A practical guide to scenic driving through Sumter County's High Hills of Santee region. Learn how the 2026 Nissan Murano handles the rolling terrain and narrow approach roads to Poinsett State Park, which driver-assist features work best on this route, and what conditions require extra caution when traveling SC-261 in fall.
Come October, SC-261 south out of Stateburg is worth the trip. Thread through Manchester State Forest, pull into Poinsett State Park with the windows still cracked, and the whole group stays relaxed. The 2026 Nissan Murano suits this stretch well, and we don't mean that as a brochure line. The suspension is tuned for long, rolling pavement, AWD is now standard across every trim, and the cabin noise suppression makes two hours of two-lane driving feel shorter than it is. But "well-suited" carries a real limit. This is a comfort-focused midsize crossover with 8 inches of ground clearance, not a trail rig. Keep it paved and it rewards you. Push onto unimproved forest roads and you're asking for something it wasn't built to do.
A few things make these routes work, and we'll walk through them below.
What the Murano Does Well (and Where It Stops)
Between Sumter and Poinsett State Park, the Murano handles the paved run with composure, and that stretch sits on an unusual geographic seam that rewards a comfort-tuned crossover, though the same rolling, narrowing terrain is where you'll want to stay alert and read the road well ahead. The South Carolina State Park Service describes it as the High Hills of Santee, where the Midlands sandhills meets the coastal plain. All of that means rolling grades, blufflines above Shanks Creek, abrupt elevation changes for a region this flat, and a two-lane approach road that narrows considerably as you get close to the park. The scenery is a draw. It also produces conditions you'll want to plan for.
| Condition on SC-261 / Poinsett Park Road | Murano: Do This | Murano: Not This |
|---|---|---|
| Leaf-covered pavement in fall (October-November) | Trust the AWD traction system; reduce speed proactively | Brake hard mid-corner; leaves reduce grip before the tires signal it |
| Narrow wooded two-lane, oncoming traffic | Let the blind-spot monitoring + lane-keep assist inform you; check your lane width visually | Rely on mirrors alone; the road shoulder often drops off sharply |
| Rolling grades into Poinsett State Park | Use adaptive cruise on the SC-261 approach; disengage it on the narrow park road | Keep adaptive cruise active on tight turns; it's for open highway pacing |
| Afternoon sun through pine canopy (strobing light) | Slow down; the driver attention monitor cannot flag fatigue from light flicker | Assume automatic high-beams handle it; they manage darkness, not sun angle |
| Unpaved forest access roads in Manchester State Forest | Park at the designated trailhead and walk or bike from there | Drive your Murano onto unmaintained sand and dirt forest roads |
The One Technique That Changes the Drive
The single habit that reshapes this drive is slowing down before you reach the park rather than after you're inside it, and though that sounds obvious, it plays out as surprisingly hard on SC-261 because the approach stays wide and fast right until Poinsett Park Road peels off and the pavement suddenly narrows. Our team sees vehicles that carry highway speed right to that turn. The Murano's ProPILOT Assist system (standard on every 2026 trim as the hands-on version) is useful precisely here: set it on the open approach road, let it maintain a comfortable following distance, and you reach the turn already settled, well off highway pace, so you're not braking into it.
Confirm your tire tread and brake condition before a fall day trip because stopping distances on leaf-covered pavement increase meaningfully once tread drops below 4/32 of an inch. That isn't a scare tactic, just physics, and it matters more on a road this narrow than on an interstate.
If your group needs more cargo room for gear-heavy day trips, the Nissan Rogue is worth a look for a smaller footprint, but the Murano's 32.9 cubic feet of cargo space handles a full cooler, trail gear, and everyone's gear bags, and you won't need to repack.
A Short Pre-Drive Safety Checklist
The Murano's driver-assist suite earns its keep on this route, but it only pays off if you set each feature with intent before you pull out of Sumter, so a few minutes in the driveway now means you're not guessing once the pavement narrows near the park. Run this list before you roll.
- Confirm ProPILOT Assist is set on SC-261, not Poinsett Park Road. Use it on the open two-lane approach, SC-261 south from US-378 toward Wedgefield. Switch to manual once you're on the narrow park road itself.
- Check the rear-seat alert is on. Nissan includes this standard on the 2026 Murano. If you're bringing kids or a dog, it prompts you to check the back before you exit. Useful after a long drive when everyone is scattered.
- Set the driver attention monitor. After 45 minutes of scenic driving, fatigue creeps in even when you're relaxed. The system monitors steering inputs and alerts you to take a break.
- Confirm your blind-spot monitoring is active before you leave Sumter. The approach to Manchester State Forest on SC-261 has limited sight lines at some intersections, so you'll want it on.
- Slow to park speed before Poinsett Park Road. The EPA rates the 2026 Murano AWD at 21 city / 27 highway mpg. You're not saving fuel by carrying highway speed into a narrow park turn.
One Last Thing Before You Go
The 2026 Murano earns its reputation on exactly this kind of drive, staying comfortable and composed with cabin technology that genuinely helps, and as long as you keep it on the pavement of SC-261 through the sandhills and pines in October, you're set for a very good afternoon.
See the 2026 Murano trims currently on our lot, then ask us which one fits the way your family actually uses a vehicle. We'll talk through it with you.
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