While South Carolina is home to a few major mountain bike trail systems, such as FATS, the state hasn’t seen significant MTB trail development in recent years. That’s all changing with South Carolina’s first major trail opening in years: an all-new 20-mile trail system known as the “Saluda Confluence Recreation Area” (SCRA).
Forget dealing with public approvals — let’s just make this happen
The SCRA is located just 20 minutes north of Greenville, SC, and about five minutes from the small town of Travelers Rest on a 900-acre tract of private land. Nathan and Mary Beth Galbreath began acquiring land near the confluence of the North, South, and Middle Saluda rivers to protect the land from planned housing developments and to provide recreational opportunities. The Galbreaths began acquiring property in the area in 2020, and since then, mountain biking has come to the forefront as the primary recreational use they want to support.
“They have three kids, two of whom were heavily involved in NICA, the local biking team. They’ve always been into various outdoor things, but mountain biking, particularly, kind of rose up for them, based on their kids’ interests,” Matthew Hudson-Flege, Executive Director of the Upstate Greenways & Trails Alliance (UGATA), explained.
The Galbreaths also founded UGATA in 2019, with the organization gaining serious momentum in 2022. Since then, UGATA has mostly been working on urban trail projects like the Rad Rabbit Trail. The SCRA is their first major backcountry-style trail network…