We slept with the windows wide open on our last night on Crescent Beach. It was warm overnight and a bit humid. The humidity and light rain has helped bring a little more green to this very dry area. We have heard many reports of brush fires and smelled smoke nearby this morning. So much of the land here is marsh and that it seems odd to hear so many fire warnings, but there has been a lot of drought everywhere this year.
We shook some of the sand out of our clothes, shoes, books and towels so that we could pack them up. I just got into the pace of stepping outside with only a t-shirt and shorts on. Every time we take a winter vacation we wish that we had stayed longer. Rick's love of downhill skiing and our sweet grandchildren keep us from spending the winter away from home, but I will definitely plan a longer warm weather break next year.
We enjoyed the great historical sight seeing in St. Augustine and found the prices for our rental car, nice condo on the beach, and meals to be cheaper in this area than most other warm weather spots that we have visited. The beach was amazing - it goes on forever and has wonderful, soft clean sand. However, this IS the Atlantic and the water was pretty chilly in March. It is a very laid back area and has a big population of retired folks. We did not find fancy restaurants, but found some really wonderful casual places to eat with great views of the water.
We spent a lot of the time comparing this area to Sanibel Island on the Florida Gulf coast and to Hawaii. We want to go back to both of those areas and probably won't be back to Crescent Beach unless something else draws us here. So it was great to visit a city that I missed on previous travels, but now there are other spots I have yet to visit - Key West perhaps.
Our trip home was uneventful (a good thing to say about plane travel these days) except that I got a notice from Delta that they had lost my luggage as I drove home with luggage in the trunk. I am not sure WHAT they did to my luggage, but it seems fine. We got back just in time to help Carter celebrate his big 6th birthday at Old Country Buffet. Most kids would be excited about endless mashed potatoes and mac and cheese. Carter was excited about a huge selection of fruits, veggies, jello, and three big slices of ham. This boy is into power food!
It is cold outside, but I am happy to be home to get hugs from my first grandson. Goodbye warm weather!
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Monday, March 18, 2013
Dow Historic Houses, St. Augustine
It rained last night and we woke to gray skies. Florida is having a lot of fires so rain was good but we didn't want to stay inside on our last day in the sunshine state. By the time we got in the car the clouds were thinning so we decided to do more sightseeing in old St. Augustine. One of the areas that we passed on our electric car tour of the city was the Dow Museum of Historic Houses. It is made up of nine historic homes, dating from 1790 to 1910, which are all located within a single city block. Some of the homes could be toured and displayed items from Kenneth Worcester Dow's collections. The property highlights both St. Augustine and Florida history. The grounds were a rambling collection of old gardens, courtyards and porches. There was a general store from 1899, a Spanish style pink stucco house from 1790 and a couple of formal Victorian houses from the early 1900's. We walked around thinking of what a fascinating place it must have been to live in.
We finished our tour and walked around the neighborhood on very narrow, crooked streets paved with bricks. It is difficult to drive in this area, but great for walking and admiring the variety of architecture. The sun was out and downtown was really getting hot so we had some lunch and drove back to our condo for an afternoon on the beach. There were lots of folks enjoying the smooth white sand and shallow sloping beach. Lots of guys who were surf fishing too, but I never saw them pull anything in. I waded in the water looking for shells and enjoying the cool ocean. We have quite the pile of sand outside our door from our shoes and towels. I can't believe that we will be back to snow tomorrow.
Dinner was at a restaurant out on the salt marsh. The houses nearby had docks that went on forever. Maintenance on them must be a real drag, but it is the only way to get out to water deep enough to float a boat. We had a great view of all the birds soaring over the marsh looking for fish. Why are we going home?
We finished our tour and walked around the neighborhood on very narrow, crooked streets paved with bricks. It is difficult to drive in this area, but great for walking and admiring the variety of architecture. The sun was out and downtown was really getting hot so we had some lunch and drove back to our condo for an afternoon on the beach. There were lots of folks enjoying the smooth white sand and shallow sloping beach. Lots of guys who were surf fishing too, but I never saw them pull anything in. I waded in the water looking for shells and enjoying the cool ocean. We have quite the pile of sand outside our door from our shoes and towels. I can't believe that we will be back to snow tomorrow.
