City: Savannah, GA

Category: Parks & Recreation

Telephone: (912) 598-2300

Address: 52 Diamond Causeway

Description: Get back to nature on the Big Ferry or Sandpiper Trails at Skidaway State Park. Walking either will give you a good look at a maritime forest and the salt marsh, their plants, and possibly some of their animals, including fiddler crabs, egrets, deer, and alligators. The trails also take you to earthwork fortifications built as Confederate defenses during the Civil War and the remains of a moonshine still. Big Ferry can be hiked in either a 2- or 3-mile loop, with the latter taking about 90 minutes to walk. Sandpiper is a mile long, takes about 20 minutes, and can be traversed by people using wheelchairs (with a little help) and parents pushing baby strollers. A path connects the trails, enabling hikers to get in as much as a 5.5-mile walk. Contact the park for guided hikes.The 533-acre park, created during the early 1970s and opened in 1975, is in the western portion of Skidaway Island and borders a stretch of the Intracoastal Waterway called the Skidaway Narrows. Other features of the park include a museum featuring the skeleton of a giant sloth, picnic sites, interpretive nature programs, and campsites. In addition to the picnic sites, there are five covered shelters available on a first-come, first-served basis. If you don’t want to take a chance, you can reserve one at $60 a day; a group shelter accommodates 150 people and rents for $255 per day. The park is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week. There’s a $3 parking fee (more for buses) on all days except Wed, when admission is free. If you’re planning to come here often or visit other state parks and historic sites in Georgia, you might consider purchasing an annual Georgia Park Pass for $30 ($15 for those age 62 and older). That will get you unlimited admission to all state parks.