Your guide to visiting Sapelo Island

Before you go

Make reservations to visit, as visitors to the island must be a part of an organized tour or guests of residents on the island. See “how to get there”

Read God, Dr. Buzzard, and the Bolito Man by Cornelia Walker Bailey. This beautiful cultural memoir will help you better understand the history of the island and its inhabitants.

Visit the Sapelo Island Estuarine Research Reserve Visitor Center at the mainland ferry dock in Meridian. In addition to providing valuable information about the coastal ecosystem, the area’s history and marine life, this will also be the best place to find answers to questions about tours and lodging.

**Public use is limited to the south half of the island unless accompanied by an authorized guide or a special DNR permit.

Source: National Estuarine Research Reserve Sapelo Island brochure

How to get there

The island is only accessible by boat or airplane (the small air strip is managed by the State of Georgia). The Sapelo Island ferry makes three round trips a day except on Sundays and holidays; for a complete schedule, click here. Reservations required, and they will be made by the tour organizer or your host.

Lodging

Several privately managed properties are available for rental in the Hog Hammock community through sites such as vrbo.com, Sapelo Island Birdhouses or Geechee tours. Arrange transportation from ferry landing at time of booking.

The Reynolds Mansion has 13 rooms available for group bookings of 16-29 adults with a two-night minimum. Meals and transportation from the ferry landing included, visit the DNR website for availability and reservations.

Groups of 15-25 people may camp near the beach in Sapelo’s Cabretta Island campground. A comfort station is available, and transportation from the ferry landing is provided.

What to do/see

-Hit the beach. There are two beaches accessible by car or bicycle, Nanny Goat Beach (south end) and Cabretta Island (north), although in actuality the entire east coast is sandy beach. As this article is published the bridge leading to Nanny Goat is out and therefore it is a longer walk from the parking area, but there is also a short walk to reach Cabretta Island beach. Facilities at Nanny Goat include covered pavilions, restrooms and outdoor showers.

-Check out the almost 200 year old lighthouse and take in the view from the top.

-Stop by the Hog Hammock store at the east end of the East-West autobahn. You might get lucky and meet Mrs. Bailey, the author of “God, Dr. Buzzard, and the Bolito Man.” If you took the south end tour your tour guide may have been Ms. Yvonne Grovner; her sweetgrass baskets and cookbook are also for sale here.

-Explore the Reynolds Mansion and grounds

-Search for alligators! You’re almost sure to spot one in the big pond across from the dorms near the Reynolds Mansion, but according to our tour guide a 10-footer prefers the tennis court to sun itself.

-Take a guided tour of the south half of the island featuring the Reynolds Mansion, the Sapelo Island lighthouse, Hog Hammock and Long Tabby. Reservations required, for more information contact the Visitor Center or Geechee Tours. (This is a great way to visit the island without staying overnight, but also a great way to explore the area if you are staying at one of the Hog Hammock rentals.)

-Watch the sun set at Long Tabby. Site of the 1809 old tabby sugar mill (of which the ruins are still visible), this is also where the island’s post office is located, and the view over the marsh is perfect for watching a colorful Sapelo Island sunset.

-Behavior Cemetery. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this 1805 cemetery is behind locked gates but worth the stop to see one of the most important African-American landmarks in Georgia.

-Take a guided tour of the north end of the island. Your host or the Visitor Center should be able to arrange a DNR certified tour guide to take you on the back roads of the island. Sites to see include the Shell Ring dating back to 2170 BC, Chocolate Plantation and the tabby ruins from 1819, and Raccoon Bluff: the First African Baptist Church built in 1900 and a view of Blackbeard Island.

-Birdwatch. From the osprey hunting the marshes near the lighthouse to the bald eagles that nest on the island, there are dozens of species that can be found. In addition to the shorebirds, marsh birds and birds of prey, we saw waterfowl and songbirds.

-Charter a boat for a fishing or sightseeing trip or to search for pirate treasure on neighboring Blackbeard Island with a private tour through Sapelo Sights.

-Rent a bicycle or kayak and see the island from a different perspective.

-Sample Lula’s cooking. Serving up authentic Geechee fare, Lula often cooks for the groups renting the Reynolds mansion. Check with your host, it may be possible to join in!

-Stop in The Trough, Sapelo’s only bar located in Hog Hammock, for a drink and a snack.

