Top Reasons to Go

Top Reasons to Go

Saltwater marshes: Fringing the coastline, waist-high grasses transform both sunlight and shadow with their lyrical textures and shapes. This landscape inspired Georgia poet Sidney Lanier to describe the marshes as "a silver-wrought garment that clings to and follows the firm sweet limbs of a girl."

Sapelo Island: When land was set aside as an independent state of freed slaves, it became known as Georgia's Black Republic. Vestiges of that community remain at Sapelo, and have made it an island of contrasts—rich in history and ecowilderness, and home to Hog Hammock, a one-of-a-kind community that echoes the culture and practices of its African slave heritage.

Horses of Cumberland: Cumberland Island is about as far removed from civilization as you can get, and seeing the majesty of these horses run wild across the shore is worth every effort of planning ahead. There are some 200 feral horses, descendants of those that were abandoned by the Spanish in the 1500s.

Jekyll Island Club: Originally the winter retreat of the exceptionally rich, this millionaire's village of mansion-size "cottages" is an elegant exposé of how the royalty of corporate America once played. Once an exclusive club, today you can wander around the community at your leisure.

Go for a ride: The level terrain on all the islands makes for great biking, though the most scenic is Jekyll Island. It offers 20 mi of paved bike paths that traverse salt marshes, maritime forest, and beach, as well as the island's National Historic Landmark District.