Jekyll Island

MONDAY, March 20, 2023

We’ve covered a lot of ground since our last post:

-Daytona Beach
-St. Augustine for St. Patty’s Day
-Fernandina Beach
-And now Jekyll Island

We talked a bit about Fernandina Beach on the way south. It’s a vibrant little town on Amelia Island with lots of pedestrian traffic and lots of great restaurants. We’ve never made it over to the ocean-facing side of the town; we’ve always been busy on the ICW-facing side.

Left Fernandina on an unseasonably cold, windy day – the wake on the boat was blowing up on the left and being held down on the right – here’s a shot out the back

Once you leave Fernandina Beach, you’re crossing the Georgia line, and our first stop in Georgia is Jekyll Island. Jekyll Island lies along the Georgia coast – in the heart of what are called “The Golden isles”. It became a playground for titans of industry and finance more than a century ago when some of the wealthiest American families, including Morgans, Vanderbilts, Astors, and Rockefellers, formed the Jekyll Island Club and built enormous winter “cottages”. Here’s a photo of the hotel that was the centerpiece of the club.

The state of Georgia bought the island in 1947 and set about limiting development while protecting the historic buildings and vast natural landscape.

Jekyll Island is a place to relax!

We toured the island by golf cart, and it is truly charming. I really like this place. Beaches, forests, marshes, bike paths, walking trails, some modern hotels, and perfectly-preserved historical edifices.

We stayed an extra day, so that we’d have more time to explore. We visited Driftwood Beach which is covered with beautiful skeletons of huge trees which fell on the beach and were left in place Here’s some shots:

These trees are huge – notice Guinness in the foreground

These continue for about a half mile on the beach!

Tomorrow, we move a little farther up the coast to St. Simon’s Island, another of the “Golden Isles”.