One of the most highly rated tourist attractions in the Golden Isles is Cannon’s Point Preserve. In this 600 acre wilderness area, visitors can hike miles of trails, launch a kayak or canoe at Lawrence Creek, view seemingly never-ending streams and saltmarsh from a two-story Observation Tower, and visit the remains of plantation-era structures built by slaves with tabby and handmade bricks. This is one of the nearly thirty properties owned and carefully managed by the St. Simons Land Trust that range from greenspace that adds to the island’s lushness and canopy, like Cannon’s Point, to “pocket parks” where guests can stroll, rest on a bench, and read interpretive signage about the environmental and historic features of the island.
In case you aren’t familiar with the Land Trust properties, we’re sharing some of their top spots to visit. Breathe in the beauty and enjoy the unique relationship with nature and history that the island has to offer.
521 Arnold Road
Purchased in 2014 by the Land Trust after its owners couldn’t bear the thought of the 200 year old live oak being axed for development, this postage stamp greenspace is a favorite of many longtime island residents because of the beautiful lone oak there known by locals as the “Hiring Tree.” According to folklore, the tree got its name because in the early 20th Century, unemployed construction workers often stood by this tree and contractors and others needing day laborers would tap some of the men in the early mornings for temporary jobs. Children love running about on the lawn and families love the beauty of this historic tree, as well as its proximity to the beaches.
Land Trust Office
1810 Frederica Road
For almost twenty years the Land Trust leased their offices, with employees sometimes working in hallways and sharing phones and desks. That changed earlier this year when staff were able to move into a renovated building at 1810 Frederica Road just north of Redfern Village. Acquisition of the property was made possible by a generous donor whose grant was restricted for this specific project. Previously the site was slated for a discount store that caused an uproar on the island but now serves as additional greenspace for the community. A Land Trust supporter and SSI resident recently said that this was one of her favorite properties, “because it was taken off the market and kept it from being a dollar store. It will be a great place to gather and host educational programs.”
Guests are welcomed to park their bikes at 1810, have lunch on a picnic table in the backyard, recharge, listen to birdsong, and enjoy the magnificent oaks on the property. This is also a great place to start biking north to other Land Trust properties, including Cannon’s Point, which is a fourteen-mile roundtrip ride from 1810. In the true spirit of Southern hospitality, the Land Trust staff says, “Y’all come!”
Mildred Huie Museum • 1819 Frederica Road
Almost directly across the street from the Land Trust offices, is a half-acre greenspace where the former Mildred Huie Museum was located for decades. Once the home (and later art gallery/museum) of local artist Mildred Huie, this iconic property was purchased in early 2018. Although the building is no longer in use, it currently serves as an example of architecture rarely seen on the island. Many native and mature plants are on the property. Visitors can stroll along garden paths, rest on one of the benches, and read about the history of the former home and those who lived there.
John Gilbert Nature Trail • 2470 Frederica Road
This forty acre property was the first major acquisition of the Land Trust. Ben Slade, one of the founders of the Trust, remembers the day in 2002 when he received a call from Dorothy Gilbert, asking if he was interested in her donating the land in memory of her late husband John. According to Ben, he jumped into his car that very moment and drove to Dorothy’s home to discuss the offer. Today this pocket park contains a path that passes in front of John’s Tree, an enormous, ancient live oak with branches that seem to extend to the heavens. There is also a wooden boardwalk that provides stunning views of the island’s famous marshlands.
One of the most visited parks on St. Simons Island, this mid-island spot is a perfect resting stop on a long bike ride, or a great place to walk dogs and share the vistas with children and guests. Cecily Holbrook, a local educator and member of the Land Trust, says that she, her husband and two small children love the “pockets of protected land” like the John Gilbert Trail, that they can “ride our bikes to and walk in search of hidden painted rocks and unobstructed marsh views.”
Old Stables Corner • Northwest corner of Sea Island Road and Frederica Road
For many, this wooded two-acre property is the most iconic corner on the island. Generations can remember taking riding lessons at the stables or meandering on horseback from the barn to Sea Island, and then galloping through the surf on Sea Island’s beach. In less than 100 days in 2010, the community came together to raise more than $2.5 million to save the site from development and to enhance and maintain the property.
Little daylight shows at Old Stables Corner these days because of its huge live oaks and the dense canopy they create. This makes it the perfect shady spot for a picnic on a summer day and a time to remember one’s childhood. Bug and Becca Strother, lifetime island residents whose families settled on the coast generations ago, say that this beautiful place is their favorite place on the island “because we both used to visit the stables regularly as children.”
