Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Taktsang Lhakhang, also known as the “Tiger’s Nest”.
Bhutan • 11 days, 10 nights
Festivals & Temples of Bhutan
from
Macchu Picchu
Peru • 10 days, 9 nights
Peru: Machu Picchu & the Last Incan Bridges
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Mosaic in Beachfront Park.
Tsunami Walking Tour
Madam Yoko’s gravesite.
Madam Yoko’s Grave
Garden path.
Garden of the Presidential Mansion
Anabaptist Cages
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Aerial view of Bell Labs Holmdel
How the Bell Labs Holmdel Complex Inspired ‘Severance’
5 days ago
Omni Parker House Hotel
The Omni Parker House: Inside the History of Boston’s Most Iconic Hotel
6 days ago
The cute capybara.
Animal Takeover: Brace Yourself for Adorable Hordes
7 days ago
The Codex Gigas (the Devil’s Bible) open to the portrait of the devil.
Codex Gigas: Who Drew the Devil in This Massive Medieval Bible?
8 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Florida Palm Coast The Rocks - Washington Oaks State Park

The Rocks - Washington Oaks State Park

A secret, rocky playground hidden amongst the plain white beaches of the Florida coast.

Palm Coast, Florida

Added By
Chey
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Unusual formations of coquina rock at The Rocks beach.   Wiki User: Ebyabe
Unusual formations of coquina rock at The Rocks beach.   Wiki User: Ebyabe
  ElusivePenguin / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Tide pools at sunrise at Washington Oaks State Park   Ramblin Dan / Atlas Obscura User
Coquina Rocks Sunrise at Washington Oaks State Park   Ramblin Dan / Atlas Obscura User
  J Ginsberg / Atlas Obscura User
  J Ginsberg / Atlas Obscura User
Coquina rocks in the sand at “The Rocks” beach in Florida   Wiki User: Ebyabe
Crashing into rocks as the tide comes in   blackmonautomotive / Atlas Obscura User
Fossils of shells and who knows what.   blackmonautomotive / Atlas Obscura User
  ElusivePenguin / Atlas Obscura User
  ElusivePenguin / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Across the street from the Washington Oaks State Garden, this unusual beach in Florida is a well-kept secret, hoarded by the locals who refer to it as "The Rocks".

What's unusual about this beach is, well, the rocks. Florida beaches are known for being long and white, with miles and miles of flat, flat, flatness. "The Rocks" (sometimes) deliver a miniature Grand Canyon in the sand—a mile of unusual geological formations, caves, nooks, and crannies in the water-worn coquina rock. The "sometimes" is due to the rocks not always putting on their show—which is part of the allure of this place.

Whether or not the rocks appear depends on the recent weather and tides. If there has been a number of nor'easter-type storms, then you can be pretty sure that the rocks will appear. On the other hand, if the storms and the tides have deposited more sand than usual, you'll walk out to the beach and see nothing but a few small bumps in the sand. Getting to the beach at just the right time to catch the rocks out in full force is a rarity, so make sure to snap a picture to back up your story.

When the rocks are visible, it's a wonderful playground. Sometimes the waves carve small pools in the rocks, creating a shallow pool for starfish and other tide creatures. Often overlooked, it's rare to find more than a handful of other people there, so, at least for now, you can usually enjoy the hidden seascape in relative peace and quiet.

 

Related Tags

Beaches Geological Oddities Geology

Know Before You Go

On Highway A1A, about half-way between Daytona Beach and St. Augustine. Across the road from Washington Oaks State Gardens. (To avoid confusion, some facts: Highway A1A cuts away from Highway 1 just south of St. Augustine. A1A runs along the beaches until just north of Daytona Beach, and then it joins Highway 1 again.)

Community Contributors

Added By

cheycobb

Edited By

Rachel, J Ginsberg, Collector of Experiences, Ramblin Dan...

  • Rachel
  • J Ginsberg
  • Collector of Experiences
  • Ramblin Dan
  • blackmonautomotive
  • Khaskins
  • ElusivePenguin

Published

February 5, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://firstcoastmagazine.com/washington-oaks-gardens-state-park/
The Rocks - Washington Oaks State Park
Palm Coast, Florida, 32137
United States
29.633124, -81.207483
Visit Website

Nearby Places

Fort Matanzas National Monument

St. Augustine, Florida

miles away

The Old Brick Road

Bunnell, Florida

miles away

Bulow Plantation Ruins

Flagler Beach, Florida

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Florida

Florida

United States

Places 435
Stories 47

Nearby Places

Fort Matanzas National Monument

St. Augustine, Florida

miles away

The Old Brick Road

Bunnell, Florida

miles away

Bulow Plantation Ruins

Flagler Beach, Florida

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Florida

Florida

United States

Places 435
Stories 47

Related Stories and Lists

10 Obscure Beaches That Are Everything a Beach Should Be

beaches

By Eric Grundhauser

Related Places

  • A beach on the island with distinctive rock formations.

    Malpe, India

    Thonsepar

    These four small islands contain unique hexagonal rock formations.

  • Saint Paul, Antigua and Barbuda

    Pillars of Hercules

    A series of magical limestone formations along the coastline of the country island of Antigua.

  • Jade collected from the coast of Itoigawa.

    Itoigawa, Japan

    The Jade Coast

    You can still find treasures on the pebbly beaches of one of the world's oldest jade-producing areas.

  • Bonhomme de Bourail

    Bourail, New Caledonia

    Bonhomme de Bourail

    A beachside monolith shaped by years of waves crashing against hard quartz.

  • Footprints on the dunes.

    Mears, Michigan

    Silver Lake Sand Dunes

    An unlikely beach paradise of giant sand dunes lies between two lakes just a few minutes from Michigan's cherry country.

  • Trollskogen

    Borgholm, Sweden

    Trollskogen (The Troll Forest)

    Crooked windswept pines give this old forest an enchanted and magical look.

  • From above.

    Noisy-sur-École, France

    Les Sables du Cul du Chien

    An unusual sand beach in the middle of a forest.

  • A little gem awaits.

    Bolinas, California

    Alamere Falls

    This rare example of a "tidefall" is a spectacular drop from the cliffs down onto the beach.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.