Dismal Swamp Bucket List

Whether you are passing through or have made the swamp your destination, there are always fun and interesting adventures ahead!  Start exploring and see how many items you’ve checked off the list!

Dismal Swamp State Park and Swamp Boardwalk

◊  Stop by the Dismal Swamp State Park’s Visitor Center and learn about one of North America’s great wetland forests through a short film and interactive museum.  Take your picture with a mounted black bear, bobcat or otter and touch the many animal pelts!

◊  Looking for a place to stretch the legs? Try the .5 mile swamp boardwalk, located behind the Park’s Visitor Center.  Hear the sounds of frogs and birds without getting your feet wet!

◊  Paddle the historic Dismal Swamp Canal! Bring your own vessel or rent one from the State Park and experience the mirrored waters of this infamous waterway.

◊  Birders Paradise! Grab a bird list, good hiking boots and some binoculars to trek through the swamp’s many trails in search of the Prothonotary Warbler or Summer Tanager.  The Dismal Swamp State Park features 20 miles of unpaved hiking/biking trails.  Mountain bikes can also be rented from the park for a nominal fee. The Dismal Swamp is a member of the NC Birding Trail.

Dismal Swamp Canal Welcome Center & Dismal Swamp Canal Trail Bird List

◊  Learn more about the swamp’s Underground Railroad history and have your National Park Service Network to Freedom passport stamped! Interpretive panels are located on the east bank of the canal and at the Park’s Visitor Center.

◊  Enjoy the Dismal Swamp Canal Trail, a paved 3 mile trail, located between Hwy 17 and the canal. Borrow a beach bike from the Welcome Center to use on this trail.

◊  Discover the canal’s Civil War history and learn more about the Battle of South Mills through NC Civil War Trail interpretive panels.

◊  There is more swamp to explore! The Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, located in Suffolk, VA, provides additional hiking, biking and wildlife observation opportunities.

Dismal Swamp Canal Trail

Dismal Swamp State Park:

2294 US 17 N, South Mills, NC 27976  (252) 771-6593  ; https://www.ncparks.gov/dismal-swamp-state-park

Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge:

3100 Desert Rd., Suffolk, VA 23434  (757) 986-3705 ; https://www.fws.gov/refuge/great_dismal_swamp/

Dismal Swamp Canal Welcome Center:

2356 US Hwy 17 N, South Mills, NC 27976  (252) 771-8333 ; https://dismalswampwelcomecenter.com/