SC forest works to replace 40-year-old boardwalk

HARLEYVILLE, S.C. (AP) — The Audubon Society is working to replace a boardwalk allowing the public to see almost 1,800 acres of virgin cypress and tupelo gum forest in South Carolina considered the largest tract of its kind left in the nation.

The Francis Beidler Forest northwest of Charleston has an almost 2-mile boardwalk winding through quiet views of forest, swamp and lakes. But it was built in the 1970s and is now deteriorating.

It’s still safe for the thousands of people who visit the forest each year. But the society has started on a nearly $2 million effort to replace the walkway. A grant from MeadWestvaco of $100,000 on Friday brings the society to more than half of its goal.

The society hopes to begin work on the project next year.