Cumberland Island, GA; Fernandina, FL

We awakened to a beautiful sun-filled day, St.Patrick's day, in the Cumberland Island harbor.  Last year we had visited the south side of the island on foot, so this year we brought our bikes ashore to enable us to explore the more northern reaches of the island.  We peddled to Plum Orchard on sandy roads which may as well have been beach!  It was tough going in more than a few places.  The mansion on this wilderness island seems out of context nowadays. It was built by Lucy Carnegie for her son, George and his new wife, Margaret Thaw, in 1898. They thought it was too small for entertaining so added additions on each side.  Each son received 35,000 dollars per year to get by. The total cost of the house, additions and all, totaled $65,000 dollars.  The house had an indoor pool, the first elevator, a squash court, grass tennis court, plumbing and and an ice maker.

When we arrived, we were ready to sit and have a snack.  As we were eating, a stallion and a mare came running and screeching at each other over to where we were sitting.  They put on quite a show as their little colt kept his distance.  She was upset about something and was telling him about it.  They were just a few feet away from us so it was quite a spectacle.  The horses on this island are wild and we saw quite a few on this end of the island.  We also spotted a opossum as we were cycling back to the boat.  We went right beside him and he could have cared less. It was a 15 mile round trip to Plum Orchard and along the way we did see 2 private dwellings, a small cemetery with a tabby wall built around it.  We heard from the docent at Plum Orchard, that the Scotsman who came to design the golf course was killed when he fell from his horse and buried in this small cemetery.  Aside from the few buildings, it is mostly natural flora along the road.  There are campsites and trails on the island as well.  A ferry comes over twice a day from St. Mary's, GA to pickup and discharge passengers who mostly camp or hike for the day.

Little colt in the trees

It is  hop, skip and a jump over the state line to Fernandina, FL.  We spent a day doing a walking tour of this old city that is known to have flown 8 different flags.  It mostly has a spanish influence.
The downtown is very inviting with no shortage of eateries and galleries.  The nearby neighborhoods are almost too perfect, with large yards with blooming azaelas, and gorgeous old homes.

We will be moving on to St. Augustine on the 20th.