-Visit the Hog Hammock community center or library to learn more about the Geechee and Hog Hammock. A non-profit organization, Sapelo Island Cultural and Revitalization Society (SICARS) whose mission is to preserve and revitalize Hog Hammock, has created a community land trust and is considering development of a cultural village to attract tourists and acquaint visitors with Gullah/Geechee history, lore and crafts.

-Take a moonlit stroll on the beach. We had a full moon to guide us, but our host said on a clear night the stars are unparalleled.

-Enjoy every minute on this historic island that remains a pristine jewel of the Atlantic coast.

For more on Sapelo Island:

An Introduction, Nanny Goat Beach and the Hog Hammock community
The Sapelo Island lighthouse
A short history of the island
Tour the Reynolds Mansion
    

Sapelo Island - the Reynolds Mansion

One of the main attractions on Sapelo Island is the antebellum Reynolds Mansion; we were lucky enough to see the interior, as there were no guests there at the time. What is today called the “Reynolds Mansion” was originally a plantation house designed and built from tabby (a mixture of lime, shells and water) by Thomas Spalding, an architect, statesman and plantation owner who purchased the south end of the island in 1802.  Although a majority of the construction was complete in 1810, it wasn’t until 1812 that the house was fit for habitation. Heavily vandalized during the Civil War the mansion lay in ruins until 1912 when members of the Sapelo Island Company undertook a partial restoration. Having purchased the south end of the island for use as a hunting preserve, they added a new roof in addition to other improvements with plans to use the house as a hunting lodge.



The Reynolds mansion, a progression: 1. Sallie Spalding's sketch 1958 2. Post Civil War ruins 1900 3. Hunting lodge 1912 4. Today 2013 (Source for photos 1-3 here)

When Howard Coffin purchased much of the island he set out to restore the building to its original state, mainly using a sketch by Spalding’s granddaughter, Sally Spalding. Utilizing the foundations of the house and incorporating some of the original exterior tabby walls, the new house was finished in 1925 complete with indoor swimming pool, upstairs ballroom, and a nautically themed rec room.  R.J. Reynolds Jr. modernized the electrical and communications systems while owner of Sapelo, and for several years opened it to vacationers as an exclusive resort. In 1934 the land and facilities were donated to the University of Georgia for marine research, and eleven years after Reynolds' death in 1964 the Mansion and most of the island were obtained by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

Today, the grounds are shaded by ancient live oaks, sunlight filtering through the Spanish moss to cast shadows on the manicured landscaping. The often photographed sunken pool was full on our visit, with the two giant Spanish water jars and Carrara marble statues present, but alligators thankfully absent. We passed under four huge Ionic columns (the original house had six) and across the front piazza through enormous doors into the great hall, from where rooms split off in all directions.

The dining room

The right wing (north) contains the dining room and beyond that, the kitchens. A sideboard in the dining room is one of the few pieces of furniture remaining from the years Spalding owned the house, and it stands in the same spot today that it did over a hundred years ago.

The left wing contains the library, complete with many volumes from Mr. Reynolds' private collection.

Continuing beyond the hall and its ornate fireplace is the pool room, which originally was a “sun parlor” and now is again, as the pool is not operational and is covered by a faded carpet. Formerly the marble swimming pool was tiled with emerald green and blue, and at the end was a fountain which sprayed water over a statue of a bathing girl. Using a little imagination I could imagine how it looked in its heyday, light streaming in through the many windows and greenhouse-style roof, with the marble sculptures looking down on the swimmers…

We wandered down a spiral staircase and emerged in the lounge, which opens into the rec room. Nautically themed, there is a boat-bar at one end, but the eye-catching feature is the bowling alley. Modern-day guests can play billiards and table tennis.

On the second floor are the living quarters. One suite was occupied by President and Mrs. Coolidge on their visit to Sapelo in 1928, and the adjoining bedroom was the president’s office with a private line directly to the White House. Together, the Mansion can accommodate up to 29 guests in 13 bedrooms; for more information on rates and availability, check the Georgia DNR website.

Yet another hallway and flight of stairs and we found ourselves in the ornately decorated Circus Room (the ballroom), sporting the wild animal scenes of famed Atlanta muralist, Athos Menaboni and his wife, whose work appears throughout the house.

Our time in the mansion was soon up, and we stepped out to the terrace for a few moments while awaiting the rest of our group. It was easy to imagine facing the ocean from this location; the island is actually “moving” south, so sand is eroding at the north end and being deposited at the south, meaning the beach is no longer visible from the house.  Ocean view or not, the mansion and grounds have fueled my dreams of Southern teas and debutante balls. As we continued our tour, I imagined the silence returning to the grounds, the alligators free to reclaim their vigil over this grand old dame of the South.

