Cumberland Island :: Sea Camp

After walking along the beach for about a mile and a half, another boardwalk, this one along the Sea Camp Trail, leads you across the dunes.



It seemed like a sudden change, from the brightness of the sand dunes to the darkness of a forest of strangely twisted and misshapen Live Oak trees. The change was startling and it took a little while for your eyes to adjust. But once your eyes adjusted, what they beheld was really quite magical.

Several boys were climbing in one of the larger trees, its limbs going in every direction. There was a sign nearby. Not one that prohibited climbing in the trees, but rather cautioning climbers to wear shoes! Hidden midst the grove of trees were campsites. In the summer this area would provide a welcome relief from the glare and heat of the sun.


I followed the trail through the Live Oak forest on to the Sea Camp Ranger Station and Dock. There was very little wind and the water was as smooth as glass.

It was getting late, close to 4 o'clock, so I followed the River Trail, where I was surrounded by tall, large Live Oak trees, back to the Dungeness Dock. Quite a difference between these trees and the ones at Sea Camp. As I was walking, I kept hearing something moving around in the underbrush. It took a few minutes but I finally saw what was making the noise.

The most common view I had was from behind as I watched it for a short time. It scurried around with its nose hidden in the ground, searching for the next delicious morsel. But for a few brief seconds, the Armadillo stopped and stood on its hind legs.

With my arrival back at the Dungeness Dock, my visit to Cumberland Island was nearly over. The sun was starting to go down and it was getting colder. Along with several other passengers I patiently awaited the arrival of the ferry. This time I opted for the comfort of the warm cabin area. It was standing room only inside but sore feet and legs were a small price to pay for a little warmth. 'Twas much better than sitting outside where it was cold and windy!

There is so much more to see and learn on Cumberland Island. In the six hours I spent there I covered only the southern tip, perhaps 3 miles. It would take several days to explore the entire Island. As well as the miles of beach and trails, there are the other Carnegie estates on the northern end including Greyfield Inn (a luxury hotel) and the restored Plum Orchard mansion. There is the First African Baptist Church (where John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette were married). There is the history of the early settlements: the Timucuan Indians, the arrival of the Spaniards in 1566, Pirate attacks, then the English came in 1733, and the plantation owners in the early 1800s. In 1890 a settlement was established for emancipated slaves. For such a small place, it certainly has a fascinating history. I'm so glad that I decided to ignore the weather and visit Cumberland Island!

Other posts in this Series:

• Dungeness
• The Marsh and Dunes
• The Beach

Cumberland Island :: The Beach

The trail meanders through the dunes, alternating between a sandy path and boardwalk. A small forest of scrubby trees and brush seems to create a barrier for the shifting sands of the dunes inhibiting their movement and helping to prevent them from encroaching further inland.

The tide was out so there was a large expanse of beach showing. The group of people off to the south was the first and last group I saw walking along the seashore that day. The building in the distance on the right side of the photo is a pulp mill on neighboring Amelia Island. It is the only “blemish” on an otherwise beautiful and distant horizon.

I had been walking along the hard-packed beach for over an hour and in that time had seen only two other people. Now, I was alone on the beach, listening to the surf moving in and out, watching the clouds go by, and being amused by the Sandpipers that scurried to and fro around the edge of the surf, occasionally stopping to grab a little something to eat.

There was hardly any wind and the sun came out for a short time then disappeared behind a thick layer of clouds. The warmth from the brief appearance of the sun was quite welcome though it was comfortable otherwise, especially with the four layers of clothing I wore. Not too cold, if you kept moving.

I noticed a portion of a large tree lying along the outer edge of the beach, near the dunes, and went to investigate. I don't know if the tree had drifted in from the ocean or what but all of the bark had been removed and only stumps remained where branches had been. Conveniently, one end made a very nice seat with two of the stumps creating a nice backrest. It was early afternoon so I sat down to eat my lunch.

Every so often the sun would pop out for a few minutes, brightening the day. To the north patches of blue sky occasionally appeared through the clouds.

But to the south there was a thick layer of clouds, which would eventually block out the sun for the remainder of the day, but not before providing a wonderful palette of blues and grays, along with some marvelous reflections.

The clouds reflected in the thin layer of water coating the sand appears to be steam rising from the surface, giving the beach that “other world” look.

A delicate white feather provides contrast against the gray, wet sand. Shells and other debris left by nature also “littered” the beach. I saw no man-made trash on the Island, so people seem to be heeding the call to “take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints.”

To be continued . . .

Cumberland Island :: The Marsh and Dunes

The Ranger Guided Tour was complete after leaving Dungeness and we were on our own to explore the Island for the next four hours.

In 1971, the Carnegie family donated much of their land on Cumberland Island to the National Park Foundation. Their donation, along with other private funding, helped to create the Cumberland Island National Seashore. Some descendants of the Carnegie family still live there but the National Park Service now owns about 90% of the Island.