Dinner was at a restaurant out on the salt marsh. The houses nearby had docks that went on forever. Maintenance on them must be a real drag, but it is the only way to get out to water deep enough to float a boat. We had a great view of all the birds soaring over the marsh looking for fish. Why are we going home?
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Blue Springs State Park manatees
40,000 bikers headed home today from the St. Augustine Bike Week - sort of a senior citizen version of the Sturgis Rally. We saw many of them on the road pulling trailèrs full of big, shiny motorcycles. We were driving to Blue Springs State Park where dozens of huge manatees congregate in the 72 degree water during the cold winter months.
Manatees are huge mammals with very mild personalities who are being killed in high numbers in Florida by being cut by boat propellers. They can't live in really cold water. A very clear, shallow stream flows from a hot spring in the park to the St. John's River. The manatees move from the main part of the river to the warm pools when the river gets cold during the winter. A boardwalk runs along the stream with overlooks so that everyone can enjoy a good view of the huge, slow moving beasts. Alligators, turtles and birds all live alongside the manatees who are too big for the alligators to bother. The water is so clear that we could see some huge Florida gar and bass as well, but no fishing is allowed in this protected area.
We enjoyed watching the. Manatee and then stepped aboard a big pontoon boat for a tour of the backwater areas of the river. We got a good history of the area and saw a lot of the "real" Florida - floating bogs, alligators, Sandhills cranes, great blue herons, anhingas, coots, egrets, and osprey. Except for the alligators, cypress and palm trees, we sometimes felt like we were in the channel to west lake at the cabin during the two hour tour. We really enjoyed it. The park is located about a half hour from Orlando and would be a great side trip for visitors to the Disney version of Florida.
We saw our first clouds over the ocean this evening and are expecting rain tonight which is disappointing for our last day tomorrow but so much better than snow, right?
Manatees are huge mammals with very mild personalities who are being killed in high numbers in Florida by being cut by boat propellers. They can't live in really cold water. A very clear, shallow stream flows from a hot spring in the park to the St. John's River. The manatees move from the main part of the river to the warm pools when the river gets cold during the winter. A boardwalk runs along the stream with overlooks so that everyone can enjoy a good view of the huge, slow moving beasts. Alligators, turtles and birds all live alongside the manatees who are too big for the alligators to bother. The water is so clear that we could see some huge Florida gar and bass as well, but no fishing is allowed in this protected area.
We enjoyed watching the. Manatee and then stepped aboard a big pontoon boat for a tour of the backwater areas of the river. We got a good history of the area and saw a lot of the "real" Florida - floating bogs, alligators, Sandhills cranes, great blue herons, anhingas, coots, egrets, and osprey. Except for the alligators, cypress and palm trees, we sometimes felt like we were in the channel to west lake at the cabin during the two hour tour. We really enjoyed it. The park is located about a half hour from Orlando and would be a great side trip for visitors to the Disney version of Florida.
We saw our first clouds over the ocean this evening and are expecting rain tonight which is disappointing for our last day tomorrow but so much better than snow, right?
Matanzas Fort and Washington Garden
The warm weather has come back to Florida and we are loving it. I am sitting on my balcony watching sailboats and pelicans on the ocean. I have a glass of wine, sandy feet, and a warm breeze on my face. Ahhhh!
Today we visited the smallest of all of the Spanish forts: Fort Matanzas which was built in 1740 when it was no longer the French, but rather the British who were a threat to the Spanish Florida colony. Whoever controlled Florida controlled the rich shipping lanes coming from the Spanish Caribbean. Florida Governor Montiano knew the British would continue to try to conquer Florida and would most likely attempt to come through the unguarded inlet at Matanzas. So, he ordered a fort to be built to guard these southern approaches-- Fort Matanzas. The fort is on Rattlesnake Island in the Matanzas River. The National Park Service runs free pontoon boat shuttles to the island and then an interpreter dressed as a Spanish officer talked about the political implications of the fort. Florida was eventually sold to the Americans for a penny an acre. It is pretty swampy land, but had some highly important seaports. A good buy
It was a perfect day to be out on the water - sunny, breezy and not hot. We were finished at this small park by lunchtime and decided just to drive south along the coast until we found someplace to eat our picnic lunch. We soon got to Washington Oaks Garden State Park. This beautiful parcel of land used to be the winter home for a distant relative of President George Washington. The gardens were established by Louise and Owen Young who purchased the land in 1936 and built a winter retirement home. They named it Washington Oaks and there are many, huge live oaks trees on the property. I just love these curvy, sprawling trees. They were used to make support braces in old ships because the grain of the lumber was already curved. In 1965, most of the property was donated to the State. It is early for most of the roses in the rose garden but we enjoyed taking a walk along the nature trail and touring the relatively small house built on the Matànzas River. It cost us $5 to get into the park - cheap day for us today.