More on Sapelo Island:
An Introduction, Nanny Goat Beach and the Hog Hammock community
The Sapelo Island lighthouse
A short history of the island
Your guide to visiting Sapelo Island

Touring Sapelo Island - a riveting history

A great way to see Sapelo island and learn more about the complicated history is to take a tour. On our second day on the island we got an early start and headed back to the ferry landing to join the tour group that was arriving on the first ferry. Our tour guide was knowledgeable Yvonne Grovner, master sweetgrass basket maker and resident of the island.

Spanish moss framing the purple blazing star growing around the airstrip

The oldest Native American civilization in the state of Georgia can be found on Sapelo Island. Known as the Sapelo Island Shell Ring Complex, this site consists of three doughnut-shaped Indian mounds built from successive layers of different types of shells, and has been radiocarbon dated at 2170 BC. The rings rise approximately 20 feet above the tidal marsh and the largest of the three has a diameter of 255 feet. Theories regarding the formation include that they were built as monuments or that possibly they were the result of the Native Americans living in circular villages and discarding their trash behind their homes to form a protective surrounding wall over time. (This was not a stop on our tour as we were on the south-end tour, but visits to this site and more can also be arranged.)

The excavated cross-section of a shell ring, source: GeorgiaEncyclopedia.org

Fast forward to 1526 when Sapelo Island was speculated to be the site of San Miguel de Gualdape, the first European settlement in the present day US. If true, it would also be the first place that a Catholic mass was celebrated. The name Sapelo originates from the word Zapala given to the area by Spanish missionaries who lived on the island from about 1573 to 1686. Officially a part of the Guale missionary province of Spanish Florida, after 1680 several missions were merged and relocated to the island under the mission Santa Catalina de Guale.

When the English first colonized Georgia in 1733 an agreement with the Creek Indians gave the land between the Savannah and Altahama Rivers to the British while reserving Sapelo and several other barrier islands as hunting lands for the Indians. Not long after another treaty resulted in the cession of Sapelo, Ossabaw, and St. Catherines islands to the royal colony.

Previous owners include Patrick Mackay, who grew crops there before the Revolutionary War (1775-83), and then John McQueen. In 1789 a consortium of Frenchmen purchased the island with plan to develop it, but disagreements over expenditures led to the breakup of the partnership and the death of two of the men in 1795; one was shot and killed in a duel, another died of yellow fever.

A portion of Sapelo Island’s residents today are direct descendants of the 400 slaves from West Africa and the West Indies brought to the US by Thomas Spalding. The future Georgia Senator and US Representative bought the island in 1802 and developed it into a plantation, selling live oak for shipbuilding and cultivating Sea Island Cotton, sugar cane and rice. Spalding’s plantation house (now known as the Reynolds Mansion and since rebuilt/restored several times) was built on the south end of the island, and the remains of an enclave of slave houses and plantation barns can still be seen today on the north end. Our tour brought us to Behavior Cemetery, established in 1805 and now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

After passing a gorgeous purple field of Liatris, blazing star (the field also doubles as the island’s airstrip), our next stop was Long Tabby. Site of the 1809 old tabby sugar mill (of which the ruins are still visible), this is also where the island’s post office is located. We had stopped in the previous evening to watch the sun set, but arriving with the tour allowed us to explore the science center and check out the ‘swimming pool’; now filled in and a garden, as they just couldn’t keep the alligators and deer out. Ten years after the sugar mill was built Spalding ordered the construction of the brick lighthouse on the south end, and after fifty years of island ownership, he died returning from a convention to assert Georgia's position on the abolishment of slavery.

Ruins of the old tabby sugar mill at Long Tabby

During the Civil War most of the slaves were ferried to the mainland and marched to Milledgeville to avoid the Union army. Afterwards many of the freed slaves managed to return to Sapelo Island where they created five settlements with acreage they had purchased through the Freedman’s Bureau (established by Congress during Reconstruction to provide aid to newly freed slaves). Those communities were Hog Hammock, Raccoon Bluff, Bell Marsh, Shell Hammock and Lumber Landing. The First African Baptist Church was organized in 1866 at Hanging Bull, eventually moving to Raccoon Bluff which was also the site of a black school (the church can be seen on the north end tour). Our next destination was Hog Hammock, and after a tour of the community including First African Missionary Baptist Church, we stopped at the general store. Mrs. Bailey, the author of “God, Dr. Buzzard, and the Bolito Man” just happened to be resting on the porch, and our tour guide’s cookbook was for sale there along with cold drinks and snacks.

