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An Oldie, but a Goodie
Historic St. Augustine, Florida is a perfect getaw
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Ponce de Leon went to Florida in search of the fountain of youth. He probably should have looked in St. Augustine. In this city -- known as the oldest in America -- everyone with a boat feels very young, indeed.
Situated along the Atlantic coast, about 30 miles south of Jacksonville, St. Augustine was founded by the Spanish in 1565. The city has been controlled by Spain, from 1565 to 1763; by Great Britain, from 1763 to 1784; by Spain again, from 1784 to 1821; and by the United States, from 1821 to the present.
With such a rich and colorful past, the city boats hundreds of historic buildings for visitors to explore. The downtown Plaza de la Constitucion is a great place to start, and is within walking distance of many historic structures.
Castillo de San Marcos, built in 1672, anchors the north end of the bayfront. The 1927 Bridge of Lions, anchored by two marble lions, spans Matanzas Bay and links downtown with 18-mile-long Anastasia Island.
St. Augustine has 12,000 residents today, and is the county seat of St. Johns County, which is home to more than 100,000 people.
But for boaters, St. Augustine’s unique combination of protected and open waters -- which include rivers, island-dotted inlets, the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic -- and its 43 miles of sandy beaches make for an enviable playground.
The St. Augustine area’s incredible array of freshwater and saltwater boating areas is made easily accessible, thanks to conveniently placed public launch ramps. There are more than a dozen of them -- at state parks, on the St. Johns River, along the Intracoastal Waterway and on the ocean.
In addition, boaters will find many private marinas with ramps and additional boating facilities. And the city’s yacht pier is centrally located near the Bridge of Lions, on Matanzas Bay.
An Angler’s Delight
With the Atlantic Ocean on one side of St. Augustine and the St. Johns River on the other, boaters can spend one day going after saltwater game fish and the next day, go in search of freshwater catches.
The river is a mix of fresh and brackish water, because it ebbs and flows into the Atlantic Ocean some 35 miles to the north. On the river, anglers will find largemouth bass of lunker proportions -- plus mullet (in season), bream, shellcracker, speckled trout, speckled perch and river catfish. Where the water is most brackish, anglers may also find flounder and drum.
The Intracoastal Waterway bisects St. Johns County from north to south, within a few hundred yards of the ocean. Dozens of feeders branch off, harboring many species of gamefish in tidal pools and along protective oyster bars. Red drum, spotted sea trout, flounder, sheepshead, drum, bluefish, spots, croakers, Spanish mackerel and catfish are plentiful in these waters.
Much of the Intracoastal Waterway -- which includes the Tolomato, Guana and Matanzas rivers -- is a National Estuarine Research Reserve. Here, boaters are often treated to close-up views of manatees lumbering along.
Off the beaches, anglers can troll for king mackerel, amberjack, barracuda and a half-dozen species of shark. The silver king (a tarpon) is caught off St. Augustine in late summer.
Natural and artificial reefs located nine to 25 miles offshore are ideal spots for bottom fishing and snorkeling. Grouper, snapper, sailfish, sharks and jacks are frequent visitors to the reefs.
Life’s a Beach
St. Augustine Inlet divides the city’s two major sections of coastline. To the north is a peninsula that includes Ponte Vedra and Vilano Beach. To the south is Anastasia Island, which offers camping facilities within walking distance of the beach entrance.
Four and a half miles of beach lie within Anastasia State Recreation Area, accessible from Anastasia Park Boulevard, south of the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. Full facility campsites with water and electric hookups are available here, for both tent and RV campers. Restrooms and hot showers are accessible to all registered campers.
Just south of the park is the little community of St. Augustine Beach, home of the St. Johns County Pier.
South of the city, Crescent Beach, Summer Haven and Matanzas Inlet offer more beaches and prime fishing areas. From there, the marine research and entertainment complex, Marineland, is just across the inlet bridge.
To the north of the St. Augustine Inlet, Vilano Beach also offers fishing and swimming, as well as waterfront restaurants. Following State Road A1A north from Vilano, Guana State Park offers additional access to the Atlantic and the Intracoastal Waterway.
North of St. Augustine, on State Road A1A, there’s a preserve that shows what Florida was like before the arrival of European settlers.
Guana River Wildlife Management Area provides a habitat for many threatened and endangered wildlife species. It is visited by hundreds of species of birds, and three species of sea turtles nest on its 4.2 miles of undeveloped beach.
This is a popular area for fishing, especially around the Guana Dam, where anglers reel in redfish, spotted seatrout, flounder and black drum. There is also freshwater fishing in the northern part of Guana Lake.
Historic Wonders
Boaters visiting St. Augustine will not want to miss a tour of the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Museum, where you can enjoy a bird’s-eye view of the Atlantic, the Intracoastal Waterway and St. Augustine. The museum is housed in the restored two-story lightkeeper's house, where exhibits and a video theater depict stories of the former residents.
And whether you love alligators or loathe them, you’ll want to spend some time at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm, a wildlife and reptile preserve established back in 1893. Here, you can see alligator and reptile shows, along with monkeys, deer, exotic birds, giant tortoises and a former resident -- a giant crocodile -- that has been stuffed and mounted.
Whether you come to St. Augustine to explore its miles of protected waterways, its open ocean fishing grounds or its historic district and parks, America’s oldest city has something to please every member of the family. You’ll feel like a kid again.
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This article first appeared in the February 1, 2000 issue of GoBoating Magazine. All or parts of the information contained in this article might be outdated. |
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