Cumberland Island

On Monday morning we were the first boat to leave the dock in Jacksonville, James from Miracles helped us with our lines and gave us a great big push off the dock.  David and Trisha from Sovereignty were in their cockpit waving goodbye and everyone was wishing each other safe travels.

The last place to anchor in Florida was the Fernandina Beach area.  At first the area did not look very appealing as we passed a saw mill.  As we inched closer to the town area, it looked like a nice place to check out, hopefully, on our way south. We then passed a huge Regent Cruise ship and then a paper mill. The anchorage area was pretty full but still space for many more boats.

WOW! We have crossed the Florida / Georgia line, we will definitely miss our home state. But SWEET remember, we are on a timeline for hurricane season.

We were heading to the Drum Point Island anchorage just past the Cumberland Sound South anchorage, but, as we are passing other boats we are wondering why no one else was anchored in the spot, so we continued further into the Cumberland Sound anchorage.  We kept going past all the anchored boats, and we kept going, we were the last boat anchored in the sound.  We did get to see horses on the beach.  Of course the dinghy dock where we need to go is way back by the Cumberland Sound South area.

We are all settled in, drop the dinghy and start to go ashore.  Of course the waves are kicking up, not bad but enough to get water in the boat.  We make it to the National Park Sea Camp dock and are tying off as a catamaran is trying to get off the dock on the other side, two guys are pushing off the railing of a docked boat and one of the guys is yelling at the woman steering into the bigger boat.  I understood her pain, not really my captain doesn't yell at me.  Welcome to Cumberland Island.

Cumberland Island is 17.5 miles long and totals 36,415 acres, of which 16,850 are marsh, mud flats, and tidal creeks. It is well known for its sea turtles, wild turkeys, wild horses, armadillos, abundant shore birds, dune fields, maritime forests, salt marshes, and historic structures.

The Ranger Station was closed due to the Chinese virus. We decided to start our tour by walking towards the beach. As we passed all these very cool trees (great for climbing) that were not growing straight up and made us wonder why.  Well the reason is due to "salt pruning". 
  

Salt pruning is the process by which saline mists generated by seawater are driven ashore by winds and thus over time alter the shape of trees or shrubs. The process degrades foliage and branches on the windward side of the plant that faces the body of saline water, more than it does the foliage on the landward side. 

The Sea Camp Campground, located a half mile from the dock, was closed due to the Chinese virus. The camp sites, were clean, had picnic tables, a fire ring with grill, a place for your tent, and food storage.  Campers are required to transport everything in and out, no trash receptacles on the island.  There were working bathrooms, showers, water stations, and a dish washing station.  The area also had a place for groups to gather.

We finally made it to the beach and it was absolutely beautiful. There was not another single person for miles.  We could have stripped and taking a dip.  We put our toes in before heading back inland to do some more exploring.  

We headed south to explore the cemetery on the island.  After what seemed forever, we found the cemetery, but it was fenced off and had private signs. Onward we go, there is a sign pointing to the Duck Pond and Rob is waving at me because there is a deer just staring at us.  From there we found the Ice House Museum, it was used as an Ice House by the Carnegie's and the Captain's House Ranger Station.  Rob is on the phone talking to his Mom during this time.  

Ice House

Ranger Station

Rob talking to Mom

Continuing on we see a sign pointing to Dungeness, no clue so off we go. James Oglethorpe first built on Cumberland Island in 1736, building a hunting lodge that he named Dungeness. We started to enter the ruins and there are horses everywhere, I'm a little more cautious as Rob just continues on. The horses did not even acknowledge us.  

The ruins were from the mansion of Thomas and Lucy Carnegie.  It was a 59-room Queen Anne style mansion that was their winter home.  The mansion was destroyed by fire in 1959. We wandered the grounds for a little while before heading back to the dock. I really wished we could have taken a tour of the island.

The now and then.

There was so much more to see, but it was time to head back.  We walked back to our dingy, untied and the ride back was much smoother than the ride in. 

Looking forward to our next visit.


Thanks to Wikipedia for some of the above information.