By Jessica Howell-Edwards
Cumberland Island Wilderness is part of the Cumberland Island National Seashore in southern Georgia, administered by the National Park Service (NPS). It was previously sanctioned as a UN Biosphere Reserve, and is located just miles from Kings Bay Naval Base and also nuclear warhead storage.
I firmly believe that all Wilderness experiences have the potential to be transformative in our lives, but Cumberland Island Wilderness offers a complex variation of ecosystems that only a southeastern barrier island can: towering sand dunes, freshwater lakes, maritime forest, salt marshes, and deserted beaches.
With over 9,000 acres of Wilderness ecosystems to explore, I lose myself for days among curtains of Spanish moss. I watch dolphins frolic from the shore, and witness sea turtle hatchlings making their way to the sea. I can watch the sun rise over the waves of the Atlantic Ocean, set over the Cumberland River, and see the Milky Way like never before.
Bald eagles, osprey, wood storks, herons, American oystercatchers, least terns, and other shorebirds are all common sights when I visit; look closely and discover alligator, bobcat, armadillo, and coyote tracks.
The magic begins with a calm boat ride (a passenger ferry, to be precise) that departs from the friendly town of St. Mary’s, GA. But really, my journey is just beginning; when I disembark, I’ll hike miles on the beach or through the maritime forest before I set up camp.
Afternoons on Cumberland Island are best spent dozing in a hammock hung among the ancient live oaks -- a welcome reprieve from hiking in the heat and humidity. (All I can say is, it’s not hard to be confused by feral horse paths leading you away from the hiking trails. Ahem.)
Late one humid afternoon, I was sitting in the shade, observing hummingbirds and writing (truth be told, I was mostly wishing for a good afternoon thunderstorm to cool things off).
Suddenly I heard a low rumble, similar to a plane, but getting increasingly louder.
As it moved closer, the sky above us went dark.
I looked at my companion; clearly, she was as startled as I.
Everything seemed to go completely, eerily still. We clambered our way to a clearing and looked up—it was far too large to be a shorebird. We couldn’t believe our eyes.
It was the Goodyear blimp, directly overhead—flying low enough over the Wilderness area to completely darken the sky for several startling seconds.
As the blimp flew farther north, we returned to our shaded area. My heart was beating rapidly, my palms were sweaty—it was unnatural, what I had just experienced—and was NOT what one wants in a Wilderness experience. I was shaken.
I am accustomed to hearing low-flying planes and helicopters, even in this Wilderness area—but I never imagined seeing a blimp. But this blimp gave me a reminder of how much worse it could get. After all, if Spaceport Camden stakeholders get their way, rockets will soon be flying overhead.
As I watched the sun set over the Cumberland River that night, I could not even imagine the potential devastation to this delicate ecosystem if this spaceport, located only four miles away, is approved to shoot commercial rockets directly over this Wilderness area.
One failed launch could eradicate over 40 years of conservation efforts. It also threatens every aspect of Cumberland Island’s wilderness character:
Wildness
Solitude
Remoteness
Noise
Visual intrusion
Primitive and unconfined recreation
Undeveloped nature
Transcendent and spiritual values
Connection to the past
Ecological and evolutionary processes
The idea of a private, for-profit spaceport launching rockets over a Congressionally-protected Wilderness area nearly makes my head explode.
I firmly believe protecting Cumberland Island Wilderness in 1982 was one of the best choices our leaders ever made—but I also believe that it is our job to hold public officials accountable to protecting and maintaining the integrity of Wilderness character on Cumberland Island.
That includes opposing any version of a spaceport that would be located just four miles from the Congressionally-designated Wilderness area on Cumberland Island.
OCTOBER 2020 UPDATE: Please join us at www.change.org/norocketsoverwilderness!
Jessica is a lifelong Georgia resident and mom of four (ages 12, 7, 4, and 4) who currently resides in DeKalb County, GA. She offers more than two decades of journalism, marketing, and activism experience – and most importantly, a passion for protecting the native ecology of Cumberland Island. She currently serves as Program Director for Wild Cumberland, a nonprofit dedicated to the stewardship and preservation of the Cumberland Island Wilderness and its native ecology.
