Driftwood Beach – Jekyll Island, Georgia – First Timer’s Guide!

Driftwood Beach is a photographer’s dream! Located in the Golden Isles of Georgia, this beautiful spots is located on the northern end of Jekyll Island and features a bunch of dead trees on a beach.

So why would you want to visit a beach with a bunch of tangled tree trunks? Because it’s really cool! Read on for my guide to visiting Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, Georgia!

Where is Driftwood Beach?

Driftwood Beach is located on the northeastern tip of Jekyll Island, Georgia. You’ll want to plug Driftwood Beach into Google Maps, as the signage isn’t very good.

There are parking areas scattered along North Beachview Drive (which is the main road through Jekyll Island, so as you get closer, just look for a spot to park (it’s free). You’ll know you’ve arrived in the right place by all the cars lining the side of the road.

Cost:

Driftwood Beach itself is free to visit but before you can access this beach, you will need to pay a visitor toll ($8 per vehicle as of 2023) at the gate when entering Jekyll Island.

Visiting Driftwood Beach

Once out of your car, walk to one of the sandy trails that leads into a short forest, and ends up on the beach. The trail is very short and quickly opens up to a huge array of dead, twisted tree trunks and branches scattered all around the beach. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t expecting this. I was expecting a few twisted trees here and there, but no – they are everywhere! Even if it’s crowded, you’ll find plenty of places to photograph these mangled trees without any people in your photos.

And yes, it was crowded – we visited on New Years Day, so everyone and their brother had the day off of work, and decided to do the same thing we were doing, despite the extremely foggy conditions. Again, the area where the trees are is very large and there’s plenty to explore here.

How did the trees get like this on Driftwood Beach?

The trees you see on Driftwood Beach aren’t actually “driftwood”, in the sense that they didn’t wash up on shore. Rather, the trees were once a “Maritime Forest” (underwater forest) but years of erosion, many of the trees succumbed to the forces of nature. After years of erosion from tides, winds, and storms, the soil ended up getting swept away and deposited further south on the island. With poor/no soil, the trees fell, and now lay scattered everywhere on this beach.

Best Time to Visit Driftwood Beach

Anytime works here but if you’re into photography, you’ll want to get up early and see the sunrise here. Sunrise is much better than sunset, as the sun will pop up over the horizon and light up the trees and water in beautiful colors.

You can visit Driftwood Beach anytime of year. We visited in January, and with a winter visit comes the chance of fog – as you can see in my photos! While this wasn’t the ideal time to go, the fog definitely gives these tree skeletons a moody, spooky vibe!

You’ll also want to be mindful about tides. Low tide is the best time to visit, as more of the beach area will be exposed and you’ll have more room to walk around the trees, but high tide can be neat too, as you would see the trees to appear to float on top of the water, making for some interesting photographs. We were here at low tide, but we could tell high tide was fast approaching.

How long does it take to visit Driftwood Beach?

We were there for about an hour, maybe a little less. We simply wanted to walk around, take it in, photograph the trees, but other people there seemed to be making a day of it, bringing picnic baskets and laying around on the beach. No one was swimming, as it was too cold and the water was rough, but if you want to, you can swim here. The shoreline seemed pretty rocky and because of all the driftwood and sharp stump, if you do want to swim here, you’ll want to bring a good pair of water shoes.

Are Dogs Allowed on Driftwood Beach?

Yes! As long as they are leashed, you can bring your pooch with you.

Driftwood Beach – Final Thoughts

This is a really neat place to see in Georgia, and a must-see if you’re visiting the Golden Isles area of the state. We did this as a quick day trip from Jacksonville, Florida, and we explored the nearby San Simeon Island as well. If you’re coming here specifically for photography, trust me; you won’t be short on subjects. The beach is a tangled maze of driftwood sculptures, twisted branches, and skeletal trees that’ll make you wonder if Mother Nature moonlights as a surrealist sculptor!

Have you been to Driftwood Beach? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!