Kayaks at the Brickhill Bluff Campsite on Cumberland Island

There are plenty of paddling opportunities at Cumberland Island National Seashore, but since you cannot bring a canoe or kayak to the island on the ferry, which is how nearly all visitors arrive, most paddling trips to the island originate from the mainland. The only way to start a trip from the island itself is if you have your own boat and can fit a canoe or kayak on it. Private boats under 25 feet long can dock at the Sea Camp, Dungeness, and Plum Orchard docks from sunrise to sunset. If you do arrive at Cumberland Island from the mainland, you must pay the park entrance fee if you step onto the island. Fees can be paid at the Visitor Center (no cash accepted) or in advance at Pay.gov. Payment is not accepted on the island. Various American the Beautiful annual passes and the Cumberland Island annual pass are good for entry. Show it to a Ranger if asked.

There are three potential launch points to Cumberland Island from public lands, and probably more private launch sites that I am not aware of. One launch point is from the Visitor Center. It is approximately seven miles to Dungeness dock, which is the route taken by the ferry. The St. Marys River is a busy river for boat traffic, and the wake of a large ship can be as big as waves stirred up by high winds, so be careful (you may even have nuclear submarines from the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base going past you). This is a feasible launch point if your destination is the Dungeness historical area at the southern end of the island.

The closest launch point to the southern tip of Cumberland Island is from Fort Clinch State Park on Amelia Island, Florida. It is about a mile across the channel between the two islands and to the Atlantic Ocean beaches, but still five miles to the Dungeness dock. The trip across the channel entails much rougher water than the trip from St. Marys. Take this route only on calm days and only if you have open water kayaking experience.

A third launch point is Crooked Creek State Park, taking the Crooked River to the Cumberland Sound. This route is on the calmest water of the three launch points, and it puts you near the center of Cumberland Island and closest to Plum Orchard Mansion. Total distance is about seven miles. There is a lot more marsh area to explore from the midpoint of the island and farther north. If I were strictly coming to the island to paddle and not stopping to see any historic sites, this is the area I would come to. Keep in mind that during low tide that the inland creeks and marsh run nearly dry, so you may be stuck in the mud until the tide comes back in. Also, oysters bars lie just below the surface and are exposed at low tide. These are extremely sharp and can slice into an inflatable kayak and even tear up fiberglass and plastic bodies. Oyster bars are located in all waters on the sound-side of the island, not just in the mid and upper portions of the island.