Today is our 1st “Adventure Day” with our nieces on Jekyll Island in Georgia. Becky, once again, came up with a genius idea. Rather than get little trinkets for our nieces Caitlyn and Chloe for Christmas, she decided to do “Adventure Day”. The idea is to give an experience instead of a standard gift, and spend time together. We’ve never really spent time together without their parents, so this seemed like a good opportunity to have some fun. They’ll get to spend quality time with their Aunt Becky and Uncle Paul, but our daughter will too. Our daughter will get to spend time with her Aunt Christy and Uncle Chris and have their separate Adventure Day.
Of course we had to give them something to open at Christmas. And Becky had the great idea of giving them a clue. She wrote a little note and we gave each of them a sea turtle charm. But they still have no idea where we’re going. And after rescheduling a couple times due to weather, we’ve finally got a nice day. So, we exchange kids and go our separate ways. We are headed with our nieces to our Jekyll Island Adventure Day!
Planning Adventure Day on Jekyll Island
The one place we have to visit is the Georgia Sea Turtle Center. Otherwise that sea turtle charm doesn’t make much sense! You can buy tickets at the center or in advance online. Tickets are just $10 for adults 13-61 or $8 for kids 4-12. We buy tickets online which is great because you have up to a year from purchase to use the tickets. And the weather was bad in January, but February is looking better. It should be mostly sunny and a high in the low 60’s, so we’re taking the chance today. You can find ticket info and more at: Georgia Sea Turtle Center • Jekyll Island, Georgia.
Becky took the lead on planning, and likes to keep things open. But one thing she was looking into was renting a golf cart. So that’s an option that can be done when we get there. We also want to have lunch somewhere on the island, so we’ll give the girls a few options we found. Other than that, we want to just explore the island and its beaches. Adventure Day is all about Caitlyn and Chloe and we want to let them have input in their fun day.
Getting Around Jekyll Island
Jekyll Island is one of the Golden Isles in Southern Georgia near Brunswick. It is also a tourist destination with beautiful beaches, historic buildings, and even a water park. Though the water park is not open this time of year, there is plenty to do on this 8 mile long island. Right before the bridge to Brunswick is the turn onto the causeway to Jekyll Island. But before you can enter the island, you have to stop and pay to access the island. They used to have a little gate manned by a person, but it has been replaced by a fully automated one. There are multiple lanes and you can use a card or enter cash to buy a day pass. We buy a 1 day pass which is $8.00 per vehicle. And once on the island, we decide to surprise the girls by renting a golf cart!
We drive to Red Bug Motors which is at the small Jekyll Island airport. They have a selection of 2, 4 or 6 passenger carts for rent, but only offer daily/24-hour rentals. For more info, check out: Home (redbugmotors.com). We should have gotten here earlier to enjoy it longer, but Becky really wants to get one. She has this weird love/hate relationship with golf carts. Anyway, the good news is we can drive on any road on the island and keep it until we leave. And the golf cart is awesome. It has cup holders for everyone and a basket to throw some snacks, towels and a blanket in. The girls are totally surprised and of course Becky has to drive it. After loading it up, we decide to head to Driftwood Beach.
Driftwood Beach
We noticed driving over the bridge to the island that it’s low tide. So we decide it’s best to hit a beach now and come back for lunch afterwards. So, we jump in the golf cart and head toward their most popular beach, Driftwood Beach. From Red Bug Motors, it is only about 10 minutes to the beach. We have to stay on the road, but the speed limit is only between 25-35 MPH. And the golf cart can get up to 25, so we’re fine. It’s a little chilly but we have our jackets on as we pass the Horton House and an old cemetery. We also pass the campground and find parking easily near the trailhead to the beach. It’s a short trail to the beach.
There are many people here today, but there is plenty of space to spread out. But we can see why as the beach is littered with amazing large driftwood trees. We decide to walk down the beach passing a wedding being set-up. The driftwood is a bunch of trees that succumbed to the ocean sculpted by the wind and waves. And they are fun to climb on of course.
We walk for a while before deciding to turn around. On the way back Becky spots a sand dollar on the beach and Paul finds a shark’s tooth. There are other beaches less crowded that would be better for shelling, but still good finds. Some bare trees are still standing at the edge of the beach and the girls spot a Pileated Woodpecker. There are also many rocks by the surf with sea anemones in the tidal pools. Definitely a neat beach to explore, but now we are ready for lunch.
More Golf Cart
Once back to the golf cart, we decide to head back the way we came. We enjoy the ride which parallels a walking/bike trail and has views of large oak trees and the marsh beyond. Becky is enjoying driving as we eat some snacks passing the airport and where we started. We head another mile to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center and turn in their large parking lot. There is ample parking here and we decide to park and walk to lunch. We gave the girls a few options for lunch and they decide seafood sounds good. And it’s about a 10 minute walk to The Wharf restaurant. We pass some cute shops and the historic Jekyll Island Club Resort on the way there.
The Wharf Restaurant
The Wharf is built on the water over the Jekyll River on the back side of the island. And even though it is after 2:00 when we get here, there is a 20 minute wait. So we put our name in and walk around.
While waiting, we walk onto their dock and get great views of the river and the back of the restaurant. We then walk into a little store on the dock called the Dolphin Store. This store offers boat tours and has drinks and various gifts. We see a Megalodon shark tooth in their case and talk to the nice lady about it. We mention we found a sand dollar earlier and she offers to give the girls each one from the case. She says she walks the beach every day with her husband and finds them all the time. It was really nice and the girls are excited to get them. And then we get the buzz that our table is ready so we thank the lady and leave.