First African Missionary Baptist Church

In 1912, the Spalding heirs sold Sapelo (except for the communities) to Henry Coffin of Detroit, who had been brought to the region by the International Road Races in Savannah. Coffin was chief engineer of the Hudson Motor Company and entertained such influential guests on Sapelo such as presidents Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover, as well as aviator Charles Lindbergh (he landed his plane in 1929 on the airstrip we passed that morning). During the time the Coffins owned the island miles of roads were built, creeks were bridged, old fields were cultivated, large tracts were set aside to graze cattle and improvements were made to the island, such as the addition of artesian wells.

Deer browsing next to the crumbling greenhouses near the Reynolds mansion

Due to financial reversals brought about by the Great Depression, Coffin sold the island to tobacco heir Richard J. Reynolds Jr. of Winston-Salem (NC) in 1933 (son of the founder of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company). During the 30 years that Reynolds utilized Sapelo as a part-time residence, the five African American settlements were forcibly consolidated into just one - Hog Hammock. The residents worked as servants in the Reynolds Mansion, found part time work at the timber and road operations on the island or were forced to search employment on the mainland. Reynolds established the Sapelo Island Research Foundation and provided facilities and other support for the University of Georgia Marine Institute (founded in 1954). Having separated from his third wife Muriel in 1959, he lived alone for two years, engaging in increasingly erratic behavior. After his death of emphysema on December 14, 1964 in Lucerne, Switzerland, Sapelo was deeded to the state of Georgia by his widow Annemarie Schmidt Reynolds.

Our tour continued in the Reynold’s Mansion and to the Sapelo Island lighthouse; we felt it was a great value considering it was a near three-hour tour, complete with transportation, commentary and entry to the mansion and lighthouse (note, verify beforehand what your tour entails, usually it is either the lighthouse or the mansion, not both). However, we were immensely grateful that although the rest of the tour group was boarding the ferry back to the island, we still had two days of Sapelo before our return trip.

More on Sapelo Island:
An Introduction, Nanny Goat Beach and the Hog Hammock community
The Sapelo Island lighthouse
Tour the Reynolds Mansion
Your guide to visiting Sapelo Island

The Sapelo Island lighthouse

On our way from Nanny Goat Beach to the Hog Hammock community for afternoon naps we took a small dirt side-road leading through the marsh. An osprey with a fish in its claws circled around to land in an old tree, and just as suddenly we emerged into the large grassy clearing where Sapelo Island’s lighthouse stands.

A guide for mariners in Doboy Sound on their way to and from the Port of Darien, it was activated in 1820 and received a fourth-order Fresnel lens in 1854. In 1856 a beacon light was built, forming a range with the lighthouse and guiding ships into the sound. Confederate forces removed the lens from Sapelo Island Lighthouse before the Union Army occupied the island in 1862 and the lighthouse suffered partial damage during the war. 1868 saw the completion of repairs and its return to service, along with a new beacon mounted on a fifty-foot frame tower.  

On October 2, 1898, the most powerful hurricane to ever strike Georgia came ashore near Cumberland Island. The storm killed at least 179 people, and on Sapelo Island lighthouse keeper William G. Cromley and his family survived the storm by seeking refuge in the lighthouse. The old tower and dwelling were partially undermined, and when the keeper’s dwelling was demolished its bricks were placed under and around the base of the threatened tower and cemented in attempt to save the old structure. Predicting the eventual collapse of the lighthouse a new tower with metal framework was built farther inland in 1905, and it served alongside the original lighthouse until 1933. This steel tower was ultimately dismantled and shipped to South Fox Island in Lake Michigan, where it was active for several years and can still be seen today. Meanwhile, the old lighthouse stood empty for many years until the 206-acre southern portion of the island was purchased (by the State of Georgia and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) in 1991 and set aside as the Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve. In 1998 the tower was restored, the light relit and a spiral staircase added to allow visitors to enjoy the view of Doboy Sound.

To visit the island you must join a tour group; for more information please visit the Georgia DNR website. Take into consideration that the climb to the top is steep; there are over 70 steps to climb to reach the platform from which visitors must ascend a ladder through a hatch to reach the viewing station at the top. With no air circulation the heat can be rather stifling, but we found the view to be worth the temporary discomfort.

