How to See Wild Horses on Cumberland Island
Spotting wild horses peacefully grazing or galloping through the fields on Cumberland Island is magical and can be a highlight of your visit. But where and how can you find them? Find the answer below.
Where There Is A Field, There Is A Horse
Although a horse sighting on Cumberland Island is never guaranteed, you will generally find them wherever there are open fields. Because there are not many fields on the island, the horses tend to be concentrated in a few areas:
1. Dungeness Historic Area
The Carnegies’ breathtaking mansion ruins lie in an open field, which a century ago had been ornately manicured gardens. This means that horses tend to congregate here to graze and on its grass and on cordgrass in the nearby marshes.
How To Get Here
The Dungeness Mansion is a .5 mile walk south from the ferry’s first stop on Cumberland Island, the Dungeness Dock.
You may either walk there yourself or join a tour to learn more about the horses. Below are Dungeness tour options:
a) Ranger-Led “Footsteps” Tour
Offered when staff is available, free ranger-led tours begin at the Dungeness Dock at the arrival of the ferry at 10:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. This tour lasts about one hour and covers around one mile.
Call the Cumberland Island Visitor Center at 912 882-4336 to find out if tours are offered the day you plan to visit.
b) Cumberland Island Walking Tour: Haunting Ruins and Wild Horses
This walking tour is Cumberland Island’s only regularly-offered tour covering the Dungeness Historic Area. On this tour, explore the evocative Carnegie mansion ruins, a historic marsh-front cemetery, Carnegie-era servants’ buildings, and more as you stroll down palmetto-lined trails past wild horses and expansive marshes.
Learn more and book ahead here.
2. Stafford Plantation
The next open field where horses congregate is at Stafford Plantation, antebellum cotton fields which have remained cleared.
How To Get Here
Stafford is about a 3 mile walk or bike ride north of Cumberland’s second ferry stop, Sea Camp Dock.
3. Grand Avenue
Cumberland possesses just one road which dissects the island from south to north: Grand Avenue. Just as we prefer to stick to roads and paths, so do horses, so you may spot them as you walk along this main drag.
How To Get Here
You may easily access Grand Avenue from either Dungeness or Sea Camp Docks. Simply head straight east from either dock.
4. Beach
Although sightings of wild horses are not as common at Cumberland’s beach, they may occur because the horses enjoy eating sea oats at the beach’s dunes.
Because horses are more rarely seen on the beach, it is a special treat if you are lucky enough to spot them!
How To Get Here
The most direct way to arrive at the beach is a 15 to 20 minute walk from Sea Camp Dock. Head straight east from the dock past the intersection with Grand Avenue and past Sea Camp campsites until you reach the boardwalk to the beach.
Conclusion: Dungeness Is Your Best Bet
While you may spot horses anywhere on the island – in the maritime forest, along trails, or drinking from various ponds – your best chance of a sighting is at the Dungeness mansion ruins for two reasons. First, they tend to congregate in this open field more than anywhere else, and second, this site is most easily accessible from the ferry dock.
Therefore, if spotting wild horses on Cumberland Island is your goal, don’t miss visiting the Dungeness Ruins. Viewing a scene with wild horses in front of the backdrop of the evocative mansion ruins is truly unforgettable!
Questions? Contact us here!
Check out our Cumberland Island and St. Marys tours such as the Cumberland Island Walking Tour: Haunting Ruins and Wild Horses or the St. Marys Murder, Mayhem, and Martinis Walking Tour!
We also offer Cumberland Island private tours and field trips!
