St. Simon Island
 

Any good road routes in the area, planning to bring the bike for a week in July to get some miles in. Also looking for some info on backwater kayaking as the kayak is coming along as well.

The highway south of Brunswick to atleast (and probably beyond if I remember) Jekyll Island is a bike route. I've rode on Jekyll on vacation and thought it was pretty nice ride. Never have done the highway though. The bridge on the highway before you get to Jekyll is probably the only serious climb in the area.

I'm on St. Simons as we speak.
The island has a mup that covers most everywhere. It's fine for exploring, but kinda rough on thin tires and too crowded and twisty for really hammering.
The island is not used to bikes off of the path (and traffic is pretty thick on the island), but north of Demre Road it opens up and north of Sea Island road it really opens up. However, if you just wish to tool about you won't need a car the entire time you are here.
There is a bike path between Jekyll and St. Simons but the bridge can be daunting.
Jekyll has miles of bike paths and is deserted compared to St. Simons.

In the Village (the shops around the pier) there is an outfit that does kayak tours daily and they sell kayak route maps. They use the creek on East Bridge road as the put-in. Parking is allowed right there. There is also kayaking around Jekyll and they have more put-ins (but I don't know kayaking on the island well enough to delve to deeply).

Feel free to PM me if you wish.

I am actually going to be at Jekyll Island Club for the 4th and was wondering about that bridge; being from south Florida it looks like a MOUNTAIN. Does the bridge have a decent shoulder that is semi clean. Any suggestions to get some rides in between 20 and 40 miles?

It has a shoulder; 6 to 8 feet wide if I remember right. As for the amount of climbing on the bridge I think it is pretty similar to the Cooper River Bridge in Charleston that I've seen hundreds of cyclist cross. Its do-able, maybe not pleasant if you don't climb much though.

For a 40 mile ride you could go from the lighthouse on St Simons to beach access on Jekyll and back.

I'm a noob here. Both to the forum and to cycling. But... i actually live in Brunswick, the mainland side of SSI. I really like biking on Jekyll too. As mentioned above, SSI is packed, especially this time of year, and Jekyll is deserted in comparison. There are some good trails on Jekyll and road riding is good as the traffic is almost non-existent. I think the mentioed trip from SSI lighthouse to Jekyll and back might be enjoyable if you are looking for a ride of that distance.

The bridge to jekyll does have a sizeable shoulder and I see folks all the time biking it.

good luck

Welcome, gunguy05. Jekyll Island is my favorite vacation spot. Just wish it wasn't a 9 hour drive from Nashville.

Only real place to ride fast on SSI is up to the north, as said above. There is maybe 10 miles of nice road with little traffic on it and they were building a bike path along that road when I was there last summer.The bike paths around the south 1/2 of SSI are uneven, slow going and suitable mostly for noodling around... also said above. If it was me I would drive to Jekyll to ride my bike. That is one high freaking bridge and traffic on it is fast.

Just got back from Jekyll, and I have to say riding on the island was glorious compared to the combat cycling we do in south Florida. I was staying at the Jekyll Island Club and only biked on the Island and the road back to wards Brunswick, did not do the big bridge though. The circumference of the Island gave me a 15 mile ride which I just did a couple of times with only one stop sign to worry about, otherwise it was put your head down and hammer away. I cannot wait to go back and maybe do the Triathlon in May.

I live in brunswick, but myself and my wife stayed over there this weekend at the new Hampton (thur and fri) and we biked about 17mi on friday and 5mi on sat. I bet I passed you at some point. I went back on Sun and biked another 13mi, but it was a mad house over there at that point. Yes, it is a great ride over there. I love the trees and peace and quiet, and riding on the road with almost no worries. Very relaxing.

Back on topic. On SSI there is a new bike path on the N end of the island. At least 12-14 miles of it. I think it has been built in the last year. I don't get out that way much, but I know it is relatively new.

I road 150+ miles last week while there. The bike paths are suitable for slower rides, so I stayed off them the whole time. I only have 1 only lady get mad that I was riding on the roadway which was funny cause I was pushing 22 mph in a 25 mph zone. You can ride from one end of the island and back and get about 30 miles rounbd trip. I also took 2 rides over the bridges to Brunswick, and out HWY 17, and then 1 ride from SSI to Jekyll Island. The wind off the ocean wasn't aweful just had to make sure I had enough left to push back through it. I loved staying at SSI, I'm not much of a beach person so really enjoyed the slower pace of life.

Correct. They were working on that path last summer (09) when I was there. The road is very good on that end of SSI too... pretty low traffic and smooth.

If you rode over the tall bridge you are braver than I! Got pics of that?

.this is the only pic of the bridge I have, there was quite a cross wind on it. I saw a handful of people riding and running across the bridge.http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=159562
http://www.bikeforums.net/images/misc/pencil.png

It's a cruisy place (SSI and Jeckyl), but they are nice.

I added some routes to mapmyride for the area if anyone is interested.

I remember having to pay to drive the car onto Jekyll (apparently if you're staying on-island that didn't apply?); is that still in force, and do bicyclists have to cough up too?

Yes, you still pay on Jekyll, $5 I think. I didn't have to pay on the bike.