This evening we looked on TripAdvisor for another dinner spot and went to a truly tiny Italian family run restaurant which makes everything from scratch. I could hear the cook pounding my veal cutlet as I ate some wonderful bread and eggplant caponata. Yummy. I tried to save room for the key lime pie we brought home for desert. Only two more days. Sigh.
Today we visited the smallest of all of the Spanish forts: Fort Matanzas which was built in 1740 when it was no longer the French, but rather the British who were a threat to the Spanish Florida colony. Whoever controlled Florida controlled the rich shipping lanes coming from the Spanish Caribbean. Florida Governor Montiano knew the British would continue to try to conquer Florida and would most likely attempt to come through the unguarded inlet at Matanzas. So, he ordered a fort to be built to guard these southern approaches-- Fort Matanzas. The fort is on Rattlesnake Island in the Matanzas River. The National Park Service runs free pontoon boat shuttles to the island and then an interpreter dressed as a Spanish officer talked about the political implications of the fort. Florida was eventually sold to the Americans for a penny an acre. It is pretty swampy land, but had some highly important seaports. A good buy
It was a perfect day to be out on the water - sunny, breezy and not hot. We were finished at this small park by lunchtime and decided just to drive south along the coast until we found someplace to eat our picnic lunch. We soon got to Washington Oaks Garden State Park. This beautiful parcel of land used to be the winter home for a distant relative of President George Washington. The gardens were established by Louise and Owen Young who purchased the land in 1936 and built a winter retirement home. They named it Washington Oaks and there are many, huge live oaks trees on the property. I just love these curvy, sprawling trees. They were used to make support braces in old ships because the grain of the lumber was already curved. In 1965, most of the property was donated to the State. It is early for most of the roses in the rose garden but we enjoyed taking a walk along the nature trail and touring the relatively small house built on the Matànzas River. It cost us $5 to get into the park - cheap day for us today.
This evening we looked on TripAdvisor for another dinner spot and went to a truly tiny Italian family run restaurant which makes everything from scratch. I could hear the cook pounding my veal cutlet as I ate some wonderful bread and eggplant caponata. Yummy. I tried to save room for the key lime pie we brought home for desert. Only two more days. Sigh.
Friday, March 15, 2013
St. Augustine Alligator Farm
Everyone I talked to about St. Augustine told me to go to the Alligator Farm. It has been in this area since 1893 and now has quite a variety of alligators, crocs, turtles, monkeys, and birds from around the world. I expected a typical roadside "see the big alligator" display, but this is a very well managed zoo. We enjoyed watching the huge, slow moving gators. They crawled over each other to get to the sunniest spot. However my favorite part of the zoo had nothing to do with reptiles. The back section of the area is a big shallow swamp with many tall trees. There, above the resting alligators, hundreds of wading birds were nesting.
This time of year the great egrets and wood storks could be seen by the dozens in every tree. So many beautiful white birds that it looked like it had snowed overnight. We also saw a bunch of gorgeous pink roseate spoonbills. This was a very elusive bird in the wildlife refuge on the gulf coast on Sanibel Island. Everyone there was trying to spot one and here they were sitting in trees only 15 feet away!
We watched a number of brave folks who were navigating a ropes and zip line course which hung over the park. One couple spent quite a while looking down into an alligator enclosure beneath them before they stepped off the platform and slid out over the big gators who were lying in the sun with their mouths open.
It was much warmer today so we drove along the shore to a beach access and had our picnic lunch on the beach. I enjoyed watching a flock of brown pelicans who soared just a foot above the big breakers looking for fish. The seagulls who hung around us waiting for leftover sandwiches were not as fun. The surfers are back in the water along with some kids, but the dangerous marine life and riptide warnings are still in effect so I kept to wading in the shallows looking for shells. The sand here is so fine it isn't even "sugar" sand, it is more like powdered sugar. The only downside is that it sticks to everything.
