One of the most rewarding things for sailors on the Atlantic ICW is exploring new places especially if those stops are directly on the ICW. But some of the most interesting places are a little off the “magenta line” (the dotted goto line on the navigation chart). Taking the time to reach these places will reward those who make the effort. St. Marys, Georgia, located 4.5 nautical miles west of the ICW at the Georgia-Florida border, is one of those stops worth the detour.

Settled on a scenic bend in the St. Marys River, this historic town has made the most of its riverfront location. It’s a quaint little seaside town lined with beautiful trees and historic homes. But the main attraction for St Marys is that it’s the gateway city to nearby Cumberland Island National Seashore.

We were originally going directly to Cumberland island and anchor off the island for a few nights but the park ranger informed us that their dinghy docks have been destroyed by previous storms and are currently under repairs. We didn’t want to risk puncturing our inflatable beaching on the oyster shell ridden beachs, we opted to anchor in St Marys harbor, 5 miles away, and taking the ferry over to explore Cumberland Island.

We had a general idea of what to expect when visiting Cumberland Island National Seashore in Georgia: wild horses, historic ruins, and undeveloped beaches. But we didn’t know we would also see a vibrant pine forest, seemingly endless grassy marshes, white sand dunes, and tropical-like scenery all on one island.

Taking a park service guided tour, we learned that Andrew Carnegie, once owned 90 percent of Cumberland Island and built grand homes that rivals Newport mansions for his children, including Greyfield, and Plum Orchard Mansion where we toured. In 1972, the Carnegie family sold the island to the federal government, and Cumberland Island officially became a national seashore.

After the Civil War, many formerly enslaved people created a community called “The Settlement” on the island. Today, we can still see buildings from the Settlement, including the First African Baptist Church, which replaced the original log church that once stood on the property.

While many associate this church where John F. Kennedy, Jr. and his wife, Carolyn Bessette, were married in 1996, this church was an important community center and place of worship for the Settlement community. It is a tiny, beautiful 20 seat one-room Church that is still open to the public.

The whirlwind tour took us to see many wild horses grazing in old cotton fields; armadillos, wild boars and turkeys roaming the grounds. Passing four campgrounds and miles of natural wilderness, we learn about its fascinating colonial, plantation, and gilded age histories.

We were absolutely blown away by the natural beauty of the island. It felt so wild and untouched.There’s nothing quite like seeing roaming wild horses, historic mansion ruins, towering live oaks, walking the hallways of a Carnegie mansion or standing inside the same chapel where JFK Jr got married, and today, we did all of that on Georgia’s unique Cumberland Island. It was one magical day we will always treasure.