Limber up your swivel neck before a trip to Cumberland, Georgia’s largest barrier island, because looking up, down and around all day long is enticing.

Canopy oaks cover the walking paths, wild horses charge ahead, wobbly-legged new foals graze in the sun, massive live oak trees curve to the ground, singing birds dart above the Spanish moss and resurrection fern - - that’s the bare beginning for this come-by-boat-only island.

The stories about Cumberland’s past and unfolding future are as compelling as the life in this wilderness if you want to dig them up. Just walking in the maritime forest and along the national seashore can feel abundant enough.

But if you like tales about cousins and siblings, parents and grandchildren and how they divvy up their wealth, this is a place to take the tours and buy the books.

Land holdings on this 18-mile barrier island are still changing, as some 40-year family leases come due in 2010 and recent federal legislation calls for new kinds of visiting opportunities.

The history of this National Seashore includes generosity, wilderness protection, elegant entertaining, private retreats and haul-in-your-own food camping. Striking contrasts.

The Cumberland Island future appears to have all that, and new styles too.

Catch the National Park Service ferry from St. Marys, the gateway city to Cumberland Island, a 45-minute ride to spend the day, or take your gear and camp. Reservations matter because only 300 people are allowed on the Island each day. That’s all about protecting the wilderness.

Plan some nights and days in St. Marys too.

Seems like a little city but the simple downtown map pointed me to more restaurants than I could try in a two-night bed and breakfast stay. Maybe they’re all good; for certain the two dinners I ate were distinctly different from each other and both quite fine.

Ever had the food and ambiance blandly all the same on a holiday in a small burg? Not here. St. Marys serves variety.

Three museums tell stories only pertinent here and the doors were open in the four historic churches I tried, so I went inside. That doesn’t happen too often, but I like some time on old pews when I roam.

Cumberland Island Museum on Osborne Street, one of St. Marys’ two main downtown roads, draws on National Park Service skills and the work of curator John Mitchell so the exhibits are handsome and fact-filled.

“The Island was the heart of a vibrant social life during the Gilded Age,” volunteer Ed Torgersen says.

An original Tiffany lamp with the 1920 globe, elbow-length silk gloves, hunting rifles, elegant table settings and hand-crafted furniture are among the displays, giving a good idea of life in the many Carnegie family and friends cottages.