At Boneyard Beach within Hunting Island State Park, South Carolina, the first thing you notice is the trees. Then comes the question: why are bleached trunks and exposed roots scattered across the sand like a scene paused midway through collapse? Since the 1980s, Hunting Island has experienced major beach erosion, with some of the highest rates along the US East Coast—reaching up to 30 feet per year in certain areas.

On the island's southern end, Boneyard Beach shows this process clearly: weathered driftwood and the remains of live oaks and palmettos line the shore. Once part of a maritime forest, these trees gradually lost ground as coastal erosion and storms shifted the shoreline. What remains is part geology lesson, part outdoor gallery. More than 200 bird species have been recorded here; bottlenose dolphins are often seen offshore, and loggerhead sea turtles nest on nearby beaches. At low tide, the widest stretch opens to explore, and no two visits look exactly the same.