Lake Jocassee does not look like South Carolina. The water is green and clear enough that you can watch the bottom drop away under your board, the shoreline is mostly undeveloped, and there are waterfalls that pour directly into the lake.
You can paddle to one of them and swim underneath it. That’s the trip.
Start at Devils Fork State Park
It’s the only public access point on the lake. Everything launches from here.
- Park entry: $6 per adult, $3.75 for SC seniors, free under 5
- Boat ramp parking fills early on summer weekends, be there by 9am
- There are restrooms and a small store at the ramp
- Rentals are available on site, roughly $35 to $50 for a half day board
If you’re bringing your own board, the ramp has a separate area for non-motorized launches to the left of the main ramp. Use it. The main ramp is a queue of bass boats and you will be in the way.
The paddle itself
Wright Creek Falls is about 1.5 miles from the launch, tucked into a cove on the northwest side. It’s a 45 minute paddle at a relaxed pace, longer if there’s wind.
Wind is the thing to plan around. The lake is calm at dawn and picks up by mid-morning, and by afternoon on a summer day you’re paddling into real chop on the way back. Go early. We left at 8am and the water was glass.
Boat wake is the other factor. Jocassee is popular with powerboats, and the main channel gets rough. Hug the shoreline where you can.
The falls
Wright Creek drops maybe 25 feet directly into the lake. You can paddle right to the base, and there’s enough depth to slide off the board and swim in under the spray.
The water is cold. Jocassee is fed by mountain rivers and sits deep, so even in August the swimming temperature near the falls is a shock for the first 30 seconds.
There’s a small rock shelf to the left of the falls where you can beach a board and sit. That’s where we ate lunch and where the drone shot at the top of this post came from.
Laurel Fork Falls is the other well-known one, bigger and further out, about 5 miles from the launch. That’s a full day paddle, not a morning.
What to bring
- A leash. Wind separates you from your board fast on open water.
- Dry bag for a phone. There is no cell service on most of the lake.
- More water than you think. There’s no shade on the paddle.
- Water shoes for the rock shelf, it’s slick.
Costs and timing
- Park entry: $6 per adult
- Board rental: $35 to $50 half day
- Round trip paddle to Wright Creek: 2 to 3 hours with swim time
- Best time: May through September, weekday mornings
Would we do it again
This was the easiest trip on our list to get to and the one we’ve recommended most. It’s 3 hours from Charlotte, Greenville, Asheville, and Atlanta is not much further. No passport, no flights, no permits.
Every place has a story, and this one is that the prettiest water in the Southeast is sitting in plain sight off a state park boat ramp.
