Getting to Cumberland Island

Cumberland Island National Seashore

Boarding the Cumberland Island Ferry brings excitement for adventure upon the only undeveloped island along the Georgia-Florida border. We climb aboard in the foggy morning air, and as I find a seat on the bow of the ship, I’m unaware of other people floating around me. Rather, my sights are set on the horizon, focused on our journey ahead on the 17-mile-long remote island. The southernmost sea island in Georgia, Cumberland Island National Seashore is almost 24,000 acres, making it one of the largest barrier islands along the eastern U.S. coast. It is considered a composite barrier island made up of Great and Little Cumberland Islands thanks to its Pleistocene sediments and isolation from the coast due to sea level rise. One third of the land contains salt marsh, and no more than around 500 people have resided on the island at one time, making it a serene place of solitude and natural scenery

Flocks of white ibis zip by us as the wind whips around our bodies and drops of dew press against my cheeks. Salt marsh cord grass extends for miles along the St. Mary’s River until we are out in the middle of Cumberland Sound with nothing in sight except the hazy vision of a sandy shoreline.

When I spot the magnitude of the island about 45 minutes into our trip, I gather my geographic bearings and game plan our day-long excursion on the island. We finger trace the route of the River Trail to the Dungeness Ruins on a paper map. The only way to visit other landmarks that remain from the Carnegie era, such as the Plum Orchard Mansion or the First African Baptist Church, is to camp on the island overnight or sign up for the Land and Legacies motorized tour, the only guided tour on the island which takes you deeper north to what is known as the Settlement Area.

As we approach the shoreline of barren branches and sea oats, the island grows in enormity and wonder of wilderness. We dock at the Sea Camp Ranger Station, just a half mile to the closest campgrounds on the island. Gathering up our trail treats and belongings to debark the ship, we pause momentarily to recognize the surrounding splendor of luscious green canopies and maritime hammocks jutted up against the secluded beach of Cumberland Island. We are ready to descend into the River Trail on an overcast July day, cool as two cucumbers!