, I'll be right back.

- Thank you.

(upbeat music) I'm here with Emily Nicholson.

She is the park manager here at Poinsett State Park.

Emily, tell us where we are at Poinsett, where in the state are we right now?

- So we're in my favorite place of the state, to be honest, but we're fairly essentially located within the State of South Carolina.

We're about 40 miles from Columbia, and we're about 90 miles to Charleston.

So it's the perfect distance of being in the middle of the state.

- So Poinsett's kind of a unique state park, right?

Can you tell us just a little bit about what makes it stand out?

- Poinsett State Park is one of the 16 CCC State Park implemented by Roosevelt during the New Deal process.

- [Devyn] Okay.

- And so this park was built by three different CCC camps, and it was starting to build in 1934 and we opened in 1936.

- This park is unique too, in it's landscape, right?

- Yes, so we're very, our nickname for the park, is called "The Mountains of the Midlands," and I think we have earned that nickname.

We have so much different biodiversity here on the park with our ecosystems because on any of our trails, you're either like high up and then a few minutes later you're down looking at a swampy area.

So, and we actually have Mountain Laurel here, which is more common to the higher elevations.

And we have it here and it's very pretty.

- So cool.

So I can imagine as a park ranger, I think you've probably camped a time or two, right?

Is that safe to assume?

- Just a few.

- Right?

So what is your favorite part of the camping experience?

- I would have to say, right as the sun is going down, you get your campfire going and it's actually time to relax and you can sit by the campfire.

My favorite is to cook around or over the campfire.

There's a lot of awesome recipes that you can cook just over the campfire and then ending it with a S'more.

- Love that, you gotta end everything with a little sweet note, right?

- Always.

- Always.

- Always.

- So what are some, maybe tips and tricks, for someone like me who is, admittedly, not the most experienced camper?

- I mean, it just all depends on what type of camping that you might be doing.

I, in my mind, the simpler, the better.

You don't need to have the craziest things to go camping.

You just need your essentials.

That's a part of why you're camping, the disconnect.

So I mean, I say the simple things and it makes it work.

- Awesome, well, do you think maybe you could help me set up my campsite?

- Yes.

- Give me, gimme a little bit of assistance.

- I would love to.

- All right, let's go for it.

(upbeat music) Emily, I have built a blanket fort or two in my time, okay, I have a five-year-old.

Does that make me qualified for tent building?

- It does.

I think it's a good start for it.

- All right, well let's get started with this tent then.

- Let's do it.

(upbeat music) All right, that was kind of, a lot of work.

I think we earned a S'more.

(serene music) That's a good looking S'more, y'all.

I may not have known how to pitch a tent but I can make a dang S'more.

(laughing) (serene music) - So good!

- Um-hmm.

Cheers.

- Cheers.

It's a good day at the office.

- Um-hmm.

This is my office.

- Exactly.

- Not a bad view.

- Exactly.

(serene music) Going in for round two?

- Oh yes.

- I love it.

Well y'all, if you are like me and you're more indoorsy than out, or if you just haven't yet taken advantage of South Carolina's amazing parks, there is so much to discover here.

And with the right help you're in for a real treat.

So just go for it.

(serene music)