On our way back from the white, sandy beaches of Pensacola, FL, we decided to break up the trip halfway with a couple of nights in the beautiful town of Savannah, GA. This wasn’t our first time strolling down the cobblestone streets and mossy avenues, but there was still plenty for us to discover, including Skidaway Island State Park.
Thanks to the stunning photos of mossy oaks, palm trees, and sweeping waterway views, I was drawn to this beautiful state park online. It is also one of the top pet-friendly activities in the area, which is essential to us now that we have a pup in the mix!
Due to time constraints, we only had the time to do one trail, so we chose the Sandpiper Trail Loop, Skidaway Island’s most popular trail. It’s only 1 mile long, but it is packed with fascinating creatures and beautiful landscapes! It’s no wonder why this particular trail draws so many visitors.
Today, I’ll be sharing some of the trail’s highlights with you, so you know what to expect. And don’t forget to check out my YouTube video as well for some lovely footage of the trails and waterways, as well as our cute corgi pup. 😉
Watch Our Skidaway Island Adventure on YouTube
About Skidaway Island State Park
Entrance Fee: $5
What to Bring: Good walking shoes (and potentially a pair that can get wet–more on that later), weather-appropriate clothing, bug spray, water.
Pet-Friendly Rating: 5/5
Skidaway Island State Park is located about 20 minutes outside of Savannah’s historic downtown district. The park directly borders the Skidaway Narrows, part of an Intracoastal Waterway that extends from Florida to Massachusetts. At one point on the Sandpiper Trail, you can see the Diamond Causeway spanning the water in the distance.
The park encapsulates a lot of Savannah’s natural charm with iconic Spanish moss, palm trees, and salt marshes, as well as plenty of wildlife, like deer, fiddler crabs, and water birds. If you’re lucky, you may even see dolphins swimming down the river!
You can choose from 3 loops and a connector trail for a total of 6 miles of scenery. But don’t be afraid that it’s all the same views! Some unusual things hide along the paths besides wildlife, including 31 old liquor still sites and several Confederate earthworks.
If you’re interested in staying for a while, visitors can reserve campsites with water, electricity, and cable hook-ups, and access to hot showers. Pets are welcome, too, as long as they stay on a leash and you clean up after them.
What to See on the Sandpiper Trail Loop
The Sandpiper Trail has nine trail markers, some of which are more obvious and interesting than others. The path makes a big, one-mile loop from the park’s first parking lot through marshlands, forests, tidal creeks, and salt flats. Keep in mind that this is entirely wilderness once you leave the parking lot, so restrooms, water, etc., will be unavailable during your trip. However, it only takes about an hour to explore, even with frequent stops, so you should be fine as long as you plan ahead.
Salt Flats & Fiddler Crabs
The first main thing you’ll see is a broad, open expanse of white, sandy land. These are salt flats that get flooded during high tide. When the water recedes, it leaves behind a layer of white salt. While it’s a bit drab on its own, this area harbors a fascinating ecosystem for fiddler crabs! If you look down from the boardwalk, you’ll see hundreds of fiddler crabs, big and small, scuttling around the salty ground and diving into their holes. You may even see a few of the males battling with their enlarged claws.
This boardwalk has a nice benched area that is particularly pretty around sunset, too.
Gorgeous Maritime Forests
Skidaway Island has a stunning range of forests right along the water. The plants vary based on elevation, but there are plenty of palms, ferns, oaks, etc., all through the woods and lots of that iconic Spanish moss. The forest trails are clearly defined and take you alongside some lovely water views and under a peaceful canopy of greenery.
While you’ll walk through plenty of forest on this trail, it’s somehow constantly changing, and the bends in the pathway keep the mystery alive for the whole adventure.
Tricky Tidal Creek
The Tidal Creek is a lovely spot, with calm, lightly swirling waters framing each side of the pathway. It’s incredibly peaceful and quiet here, with the water moving so slowly it almost seems frozen. The landscape is broken up by tall water grasses and a few salt-defiant trees, and tiny creatures can be seen swimming in the shallows.
This particular area is why I recommend bringing a pair of shoes that can get wet. Twice a day, this tidal creek floods due to the changing tide. Which wouldn’t be a problem, except it floods the pathway! We were not prepared during our sunset walk, so we ended up with wet feet and a muddy pup. We passed a couple of guys who were changing into their clogs on the other side of the flooding, and I highly recommend you follow their lead!
Confederate Earthworks
Along the pathway after the Tidal Creek, a tell-tale hill shows where the Confederate army dug up earthworks during the Civil War. It’s nothing fancy, but it’s cool to recognize that some history happened here.
Intracoastal Waterway Views
If you want to get close to the Skidaway Narrows, you can take a second loop off the Sandpiper Trail and follow the Avian Loop Trail right by the river. However, you’ll still get plenty of sweeping waterscape views if you stick to the path here. The trail winds right along a calm marshland area, where you can see the Diamond Causeway arching above the Intracoastal Waterway.
We hit this area at sunset, and it was one of my favorite spots on the entire loop with good reason.
We had such a wonderful time exploring this intriguing slice of Savannah’s nature scene, and I would recommend it for the next time you’re in Savannah. Skidaway Island is something we may have overlooked if it weren’t for our pup, and I’d hate for you to make that mistake! It’s an excellent spot for nature lovers and view chasers. It’s also a pleasant break from the hustle of the downtown district.
Stay tuned in the weeks ahead for more posts on Savannah, including a complete list of pet-friendly activities to do in the area! In the meantime, I encourage you to check out this post from our first trip to Savannah in 2018 and see some fantastic and budget-friendly things to do in the area.
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Happy travels!
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