We get a table outside since the weather is still pleasant. There are shades covering the tables though there are a lot of birds flying around the deck. They are obviously used to getting handouts here, but they stay away. The girls really love oysters and that is what Caitlyn orders. Chloe gets the fish and chips and both really enjoy their meals. Our food is good as well and we are ready to go see some sea turtles. So, we walk back, but we notice it’s getting colder. We stop in a few shops along the way.
Georgia Sea Turtle Center
We walk back to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center’s red brick building. Entering through the front door, we are in the shop. Becky goes to the counter to show them our tickets. They check us in and let us know the last feeding for the day is in 10 minutes at 4:00. She suggests we bypass the museum and go straight to the turtle hospital out back first. We then can come back through the museum after the feeding. So we make a beeline for the turtle hospital.
You have to exit through the museum to get to the turtle center out back. And even though we are about 10 minutes early, it is very crowded as soon as we walk through the doors. Inside is a relatively small platform with a fence around it where we can walk around. Past the fenced platform on either side are large pools with different sea turtles. We learned that there are only 7 sea turtle species in the world. And they currently have 3 of them; Green, Kemp’s Ridley and Loggerhead sea turtles. You can get a pretty good view of the turtles as they swim around the pools and come up for air. And there are signs that show the patient’s profiles which includes their names and their rehabilitation. We have time to walk around the platform before the feeding starts.
Sea Turtle Feeding
Right at 4:00, a young lady comes out to start the feeding. The young lady explains she will be feeding a loggerhead, the largest species here. She gives some good background about the hospital and about the turtles. She also explains how the turtle she will feed got here. This female loggerhead was hit by a boat and washed up at the beach in Jacksonville. However, she is expected to have a full recovery and be released back into the wild in the spring.
The food is about 15 grams of shrimp frozen in ice. She explains the ice makes the turtle exercise to get to food rather than being reliant on handouts. She slips the ice block into the water where the turtle can’t see her. But the turtle soon senses it and goes for it. The young lady talked for about 15 minutes and welcomed questions afterwards. Her talk and the feeding were the highlight of our tour. But being hot inside, we’re ready to go back to the museum. After looking around the museum for a little while, we go back to the shop for some souvenirs.
Returning the golf cart and driving around
As we are checking out at the shop at the turtle center, we see it is supposed to rain. And when we get out, it is sprinkling a little. So, we hop back in the golf cart and decide to go ahead and return it. It’s only a mile back, but the light rain isn’t bad yet. And Becky drives us back to where we started by the airport. We then park the cart and drop the key in the overnight box. The golf cart was lots of fun, and we decide next time we’ll have to keep it a full day. Once back in the car, we don’t want to go just yet and decide to continue exploring the island.
One place we drove past on the golf cart was the road to the Clam Creek Fishing Pier. So we turn off the main loop and see horses to our left. We think it would be great to ride some horses, but it’s too late today. So we drive to the end where the pier is. There are picnic tables here and even a nature trail. But we decide to not stop and continue down Beachview Drive past Driftwood Beach. We then drive past some houses and rentals back to where we turn to leave the island. But we still want to explore some more, so we continue past the exit to the south end of Jekyll Island. We make it to St. Andrews Beach Park and decide to check it out.
St. Andrews Beach Park
They have a small parking lot of front and we circle to check it out. Becky decides she wants to get out and check it out. So, we drop her off and park the car. After a few minutes, we realize Becky isn’t coming back as she texts “it’s beautiful”. We get out of the car and realize the rain has also stopped so we go to meet Becky. She is just waiting on a boardwalk platform and tells us how amazing this beach is and we agree.
We walk down some boardwalk steps to the beach where we don’t see anyone else. The beach here is very calm and peaceful. Over to the left is more driftwood so we walk down the beach toward it. The waves hitting the shoreline ripple across the sand like a melody. A pelican soars just over the water and lands near us. Once we get to the big driftwood, we turn around and head back the other way.
As we walk down the beach, we see a few other people. Besides them there has been no one else here. And on the other end we find an observation tower. This wildlife viewing platform is 2 stories, so we take the steps to the top. From here we get great views as the Sun is peaking through the clouds. We see a boat cruising slowly in the calm water and the bridge to Brunswick in the distance. Taking in these views was a great way to end our day on Jekyll Island. From the platform there is a trail that leads back to restrooms, a picnic area and the parking lot. It is getting dark, so we head home.
Summary of Adventure Day on Jekyll Island
“Adventure Day was a success!” Chloe said, and we couldn’t be happier. We got to spend the day with our nieces Caitlyn and Chloe and had a great time together. When we first got to Jekyll Island, we went to Red Bug Motors to surprise the girls with a golf cart. We then went to Driftwood Beach and enjoyed the beauty of this popular beach. After that we headed to The Wharf for lunch. And after lunch we saw sea turtles at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center. After returning the golf cart we drove around before stopping at St. Andrews Beach Park before we had to leave.
A highlight was definitely seeing the sea turtles. The turtle hospital had many turtles and the feeding was great. But, the beaches on Jekyll Island are fantastic. They are really beautiful with nice white sand and pretty views. Our golf cart was great, and Becky enjoyed driving us around. We could see coming back another time for a weekend and enjoying the golf cart longer. There’s much more to explore on Jekyll Island, but we felt we got to experience a good variety of it. But more importantly, we loved spending time together and hope this is the start of many “Adventure Days’ to come!
Read about another great day exploring at: Daddy Daughter Day in the Timucuan Preserve