The Island is 17.5 miles long. Except for bicycles, which can be rented at the Sea Camp Dock, walking is the only mode of transportation available for visitors. For day-trippers, the amount of time on the Island is governed by the ferry. With a 9:45 am arrival and 4:45 pm departure time, you're not going to cover a lot of ground. I didn't get any further north than the Sea Camp area. There is much more to see on the Island. To fully appreciate it you'd have to stay for several days, but it would be worth the effort to do so.

Continuing on down the road you walk past some of the buildings that housed the several hundred servants and staff that worked for the Carnegie family. There is a band of about 200 feral horses that inhabit the island. They roam at will going wherever they want. The few that I saw were in the Dungeness Ruins area.


A little further, the road turns into a sandy path with trails leading to the marsh on the sound side of the Island and another that goes to the beach on the ocean side. A very nice boardwalk takes you through a portion of the marsh, across the dunes and onto the beach.




To be continued...

Cumberland Island :: Dungeness

The morning of Sunday, December 27, 2009 was another chilly, gray, gloomy, overcast morning; the same as the three previous mornings. I had been hoping for at least a little sunshine and a slightly warmer day but, based on its beginnings, I didn't think that was going to happen. Saturday I had gone to St. Marys to check out the town and find out about the ferry going to Cumberland Island National Seashore. Good thing I did, as reservations are recommended!

So the reservations were made, but not paid. I could still decide not to go. However, I figured with the way the weather had been, it was as good a day as any!

After a short drive into St. Marys, then paying the fees ($17 for the ferry and $8 for the National Park Entrance, the latter was covered by my wonderful National Parks Pass), and listening to a short orientation lecture, I boarded the ferry with the other passengers. I was amazed by the number of people with camping gear, it seemed like about half the people on-board were campers. The campsites on the island are primitive. The only facilities available are showers and restrooms and those only in the main campground areas. You're completely on your own in the backcountry. Whether they are staying in the campground or backcountry, everything that is needed by the camper has to be brought in by them and anything they bring in has to leave with them. I'm not quite prepared, yet, for that kind of camping, especially when the temperatures dip down below the 30s overnight!

There was a heated cabin area on the ferry where some passengers sat during the 45 minute ride out to the island but many, myself included, opted to sit outside in the cool morning air. Refreshing is how some might have described it. Most of the day-trippers like myself disembarked at the Dungeness Dock on the south end of the island while the rest went on to the Sea Camp Dock a mile to the north, where it was a short trek to the campground.

In order to learn a little about the history of the island and its inhabitants, I opted to take the Ranger Guided Tour of the Dungeness Trail. I've since found several websites that give more detailed information and they have added considerably to what I learned that day. Links to those websites will be listed at the end of this post. The Ranger who gave the tour was very knowledgeable and entertaining as well.

The Dungeness Trail leads you to the Dungeness Mansion, or rather, to the ruins of the second Dungeness Mansion. The first Mansion, four-stories high and huge, was begun in 1796 by the widow of Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene and her second husband, Phineas Miller. The mansion was completed in 1803. Shortly thereafter Dungeness became a mecca for the early Georgian high society. After the Civil War the Mansion was not maintained. It fell into disrepair and in 1866 burned to the ground.

About 1880-81 Thomas Carnegie (a brother and partner of Andrew Carnegie) purchased much of Cumberland Island. With his wife, Lucy, Thomas built the second Dungeness Mansion where the first had been. It was a 59 room Scottish-style castle complete with turrets, a pool house, 40 outbuildings, a golf course, and acres of manicured gardens. Thomas Carnegie died in 1886 leaving his wife Lucy with nine children. Over the years, four other mansions were built further north on the Island for use by the children. The house at Plum Orchard has been restored and is open for tours twice a month. It happened to be open the day I was there but I chose to explore the southern end of the Island rather than view the house.

The second Dungeness was used through 1929 then it sat vacant for 30 years. In 1959, it too burned to the ground. All that remains of that magnificent mansion are a few walls, standing like sentinels, guarding the past. Some day, they too will fall.

Left side of the Dungeness Ruins, from the front.

Dungeness Ruins from the front-left corner.

Dungeness Ruins from the rear-left corner.

Dungeness Ruins. Window detail.

The remains of the recreation building.

The Tabby house, which stands off to the right side of the Dungeness Ruins is the oldest house on the Island. Tabby is a kind of concrete made of oyster shells, lime and sand. Built around 1800, it dates from the time of the first Dungeness Mansion. It was the only building in the area that was spared by the Carnegie's when they built the second Dungeness.

To be continued...

See these websites for more information on the history of Cumberland Island and the National Seashore:

• National Park Service
• Outdoor Places
• CNN Article (Posted in 1998, but still valid.)
• Wikipedia