After a four-hour drive, we checked in to our hotel in Greenville around 3:30, left our bikes in the room, and drove the last five miles into downtown to see what we could see.
The Reedy River runs through the center of the city, with Falls Park on the Reedy at the heart of downtown. The Swamp Rabbit Rail-Trail follows the river through Greenville on its way north to the town of Travelers Rest. We didn't have time to bike it this time, but we strolled through the Falls Park section of the path and made tentative plans to return in the spring to ride the trail in its entirety. Can't wait!
Downtown Greenville, South Carolina
Falls Park on the Reedy
Reedy River Falls
Liberty Bridge
Medusa Tree
Jana at Lower Reedy River Falls
Liberty Bridge over the Reedy River
Eugenia Duke Bridge
Greenville is beautiful and bustling. The city's population is just over 70,000 and growing FAST! It seems a lot larger. With the awesome park, busy sidewalks, abundant breweries, and festive Christmas lights, downtown was a ton of fun!
Tom examines a giant geode
Let the festivities begin!
Merry Christmas!
After dark, we changed our focus to beer. First, we stopped at the Greenville Beer Exchange, which has a number of taps and a large selection of packaged beer. Since we were on our way to Georgia – which really needs to up its beer game – we picked up a few six-packs to go.
Package beer and taps
Next, we headed to Fireforge Crafted Beer. The beer was good and the ambiance was very nice. Even on a Tuesday, it was quite lively. Their food menu consisted of only a few sandwiches and snacks. We ordered a couple of pricy reubens with low hopes, but they were terrific!
Busy Tuesday at Fireforge
For our last stop of the night, we chose Liability Brewing Company. This was outside of downtown and the place was pretty dead, but the beer was decent. We enjoyed one and were done. Greenville, we'll be back!
Jammin' Stormtrooper
Lodging: Quality Inn at Hayward Mall, Greenville, SC. It was a good value and close to downtown, though too far to walk.