Getting out of the house to enjoy an outside activity doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. At the following little-known park in Anderson, outdoor fun is always at your fingertips – for free! And the best part? It’s conveniently located less than a mile from Interstate 85 so everyone can easily find and enjoy this hidden South Carolina park.

During the summer, the beach is the primo spot at Darwin Wright Park — also known as Anderson Beach.
Heather Kuhner/Google
The manmade beach takes full advantage of the park's location on a teardrop peninsula on beautiful Lake Hartwell. Darwin Wright Park has a massive designated swimming area, complete with butterscotch-colored sand to sink your toes in. But that's not all this awesome park has to offer.
More than 25 picnic tables (with grills) are available, each carefully placed underneath some shade trees and with delightful views.
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Pack the cooler with all of the fixin's of a delicious picnic and enjoy a day by the lake. Did we mention it's free? Yup... no admission. Just drive right on in.
You'll definitely want to spend more time at Anderson Beach once you've sampled the goodness found in this little park.
City of Anderson
It's surrounded by Lake Hartwell on three sides and has an island feel to it. Perhaps that's because it is all BUT an island.

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For a small fee ($50 for Anderson city residents and $65 for non-residents) you can rent one of the three group picnic shelters for the day.
City of Anderson
Even if you're not coming with a huge reunion or church group, a day spent here is worthy of having a shelter if your group is larger than, say, 10 people.
The most popular of the shelters, by the way, is the Beach Shelter — for obvious reasons.
SOUND AUDITION/Google
Anderson Beach (a.k.a. Darwin Wright Park) has playground equipment for the kids, and a nine-hole disc golf course.
The perimeter of the park has many prize fishing spots, but the fishing pier is where most people end up casting a line.
Sanjok Poligrafic/Google
Whether you head to Anderson Beach to swim, enjoy the shady picnic spots, fish, or launch your kayak, you'll fall in love with this awesome city park.
As mentioned, getting here is as easy as hopping off of Interstate 85. Take the Liberty Highway exit onto US 178.
Google / maps

As far as city parks go, not many have public beaches and all of the amenities found at Darwin Wright Park/Anderson Beach in the City of Anderson. The park is open year-round from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Two public restroom facilities are located within the 27-acre park. Please note: no lifeguards are provided at this park; it’s swim at your own risk. Learn more from this link on the official website of the City of Anderson.

Address: Anderson Beach Boulevard, Anderson, SC, 29621

Love discovering hidden beaches? Check out our signature Hidden Beaches Road Trip in South Carolina here!

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