Florence County: Petrified Wood Rockhounding in Florence County, South Carolina

Plan your visit

Generally open to casual rockhounding

County

Florence County

State

South Carolina

Nearest road

Jeffords Road

Postcode

29583

Coordinates

34.01777, -79.71311

Coordinates are approximate. Confirm the exact ground in the RockHoundR app, where land overlays show which agency manages the area.

Land & collecting status

Generally open to casual rockhounding

Most public-tagged spots sit on BLM, U.S. Forest Service, or other federal land where reasonable hand collecting of common rocks and minerals is allowed. Confirm posted rules and active mining claims before you dig.

Access note: Access the gravel bars from public boat landings and bridge crossings, and collect loose surface material below the ordinary high-water mark on the navigable river. The adjacent banks are private, so do not cross or dig into them. This is a scattered river-gravel hunt rather than a single dig site; a canoe or kayak helps reach the better bars.

Public-land rules vary by agency, season, and field office. The RockHoundR app pulls live BLM, USFS, NPS, and tribal overlays so you can see exactly which agency manages the ground at this spot.

Best time to visit Florence County

Comfortable months (45 to 90°F highs)

Best months: September to June. Typical highs run 92°F in midsummer and 58°F in midwinter, with winter lows near 34°F.

Climate normals: NOAA 1991-2020 monthlies, LAKE CITY 2 SE station (11 mi away).

Geology at Florence County

This spot sits on Waccamaw Formation, mapped as limestone and sand that formed within roughly the last 3 million years. Petrified wood typically travels as tough float, and worked gravels like these are exactly where weathered pieces tend to collect.

Mapped unit

Waccamaw Formation

Age

3 Ma to present (Pleistocene)

Rock types

limestone and sand

Elevation

70 ft

Geologic mapping via Macrostrat and the underlying state geological survey maps (CC BY 4.0). Bedrock at the surface can vary within a mapped unit.

Sources & verification

Spot details combine the public RockHoundR location dataset, normalized mineral labels, agency land-status checks in the app, and community submissions. Coordinates are approximate until verified in the field.

• South Carolina Geological Survey
• South Carolina State Parks rules
• Sumter and Francis Marion National Forests
• Community submissions reviewed against published agency rules