Return to Cumberland Island
Wednesday 8th December 2020
Yesterday was a tough day. It was just so windy and bouncy in the anchorage that we gave up on our plans to go ashore. However, by this morning things had calmed down substantially and although cold (close to freezing) it was a cloudless, clear day. We hopped in the dinghy and went back to Cumberland Island and this time we took a walk northwards up the island on the “main road” … a flat, sandy dirt track, surrounded by huge live oak trees adorned with Spanish moss. After a couple of hours we reached Stanford beach and enjoyed sitting on a log in the sunshine eating our sandwiches. There was nobody on the beach for as far as we could see in either direction, just lots of gulls, terns and brown pelicans. Our route back took us down what is called the “parallel trail” which winds its way initially through pine woods and saw palmetto palms back to the towering live oaks. We had seen a few interesting birds on the way out, including a yellow bellied sap sucker, but the return leg was a treat. First we saw a nine banded armadillo in the undergrowth next to the path and later spent about 20 minutes watching a pair of pileated woodpeckers feeding close by (see photos below).
We had been contemplating bringing our bikes to shore and cycling up the road to the northern part of the island. However, there is a large section designated a wilderness area in the center of the island and it is closed for three days to allow hunting of deer and wild pigs. So we think we will enjoy our last night here at the anchorage and then move on to Fernandina Beach tomorrow. It’s only 4 or 5 miles away and we can spend the day there before heading offshore again southwards on Thursday.
Mike
30 45.353 N, 81 28.553 W
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