September 27, 2022
Dam Road, Issaqueena, Rocky and Collarbone Trail
near Clemson, SC
A very good day for a hike with cool and sunny weather and very good trails. We started our hike on the East Dam Road which was really a road rather than a trail. In retrospect, it would have been a better hike if we had taken the forested Dam Road Trail just to the north of the road we did take. Thereafter, we completed our hike on more traditional paths along the banks of Lake Issaqueena, Rocky and Collarbone Trails. The Issaqueena Trail provided a nice view of the narrow lake. We found quite a few more fall blooming wildflowers than we expected. All in all, this is a very easy hike with a path that can be lengthened or varied using the numerous trails in this section of the Clemson Experimental Forest.
The route
5.2 mi · 407 ft climbing · 3h 8m out, 2h 37m walking · 2.0 mph moving
Elevation
Hover over the profile to see the elevation and steepness. Your position will be shown on the map.
- Steepness
- Gentle under 5%
- Moderate 5–10%
- Steep 10–15%
- Very steep over 15%
18 photos are shown on the map where they were taken — click one to see it full size.
Photos (22)
Looking toward the north along the banks of Lake Issaqueena. Today's hikers (L-R): Renee, Lib, Jenny, Gary, Mike, Lynn, Ray, Angela & Dick Some of our ladies catching up while getting started on the East Dam Road. Typical conditions on the Issaqueena, Rocky and Collarbone Trails. Good trail signs at the start and intersections of trails, but the numerous trail intersections were still confusing at times. Yep, lots of trails in this section of the forest. An interesting flower at the start of the hike. Blazing star, perhaps Shaggy blazing star (Liatris pilosa)??? We spotted quite a bit of Beautyberry along the trail. We found a couple of well done settings of gnomes on our path. More views of Issaqueena Lake. Getting ready for the hike. Not a lot of mushrooms today! Too dry, I guess. Break time! Here's a new wildflower for most of us. Widowsfrill (Silene stellata) Quite a large growth of some type of pond lily in the northern end of Issaqueena Lake. This made my day. A beautiful Cardinal flower just on the edge of Issaqueena Lake. A suspicious cluster of stones...perhaps a slow hiker's final resting place? Yep! Lots of yellow flowers. A good day for Asters, too! Ray is still surprised to see another cluster of Pinesap. Oops! Almost forgot the numerous examples of Downy lobelia. Last stop of the day.... a nice picnic area at the trailhead.