Photos:
Author Jessica Howell-Edwards, on Cumberland Island.
The spaceport location would be visible from Cumberland Island Wilderness.
Live oaks draped with Spanish moss in Wilderness. Photo by Jessica Howell-Edwards.
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Comments 206
Irene, we must ensure our leaders are held accountable! Please stay tuned - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
Thank you Jessica,. I wasn't aware of Cumberland. What a beautiful description you give. It's a real retreat. The noise threat is disturbing just thinking of it. I've experienced it first hand in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in Washington State. Low flying fighter jets frolicking in the high cirques a nd hanging valleys is jolting to the peace and quietude. Keep up the fight for true wilderness.
Steven, I hope you have an opportunity to experience the island someday. Thank you for your support. Please stay tuned - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
..And Navy propeller planes droning over the wilderness beaches of the Olympic National Park, Washington State. And fighter jets zooming over the Hoh River Rain Forest, Olympic National Park. We all must react with action in opposition.
Guest-Ruth Hardin
Wilderness areas need to be protected from rockets, blimps, low flying airplanes, and test bombing or whatever testing the military thinks up. Whoever heard of a wilderness area with all these distractions and invasions?
Thank you for your support, Ruth. Please stay tuned - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
Seems like nothing is sacred anymore and whatever was once agreed on is vanishing before our eyes. I love animals, forest, and nature. We have so very little of it left now. With the climate change , ongoing wildfires, poachers, accidents happening that pollute our waters which I am referring to the ship that turned over last year at St.Simons , and Lord knows what else , now we have to worry about crap flying over these sacred places. This is inexcusable. Humans are destroying this earth hourly. I hardly recognize it anymore. I am sad. I am angry. We are supposed to be caretakers.... not destroyers. All of the old rules seem to be vanishing . WHY? Pray for the animals... Enjoy them while you can. because soon, they will not be here anymore. .
We MUST hold our elected officials accountable for adhering to legislative mandates! Well-said, Mildred. I hope you will join us - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
Wilderness ceases to exist with the intrusion of mechanized equipment. To have the peace and quiet of the island obliterated by a low-flying blimp is beyond the pale. End this travesty.
Dean, thank you for your support. Please stay tuned - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
PLEASE protect the fragile environment at Cumberland Island!
We are doing our best! Please stay tuned - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
PROTECT THIS AREA WITH A SUBSTANTIAL BUFFER AREA, AND WE ARE TALKING TENS OF MILES AT MINIMUM. THE PIECEMILL DESTRUCTION OF OUR ENVIRONMENT IS CATCHING UP TO US, AND CONCENTRATED EFFORTS MUST BE MADE TO REVERSE THESE TRENDS WHILE POSSIBLE. STEWARDSHIP IS THE KEY, AS BIBLICAL TEXT DIRECTS; NOT UNBRIDLED DEVELOPMENT AND CONSUMPTION.
Scott, we must ensure our leaders adhere to the intent of its enabling legislation! Thank you for your support. Please stay tuned - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
I totally support all the people who have commented on the beauty, silence from"noise" and the natural world's need to be preserved for
all - all the natural organisms and humans. I treasure every moment there or in other similar environs.
Jill, we must ensure our leaders adhere to the intent of its enabling legislation! Thank you for your support. Please stay tuned - we will need your help to stop this Spaceport! Please be sure to visit wildcumberland.org for up-to-date information on this situation.
Rockets and blimps do not help to preserve the flora and fauna of a wilderness area! Think about the planet you want to pass along to future generations.
Stop with the spaceport BS. Can we leave anything alone?
Wonderful Jessica, thank you. Never heard of Cumberland Island and now that I have, it's on my list of places I need to visit. Please keep up your dedication to help preserve and restore America's wilderness. Thanks also go out to Wilderness Watch for all of your efforts...
We have to stop the destruction of our lands and wildlife. The Trump administration seems to be doing everything they can to cause chaos, division and hate.