The Alabama Gulf Coast is a wonder. The endless blue skies, emerald water that gently laps on the sugar-white sands, the smell of fresh salt air and the shells you find scattered along your path. All wonders. All part of our natural environment.

It’s easy to want to take home a treasure from the beach. A symbol of the memory of the day spent on the Alabama shores. But we want future generations to continue to enjoy the shores, soak up the sun and find little treasures hidden along the way.

Leave Only Footprints exists to raise awareness and participation in green initiatives and Leave No Trace behaviors among visitors and residents of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. To take this initiative a step further, we ask that you leave all shells, driftwood and other natural items found along the shores right where you find them. Take the time to be in awe of the beauty and recognize just how lucky you were to come across it, then set it back down. Maybe take a picture of it. But please let it remain in its home instead of going back to your home.

Our resources are precious. Take the time to enjoy them and then return them to where you found them.