St. Marys’ New Cumberland Island Ferry Dock Nearing Completion

Mainland Dock For National Park Ferry Service To Barrier Island Expected To Be Done In March 2021

Cumberland Island National Seashore’s new dock for ferry transportation between the city of St. Marys, GA and Cumberland Island has been planned for a long time.

It was Hurricane Irma back on September 10-11, 2017 that heavily damaged the St. Mary’s riverfront. Irma destroyed the National Park Services’ mainland dock used for boarding day trippers and overnight campers heading to Cumberland Island, a 45-minute ferry ride away. The Cumberland Island National Seashore was forced to close down completely for two months.

In the aftermath of Irma, an alternate dock was brought into service (the “Gateway” dock utilized for the past 3-plus years). Since Irma, visitors to Cumberland Island have had to walk a few extra blocks to board the ferry in St. Marys (and upon return when disembarking).

New Dock Completion Expected In March 2021

But the time finally nears for the completion of the Park Services’ brand new mainland dock in St. Marys, anticipated to be finished during March 2021. The new dock is being built with deeper pilings (hopefully to better withstand future storms).

Compared to the alternate “Gateway” dock, the new ferry dock is located closer to the Cumberland Island Visitor’s Center building where ferry passengers check-in prior to departure. When the new dock is open, ferry passengers can shave off a bit of pre-departure time — those extra minutes that have been required to walk more blocks.

Watch for future announcement when the new ferry dock officially opens, just in time for the spring season 2021.

Related Article

Read previously published article (October 3, 2017), about the situation in St. Marys after Hurricane Irma. See “Cumberland Island National Seashore Closed Since Hurricane Irma.”