We had a fried tilapia dinner in a beachside cafe along with a great mango daiquiri. Now I am comatose from sun, food and drink. A perfect day!
This time of year the great egrets and wood storks could be seen by the dozens in every tree. So many beautiful white birds that it looked like it had snowed overnight. We also saw a bunch of gorgeous pink roseate spoonbills. This was a very elusive bird in the wildlife refuge on the gulf coast on Sanibel Island. Everyone there was trying to spot one and here they were sitting in trees only 15 feet away!
We watched a number of brave folks who were navigating a ropes and zip line course which hung over the park. One couple spent quite a while looking down into an alligator enclosure beneath them before they stepped off the platform and slid out over the big gators who were lying in the sun with their mouths open.
It was much warmer today so we drove along the shore to a beach access and had our picnic lunch on the beach. I enjoyed watching a flock of brown pelicans who soared just a foot above the big breakers looking for fish. The seagulls who hung around us waiting for leftover sandwiches were not as fun. The surfers are back in the water along with some kids, but the dangerous marine life and riptide warnings are still in effect so I kept to wading in the shallows looking for shells. The sand here is so fine it isn't even "sugar" sand, it is more like powdered sugar. The only downside is that it sticks to everything.
We had a fried tilapia dinner in a beachside cafe along with a great mango daiquiri. Now I am comatose from sun, food and drink. A perfect day!
Old St. Augustine
There were frost warnings for Crescent Beach last night and some windy sunshine this morning so we decided to do sightseeing in town today. Our guidebook warned us of narrow, crowded streets with minimal parking so we planned to park and take a tour. We lucked into a tour on a 6 passenger open sided electric car - just for the two of us. A retired barrister from Manchester, England drove us through the old streets and gave us a great history of the Spanish and English settlers in St. Augustine.
We started at the spot where the first Catholic mass was held on the American continent. Nearby was a fountain which has water which comes from a deep aquifer running under the city. The water smelled of sulphur and was the origin of the legend of the "Fountain of Youth" discovered by Ponce de Leon that we all studied in grade school.
St. Augustine was established in 1565 and is the oldest continuously occupied settlement of European origin in the United States. Forty-two years before the English colonized Jamestown the Spanish settled St. Augustine. Most of the early buildings were built of wood and either burned or rotted. Later buildings used a type of stone called Coquina which is quarried on Anastasia island. It is sort of compressed oyster shells and is very strong.
The area had many conflicts and conquests due to the flow of gold that the Spanish were moving from South America up the Gulf Stream along the East coast of Florida. It was taken off ships and stored in the city away from the many pirates who wanted the gold. We drove the narrow streets and saw beautiful old homes from many historical periods. After the tour we strolled down a "walking street" which had many old shops and restaurants. It was still very chilly and we were happy to stop and eat a hot lunch in a funky old cafe.
We finished our sightseeing day by walking to the Castillo de San Marcos
National Monument. The Castillo was built to shelter townspeople and act as a military warehouse. It was built in 1695 of Coquina stone. The walls were twenty-two feet high (later raised to 35 feet) and fourteen feet thick. No enemy every conquered the fort despite many battles. We got a great but windy view of the bay. After a day spent outside in the cool, windy weather we went back to the condo and enjoyed a cozy evening inside. It is supposed to be warmer tomorrow.
We started at the spot where the first Catholic mass was held on the American continent. Nearby was a fountain which has water which comes from a deep aquifer running under the city. The water smelled of sulphur and was the origin of the legend of the "Fountain of Youth" discovered by Ponce de Leon that we all studied in grade school.
St. Augustine was established in 1565 and is the oldest continuously occupied settlement of European origin in the United States. Forty-two years before the English colonized Jamestown the Spanish settled St. Augustine. Most of the early buildings were built of wood and either burned or rotted. Later buildings used a type of stone called Coquina which is quarried on Anastasia island. It is sort of compressed oyster shells and is very strong.
The area had many conflicts and conquests due to the flow of gold that the Spanish were moving from South America up the Gulf Stream along the East coast of Florida. It was taken off ships and stored in the city away from the many pirates who wanted the gold. We drove the narrow streets and saw beautiful old homes from many historical periods. After the tour we strolled down a "walking street" which had many old shops and restaurants. It was still very chilly and we were happy to stop and eat a hot lunch in a funky old cafe.
