Gantt, SC Outdoor Activities

By the time customers climb atop tubes and paddleboards from Saluda River Rafting Adventures and begin their sunlit floats down the river they may have already reached the halfway point of their outdoor adventure. That's because the rafting company's staffers also set up rustic riverside campsites that customers can rent the night before their river outings. In the morning Bubba the bus driver steers them through idyllic fields to their float site, passing horses along the way that approach the bus for carrots or advice on how to grow turn signals.

The horses are not just for feeding; staffers also lead camps—along with private and semiprivate lessons—that introduce youngsters to the equestrian arts. Alternatively, patrons can hone the more literal art of paint splattering on a lush Airsoft field, where soldiers armed with paintball guns fight in a sportsmanlike fashion, rather than by force-feeding each other paint pellets.

Paranormal researcher Jason Profit has earned the title of "Greenville's Ghost Hunter." He has worked with the spirit world since an early age, watching his mother banish spirits from neighbors' homes and selling lemonade to specters unable to sate their thirst for vengeance. He developed a passion for the unexplainable and, now, tirelessly studies the history and rumors surrounding known haunted sites. On tours, Profit shares his research on local hauntings and gives guests the opportunity to explore the location of mysterious deaths and accidents.

Icy coats clothe the hills at Snowy Joe's Winter Park from December to February as riders cut through winds atop inflated rings. At the top of the massive mound, bodies are postmarked express and delivered to the end of 350-foot alleys. Younger racers hike to the top of a shorter hill to shoot down smooth, 60-foot chutes. The venue welcomes large groups or birthday parties, providing pizza or special rates for family gatherings. Riders can also gather around a crackling open fire and sip on free hot chocolate.

A rider since age 5, Brooke Walton saddled up to a horse not long after her own feet knew steady ground. By age 15, she had already qualified for national medal finals, ridden in her first Grand Prix, and earned invitations to represent the United States for Young Riders in France and Venezuela. In 2003, Brooke finally harnessed her passion and natural aptitude for horse riding into the founding of Indigo Road Farm, a training facility on whose grassy pastures she now nurtures show horses and hosts lessons for new riders. Horses housed in one of three barns whinny in contentment as they survey their lodgings, which include 17 rubber-matted, ventilated stalls and perks such as bimonthly massages from a professional chiropractor. When freed from their stalls, steeds gallop across Indigo Road Farm's four spacious pastures, sand area, and derby fields strewn with waterside jumps.

The Pavilion cultivates every species of physical activity within its 66,000-square-foot indoor complex and adjacent outdoor fields. The eclectic indoor space hosts soccer, volleyball, and curling face-offs, as well as a year-round ice-skating facility, bounce house, and inline-skating space. Fledgling ice skaters slip and slide during public skating sessions or take part in the U.S. Figure Skating Association's basic skills program to grease their triple axels. As the temperature rises, members make a mad dash outdoors to one of six tennis courts and three soccer fields, or hail a ride on George, The Pavilion's historic miniature passenger train. The complex's Boundless Playground offers a space where children with disabilities can be included in play thanks to accessible slides, swings, and climbing structures.