Jockeys Ridge contains two buried paleosols that separate three packages of dune sediment, indicating two periods of dune activity that were each interrupted by a period of stabilization with vegetative cover, followed by a third period of reactivation. Several samples of tree stumps and charred wood from the paleosols were taken in several areas of Jockeys Ridge for C-14 dating. IR-OSL samples were taken above and below the upper soil, within sight of the soil, to ensure that appropriate packages of dune sediment were being sampled. The lower soil had not been delineated when IR-OSL samples were taken.

Charred wood from the lower soil was sampled in two locations and the results of those dates are plotted in box 1 above. The dates indicate that the sampled tree died between 885 and 1410 cal AD, which means that the second phase of dune activity began during or after that time. Two stump samples were dated from the upper paleosol, yielding a representative date of later than 1650 cal AD, as indicated by the calibration data (which is inclusive of both C-14 dates) in box 2 above. Therefore, the current phase of dune activity began after 1650 AD.