Vacationing on Jekyll Island GA 3' 12

You may remember from an earlier post in 2010 that we had stopped  overnight at Jekyll Island  while we were en-route to Florida.  We had been favorably impressed with what we saw then,  and had vowed to come back and spend more time exploring this Georgia State Park Sea Island.  The week of our anniversary seemed to be the perfect time to fulfill this vow.  We always  take a  romantic get-away  trip for our anniversary, and this historic sea island seemed to offer us the perfect combination of luxurious creature comforts and rustic adventure.

 One of the things we did not have time to see during our first pass through of the Island  was it's historic district. In 1886, Jekyll Island was purchased to become an exclusive winter retreat for America’s most elite families, known as the Jekyll Island Club. For more than half a century, the nation’s leading families, including the legendary Rockefellers, Morgans, and Pulitzers, came to Jekyll Island “to secure an escape.”  Many of their "cottages" are still here. 

Today, the Jekyll Island Museum tells their stories, giving an inside look at what life was like for both club members and their employees. 

 Offering exhibits, tours, and a museum store, the Jekyll Island Museum provides an introduction to the vibrant cottage life of the National Landmark Historic District and important landmarks beyond such as this colonial era tabby structure.

 or this Plantation Oak which is estimated to be the oldest Oak on Jekyll Island.

 While we did not take any of the formal tours, we did spend a significant amount of time riding our bicycles through the historic district homes and gardens 

  stopping to read all of the historical markers along the way.

The island has an extensive set of  well maintained bike trails  which allowed us to traverse the entire length and breadth of the island without the use of  a car .

Many of the bike paths are under the shade of the massive heritage oaks making it not just a  beautiful place to ride ones bike but a comfortable one as well

The bike paths not only go through out the historic district, but

 the harbor, 

the maritime forest, 

 The maritime forest

 the marsh 

  and  even through the dunes onto  the beach.   

 We were very impressed with the measures that the State of George has taken make such treasures accessible to the public, while protecting these same areas from use.  E.g. look at the viewing stations set up on the dunes so that people can watch the sunrise without trampling the fragile dune vegetation

 All along the way there are bike racks for those that want to stop to explore an area of the island a bit more. We took full advantage of this , especially when it came to exploring the beaches.

We had seen the Boneyard Beach on our previous visit, but had not had time to fully explore it.

This time we were able to park our bikes 

 and walk completely around the north eastern leeward end of the island 

along the river

having a picnic along the way

then back across the marsh to where our bikes were parked

On a different day we explored the opposite end of the island checking out the river

and the small marina under the Talmadge Memorial Bridge

 Most early mornings were spent on the beach watching the sun rise

 and taking pictures of the beautiful dunes for a series of paintings CC is working on

 

Evenings were spent back in the historic district dining in one of their many fine restarants, 

 

  and walking their beautifully lighted gardens.

It's impossible to name which area of the Island CC enjoyed the most, but for Bruce it was a no brainer.

Jekyll Island has been a heralded golf destination since 1898, when members of the Jekyll Island Club created the Island’s first golf course. In the decades that have followed, Jekyll Island has maintained its reputation as one of the premiere golfing destinations in the nation. Bruce made sure to take advantage of that feature

 The challenges of Jekyll’s 63 holes on four courses are matched by the sheer beauty of their location, set in a coastal environment of warm breezes and sunshine. Using the Island’s natural landscape as inspirations for creating classic course designs alongside spectacular scenery, the Island’s four golf courses provide users not only a challenging game, but also a striking setting for play.  

We chose to play the small Great Dunes nine hole course because it runs right along the ocean with some very tough  fairways shots and some very serious hazards

I think it is fair to say that we will be back to visit Jekyll Island again some day