About Lake Marion

South Carolina's "Inland Sea"

Covering nearly 110,000 acres across five counties in the heart of the oldest inland part of the state, Lake Marion is often referred to as "South Carolina's Inland Sea."

One the nation's fifty largest lakes, Lake Marion was created in 1941 with the construction of the Santee Dam as part of the federal rural electrification program.

Lake Marion's 511 miles of shoreline run through Clarendon, Orangeburg, Berkeley, Calhoun, and Sumter counties.

Fed mainly by the Santee River, Lake Marion's smaller tributaries include a number of springs, including Eutaw Springs.

Lake Marion and its smaller sister reservoir, Lake Moultrie, are together known as the Santee Cooper Lakes. Lake Marion is connected to Lake Moultrie by a canal.

A Scenic Beauty, Centrally Located, With Easy Highway Access

With its swampy majesty and cypress tree-sprinkled scenery, Lake Marion's beauty is well known across the country and, along with its sister lake, Moultrie, is unlike any other lake in South Carolina.

Named for the Revolutionary War hero General Francis Marion, "the Swamp Fox," Lake Marion is easily accessed from all parts of the state, located as it is near the intersection of Interstate 95 and Interstate 26, with additional access from state highways 6 and 15.

General Marion's one-time home, Pond Bluff, was among those flooded when the lake was created.

Known for Fine Fishing in a Variety of Conditions

Lake Marion is known for its big fish. The state record for largemouth bass of 16.2 pounds was set at Lake Marion, which also packs abundant striped bass, white perch, white bass, crappie, channel catfish, Arkansas blue catfish, shellcrackers, bream, and chain (jack).

Fishing conditions run the gamut, from open water to shallow swamps and blackwater ponds.

There is excellent boating access through the state park as well as several other public boat ramps.

Abundant Wildlife and Great Outdoor Opportunities

In the Sandhills on the western shore of Lake Marion is 2,500-acre Santee State Park, with its plentiful boating, hiking, birding, canoeing and kayaking and 158 campsites across two campgrounds.

All sites have access to hot showers, and many sites can accommodate recreational vehicles up to 40 feet long.

The park's 30 "rondette" cabins each have two bedrooms and a bath, and ten of them are situated on piers overlooking the lake.

The park has three hiking trails and one biking trail.

Santee State Park is renowned for its healthy populations of deer, fox, squirrel, turtle, dove, turkey, alligator, as well as many species of duck, hawk, eagle, and osprey.

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