By:
Submission
The only way to get to the island is by passenger ferry (not a car ferry) or private boat. For information about making a reservation with the National Park Service official concessionaire operated ferry visit the https://www.nps.gov/cuis/planyourvisit/permitsandreservations.htm or visit https://www.cumberlandislandferry.com/.
It is a great campsite and I would recommend this camp for anyone wanting to be in almost complete isolation. Just always be ready for rain. Me and my dad weren't and our tents were completely soaked. I would also recommend to get on the 4:44 ferry ride but if you are up to the very hard challenge then go to the 10:15 ferry. It is one of the most isolated campsites on the whole island.
Very secluded if you're into that. My partner and I (attempted) to stay out at this camp on a Thursday night in mid-May and no one else was out there. Several hangs left to put your food up which was nice. However, be aware that this camp is in the middle of a few fresh water ponds. We heard juvenile gators croaking and something very large moving through the brush around us. Neither of us are from anywhere close to gator country and we just didn't know what the move was. We ended up leaving around 12:30am because I couldn't sleep with the large animal moving around us in the brush. This is the only reason I'd give this camp 1-star. Just be aware that this camp is basically in a swamp area. Also, so many ticks here.
There are a lot of great little spaces to set up camp at Hickory Hill. There are several different areas within the campground that are sheltered with trees and provide a bit of privacy from the other campers in the area. Unlike Yankee Paradise where everyone is pretty much out in the open. There are many options for hanging hammocks and it was really nice that there were still so many ropes in the trees for hanging your stuff. It was disappointing to see how many people left toilet paper and tampon applicators in the woods. If you continue on the parallel trail another mile north of Hickory Hill there is a water source, but you will have to treat it. From the campground if you take the Willow Pond Trail to the east, it's a very pretty and fun hike to the beach. Taking the Willow Pond Trail to the west takes you to the main road. There are horses that run up the parallel trail through the campground so be on the lookout.
Do not camp here. Other than a sign saying campground, it looks like forest. Trees were iffy to sleep under at night. Lots of bugs. Lots of trash. The island is awesome, the beach was amazing. Other camp grounds looked fine and had shows and drinkable water. The beach was a mile away from this campground thru impregnatable jungle. We didn't make it. Visit this wonderful island but camp elsewhere.
