Maritime forest in Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia, United States 17 Jun 2025

Before you hit the beach, you"ll hear it—the rustle of leaves in salty air, the creak of twisted trunks, the hush of an old world. Welcome to the maritime forest of Cumberland Island National Seashore on the southernmost stretch of Georgia"s Atlantic coast. Salt spray, sandy soil, hurricanes? The trees here stand their ground. Live oaks bend but don"t break. Saw palmettos crowd the ground like leafy bodyguards, while Spanish moss hangs from branches like nature"s fringe. This maritime forest is one of the best remaining examples of this rare habitat in the United States. Thanks to its national seashore status, the island has been spared from the concrete creep seen on other coastlines.

© Chris Moore/TANDEM Stills + Motion

palette

Today in History

A high-flying royal tradition
A grand view
17 Jun 2024Green-crowned brilliant hummingbird

More Desktop Wallpapers:

21 Mar 2026International Day of Forests
Mountains of sand
6 Feb 2024Lake Tahoe, USA
A light in the coastal darkness
11 Dec 2024International Mountain Day
11 Jan 2026Blue walls of Chefchaouen, Morocco
Beauty by the bay
Rainbow reflection
19 Nov 2024Tasmans Arch, Tasman National Park, Tasmania, Australia
27 Nov 2024Tombeau du Géant in Bouillon, Belgium
5 Jun 2024World Environment Day
11 Apr 2024Dragon waterfall, Venezuela
24 Sep 2024Skaftafell, Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland
8 Sep 2025International Literacy Day
8 Jun 2025World Oceans Day
This lake is no mirage
Festival fever
19 Apr 2026Anne Hathaways cottage, Stratford-upon-Avon, England
6 Oct 2025Anshun Bridge, Chengdu, China
22 Dec 2025The Nutcracker performed by the Turkish State Opera and Ballet in Ankara
31 Mar 2026Paradise Cave, Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, Vietnam
27 Jan 2026Dalmatian pelicans, Lake Kerkini, Greece
7 Jul 2024Rice terraces of Mù Cang Chải, Yên Bái province, Vietnam
20 Sep 2023Aqueduct, Arkadia Park, Poland
Castle in the sky
20 Apr 2024Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA
29 Sep 2023Castell Coch, Wales
Rides above the tide
21 Jul 2025The summer opening of Buckingham Palace
1 Dec 2024Antarctica Day