Historic Harrington School • 325 South Harrington Rd
One of the last two solely African American schoolhouses on Georgia’s coast, the one-room school was built in the 1920s for students of color. This remained the educational center for the island’s African American children until desegregation in the 1960s. Forty years later, Isadora Hunter, a lifelong island resident who didn’t want St. Simons Island to lose a significant part of its African American heritage, donated her portion of the twelve acres surrounding the former school to help make it possible for the Land Trust and Glynn County to jointly purchase the property.
Amy Roberts, a leading force in restoring and preserving the historic school for twenty years, says that the building was also a cultural center and a “meeting place for the community. It was where young men came to sign up for the armed services.” Today, Mrs. Roberts delivers presentations on the history of the school and leads African American heritage tours on the island. In addition, Harrington Community Park, which is contiguous with the grounds of the former school, contains 12 acres of woodlands and two ponds that serve as habitat for endangered wood storks.
Harrington Preserve on Frederica • 5704 & 5702 Frederica Road
Not far from the historic schoolhouse, are a total four acres of greenspace – two acres on each side of Frederica Road. The acreage on the west side of Frederica was donated by the Sea Island Company in 2002, when it challenged the Land Trust’s members to acquire the two acres on the east side of the road. This beautifully landscaped little “preserve” contains walking paths and seating. If biking, it is a peaceful place to catch one’s breath before continuing your jaunt to the north.
Guale Preserve • 110 Lawrence Road
History abounds at this 258-acre preserve that was once part of a family compound formerly known as Musgrove Plantation. For decades it was rarely seen by anyone who was not a guest at private events. In recent years, Musgrove has hosted dignitaries from around the world, and it was the site of Jimmy Carter’s first cabinet meeting after being elected president. But evidence of human occupation on the preserve goes back thousands of years and it was once home to different Native American tribes, including the Guale Indians (pronounced “Wah-lee”), the indigenous tribe from which the Preserve gets its name. Parcels of Musgrove were purchased in three phases by the Land Trust over a period of three years. Visitors can hike a series of trails or bike the two-mile loop. Recently a photographer who was on the property identified more than 70 species of birds. The preserve is also filled with native plants and a hickory forest. Currently Guale Preserve is open from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. daily. Bring the whole family and enjoy a picnic on the grounds.
Alice Richards Botanical Trail • 2201 Lawrence Road
In 2008, the Sea Island Company donated twenty acres on Lawrence Road to the Land Trust and partnered with the organization to create the first new park of significance on the island in fifty years: Frederica Park. A $1 million grant from the estate of Alice Richards, a former part-time coastal resident, facilitated the development of the nature trail named in Mrs. Richards’ memory. Today the park and trail are managed by Glynn County. Thirteen interactive signs highlight the native plant species that have been reintroduced on the trail. There are also “faerie houses” among the plantings, delighting children of all ages. Inside Frederica Park there is a picnic gazebo, a children’s playground, a sports field, and a fenced-in dog park. The park is open daily and has public restrooms.
Cannon’s Point Preserve • Cannon’s Point Drive
The island’s northernmost major attraction is a 608-acre peninsula that is protected by a perpetual conservation easement held by The Nature Conservancy and owned and managed by the Land Trust. The largest land conservation project on St. Simons Island, Cannon’s Point Preserve is an extraordinary wilderness area, with more than six miles of river shoreline and salt marsh. The Preserve is one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet and is home to the island’s last intact maritime forest. Scientific research and a ground-breaking reforestation project are taking place on site
The Preserve is open from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 pm. Saturday-Monday. Visitors can bike or hike along trails and paths on the south end, take a break in the guest pavilion, fish or kayak at the waterfront, and stand among the forest canopy at the south-end observation tower. They can also walk or bike the two and a half miles to the north end, where the path is surrounded by undisturbed habitat and ends at the site of a former 18th century home. Here, guests can climb another observation tower that provides amazing perspective on the archaeological ruins of the former Couper Plantation, including outbuildings and slave quarters built in the early 1800s.
The St. Simons Land Trust was founded in 2000 by a group of community members who were concerned about overdevelopment on the island and were determined to help preserve the cultural and natural features of St. Simons Island. Today, the organization has nearly 1,500 members as well as more than 100 volunteers who assist with property maintenance and helping host the annual Oyster Roast fundraiser. To learn more about other Land Trust properties, become a member, or volunteer, please visit sslt.org or call their offices at 912.638.9109.
