Near our campground is a submarine on land, it appears to be surfacing out of the grass in front of the Kings Bay Naval Base in St. Marys, Georgia. It’s the USS George Bancroft, decommissioned in 1993. We couldn’t resist the photo-op.

USS George Bancroft

It was raining this morning so we skipped the 9am ferry to Cumberland Island and caught the 2nd ferry that left at 11:45.  By the time we got on the ferry it had stopped raining.

Leaving St. Marys

The temp warmed up to around 76 degrees and the island seemed a lot like a rain forest with the warmth and the humidity from the rain.  Yesterday we were only able to see the north end of the island so today we planned to see the south end.  No guided tour this time, we were on our own. This side has the ruins of the Dungeness mansion, built in 1884 by Thomas Carnegie, brother and partner of the steel magnate Andrew Carnegie.  It went up in flames in 1959 and now nature has taken over the area.

Dungeness

Dungeness

Dungeness

Old Cars

All the out-buildings and slaves quarters are gone too, leaving just chimneys and foundations. Wild horses and deer inhabit the grounds now.

White Tail Deer

After checking out all that we continued eastward to the Atlantic ocean side of the island. The one-mile walk took us through the forest and over the sand-dunes via a boardwalk to the beach.

Boardwalk

Atlantic Ocean

The walk back to the ferry on the west side of the island took us back through the forest. It was hot and very humid.  No mosquitoes, but towards the end of the day the gnats came out and began to bite.

Cumberland Island

Part of Cumberland Island has private residences, properties that were there before the National Park Service took over. These must be their sailboats all lined up.

Sailboats at Cumberland Island

• Gasoline Expense:  none
• Lodging Expense:   $22.40
• Ferry Fee:                $38