Just Me and the Horses

At the Florida- Georgia border, there is a fascinating place called Cumberland Island. Way back in the day, it was where the plantation owners went to vacation. It has since been abandoned and turned into a state park, but the owners also happened to leave behind their horses. The island is now covered in trails, massive live oaks, ruins of days gone by, and wild horses.

Having been trapped on the boat for too long in our motoring marathon, I headed for land! The last ferry boat of tourists and park staff pulled away from the dock as I arrived, and I had the island to myself. It was blessedly quiet. The branches of the trees formed a green cathedral. The golden sunlight lit the air on fire. Birds sang as I soaked it all in, but my real quest was to find the horses. There were signs everywhere: short clipped grass, poop covering the trails, but they remained elusive. I finally found a huge meadow with horses grazing in the distance. How cool! They were just hanging out, doing their horse thing. How peaceful, I thought. Then one horse started angrily chasing another, neighing and stampeding, and I decided to stay about as far away as I could get.

I found myself cautiously walking on a trail about 500 yards behind a line of nice calm horses. I stayed quiet and slow, until the ground started thundering and I realized the error of my ways. The danger now came from behind, not ahead of me. The horses from the field started coming towards me on a trail through the woods, and I panicked. I very cleverly got off the path about six feet and hid behind a tiny tree, because there was nowhere else to go. I stayed as still as possible as a line of horses passed not 10 feet away, quietly ignoring my presence and pounding heart. When they were gone, I went in the opposite direction about as fast as I possibly could. Lesson learned: don’t chase wild horses.

I spent the rest of my time exploring, and turning around abruptly whenever I spotted horses. I followed trails, made my own paths, and tried to keep track of all the wildlife I saw (even an armadillo!). The steady peace of the island folded me in like a hug, and I reveled in the silent loudness of nature. Sometimes, land isn’t all that bad. This was one of my favorite spots along the way; if you get a chance to visit, take it!

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On a wildly unrelated and shockingly up to date note, we have had the honor of being published in Cruising Outpost magazine! While you still can, pick up a copy of the summer issue, likely available at your local West Marine or other marine store. Thanks Cruising Outpost!