More on Sapelo Island:
An introduction, Nanny Goat Beach and the Hog Hammock community
A short history of the island
Tour the Reynolds Mansion
Your guide to visiting Sapelo Island

Georgia's best kept secret - Sapelo Island

Our journey to Sapelo Island first led us to Darien, GA. Located about 50 miles south of Savannah at the mouth of the Altamaha River, it was founded in 1736 near the site of Georgia’s oldest fort, Fort King George. Not long ago I read “Drifting into Darien” by Janisse Ray about the extraordinary biodiversity of the Altamaha River corridor, but our arrival long after the sun had already set ensured that we saw little of the town and surrounding area except for during the short drive to Meridian landing the next morning – and we were in a hurry to catch the ferry.

Our first glimpse of Sapelo Island from the ferry

 

Spending the very last days of summer on Sapelo Island was not the original plan. We had hoped to spend a few days near the ocean, enjoying the beach and relaxing before getting sucked into the busy days of autumn. Upon doing research I was looking for a place we hadn’t been to before, not too far from Greenville and allowing us the option of leaving the crowds behind. Something kept pulling me back to the remote barrier island, despite the five-hour drive from Greenville; maybe it was the fascinating history of the Geechee people whose descendants still live there today, maybe that all but 3% of the island belongs to the State of Georgia, or maybe it was the story of tobacco magnate RJ Reynolds, but the thought of miles of beach all to ourselves convinced me to start planning.

 

We climbed aboard the Katie Underwood (named for the last midwife of Sapelo Island who delivered just about every baby born on Sapelo Island between 1920 and 1968) and settled in for a twenty minute ride through the tidal saltwater marshes of coastal Georgia. As it is only possible to visit the island as part of an organized tour or as guests of residents on the island, the boat was nearly empty. Our host easily spotted us upon landing, and after a quick ride to our lodgings we had in our possession a map and keys to a vehicle for use while on the island: we were on our own.

 

The island is managed by the State of Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR), which operates the ferry service and also serves as the state liaison between the various parties on the island. These include the Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve (SINERR) - a partnership between the DNR and federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the University of Georgia Marine Institute, and the civilian Hog Hammock community.

 

Hog Hammock was named for a former resident by the last name Hogg, a hammock being a dry area jutting up from the marsh. It is the only one of five communities established by former slaves after the Civil War that survives today, and includes a general store, bar, and church. Most inhabitants of the town are African Americans, part of Geechee community, and have been living on the island for generations. The population was estimated to be 47 in 2009; the residents must bring all supplies from the mainland or purchase them in the small store on the island, the children of Hog Hammock take the ferry daily to go to school, and the community keeps losing its inhabitants to mainland Georgia where jobs are more plentiful. Most recently the acquisition of land by outsiders to build vacation homes and a property tax increase have raised tensions to a new high, and many fear that the Geechee culture will be lost forever from the island. It is not hard to understand the appeal of Sapelo Island to mainlanders; with a small population, the promise 97% of the island will stay as is (mostly undeveloped) and with a controlled number of visitors, the island is quiet and secluded, the six miles of beach virtually deserted.

 

Our first day on Sapelo was spent at Nanny Goat Beach on the south end of the island. 17.5 nautical miles offshore is Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary, one of the largest live-bottom reefs in the southeastern United States and the only marine protected area in the federal waters between Cape Hatteras, NC to Cape Canaveral, FL. Unlike reefs built by corals, the sanctuary contains limestone rock outcroppings that stand above the sandy ocean floor. This reef supports soft corals, non-reef building hard corals, bivalves and sponges, as well as associated fishes and sea turtles. The shoreline is no less special. It wasn’t even twenty minutes before we had seen dozens of dolphins swimming north along the coast and twenty different shorebirds flying by. Watching small sharks chase the schools of fish that were forced into deeper water by the receding tide was a unique experience, and large portions of the day passed without seeing a single person. We soaked up the sun, built sandcastles, dug holes, collected dozens of intact whelk shells and watched the shrimp boats at work far on the horizon. A shelter just off the beach provided us with shade and a spot to eat lunch, but the ocean was a magnet and we were soon back in the surf watching the beach revealed foot by foot as the tide retreated even more.

More on Sapelo Island -
The Sapelo Island lighthouse
A short history of the island
Tour the Reynolds Mansion
Your guide to visiting Sapelo Island