Camden County, Georgia has proposed to develop and operate a commercial space launch site at Floyd’s neck, just opposite the north end of Cumberland Island on the mainland. There would be up to 12 vertical launches and landings of associated vehicles per year. They also plan to recover spent stages at sea and do monthly fire engine tests and wet […]
Tides rise higher during the new and full moons. Last week’s full moon brought especially high tides that swallowed a chunk of the foredunes along several sections of beach. Eventually the wind and waves will round out the dunes. But it’s a healthy reminder that islands—and all beaches—are constantly in motion.
The National Park Service continues to use a masticator to clear trees and brush along the road through the wilderness, and it has plans to use the machine to clear wilderness trails as well. The clearings are purportedly for fire management, but it accomplishes little. Wildlife has already been killed by the masticator, and using this heavy equipment to clear […]
Over 90 Sierra Club members journeyed to Cumberland Island last weekend to visit with Carol Ruckdeschel and learn about its most pressing issues. Feral livestock, fire, bicycles, and the urgent need for a wilderness management plan were among the topics discussed as they hiked from Sea Camp to Dungeness. Feral horses are suffering. For their health — and the island’s […]
Horses were released on Cumberland Island in the 1920s for profit and pleasure—our pleasure, not theirs. They are grassland animals, designed for open plains, and they fare poorly in a forest situation. Tangles of vines snare their manes and tails, holding them until they dehydrate and starve. When they forage in the saltmarsh, they wade deep in mud to reach […]
The Cumberland Island superintendent is weighing the possibility of increasing the visitor limit on Cumberland. A coalition of environmental groups have helped maintain the 300-person visitor limit, which has ensured a relatively uncrowded visitor experience and protected the island’s sensitive ecosystems and wildlife habitats. However, mainland businesses and leaders have been pushing for more visitors to Cumberland, which they hope will drive […]
Today Cumberland Island superintendent Gary Ingram announced plans to reduce the number of feral horses roaming Cumberland Island. The horses, which have a limited gene pool, are not in good health. They compete with deer and other native animals for a limited food and freshwater. They graze throughout the island, including on the sea oats that stabilize the dunes and on […]
Sea Camp dock will be closed for a few weeks while the dock is rebuilt. For the rest of September, the ferry stops at Dungeness dock. From there, the National Park Service transport campers up to Sea Camp by bus.
The Wilderness Act turned 50 last year. But how has the National Park Service handled wilderness issues over the past five decades? Jim Walters, who spent nearly 40 years working for the agency, including serving as Wilderness Program Coordinator for the Intermountain Region from 1988 until he retired in 2003, says the agency has not rallied around the Act. Read his […]
Cumberland Island managers have approved the regular clearing and razing of vegetation alongside roads and trails in the wilderness. Many reptiles and other animals are killed during the razing of the wilderness edges, and the noisy, destructive clearing certainly does not protect the solitude, scenery, and serenity of the wilderness experience for hikers. The National Park Service argues that the denuding […]