We finished our sightseeing day by walking to the Castillo de San Marcos
National Monument. The Castillo was built to shelter townspeople and act as a military warehouse. It was built in 1695 of Coquina stone. The walls were twenty-two feet high (later raised to 35 feet) and fourteen feet thick. No enemy every conquered the fort despite many battles. We got a great but windy view of the bay. After a day spent outside in the cool, windy weather we went back to the condo and enjoyed a cozy evening inside. It is supposed to be warmer tomorrow.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Anastasia State Park
We are located on a barrier island between the Atlantic and the intercostal waterway. From our front deck we can see the sunrise over the ocean and from the back deck we watched the sun set over the Matanzas River. There are huge houses with even bigger boats moored along the River.
We had a slow morning and then checked out the beach in front of the condo. There was a strong wind blowing and temps only In the 60's. With riptide warnings and marine wildlife warnings (sharks) we are probably not going to be swimming in the ocean, yikes!
We packed up our camera, binoculars and lunch and drove to the 3000 acre Anastasia State Park where we camped 30 years ago. We checked out the campgrounds and tried to figure out how we walked from our campsite, over the sand dunes to the ocean. There is a salt pond in the way now, but the campground is still beautiful and has sites big enough for our RV. We walked on the beach, had a picnic lunch in the sun and then went to the st. Augustine lighthouse for a tour.
The first tower at this site was a watchtower put jere by the Spanish settlers to watch for pirates like Francis Drake. Then, a lighthouse was built in 1734 and later replaced by the lighthouse board in 1874 to provide a beacon that is visible for 25 miles. For many years the light was tended by the lighthouse keepers who lived on the remote island of Anastasia with their families.
The tower stands 140 feet above the city and has 219 steps. Keepers needed to carry five gallons of oil up these stairs every two hours to keep the light burning. They must have had really good legs and lungs. The lighthouse tower and keepers. House have been fully restored. It was fun to tour and imagine living there with a family. At least it was fairly warm. I recall touring one in Maine that was on a high cliff where the wife had to crawl down a steep trail to get water and to take a bath even in the winter - not for me. The Florida families had two huge cisterns in the basement of their house which sorted rain water that ran off their roof and pumped it into their kitchen with a hand pump. Such pampered ladies.
We had a nice afternoon nap and a glass of wine while listening to the still big surf. Later I did my TripAdvisor research on restaurants and found a highly rated local "tiki" bar nearby. We headed out for some coconut fried shrimp and mahi-mahi. The sun was glorious and the wind quieted down and it was warmer out as we watched the sun go down. It was great to watch the news and see that Minnesota is getting more snow as I kick off my sandals by my front door.
We had a slow morning and then checked out the beach in front of the condo. There was a strong wind blowing and temps only In the 60's. With riptide warnings and marine wildlife warnings (sharks) we are probably not going to be swimming in the ocean, yikes!
We packed up our camera, binoculars and lunch and drove to the 3000 acre Anastasia State Park where we camped 30 years ago. We checked out the campgrounds and tried to figure out how we walked from our campsite, over the sand dunes to the ocean. There is a salt pond in the way now, but the campground is still beautiful and has sites big enough for our RV. We walked on the beach, had a picnic lunch in the sun and then went to the st. Augustine lighthouse for a tour.
The first tower at this site was a watchtower put jere by the Spanish settlers to watch for pirates like Francis Drake. Then, a lighthouse was built in 1734 and later replaced by the lighthouse board in 1874 to provide a beacon that is visible for 25 miles. For many years the light was tended by the lighthouse keepers who lived on the remote island of Anastasia with their families.
The tower stands 140 feet above the city and has 219 steps. Keepers needed to carry five gallons of oil up these stairs every two hours to keep the light burning. They must have had really good legs and lungs. The lighthouse tower and keepers. House have been fully restored. It was fun to tour and imagine living there with a family. At least it was fairly warm. I recall touring one in Maine that was on a high cliff where the wife had to crawl down a steep trail to get water and to take a bath even in the winter - not for me. The Florida families had two huge cisterns in the basement of their house which sorted rain water that ran off their roof and pumped it into their kitchen with a hand pump. Such pampered ladies.
We had a nice afternoon nap and a glass of wine while listening to the still big surf. Later I did my TripAdvisor research on restaurants and found a highly rated local "tiki" bar nearby. We headed out for some coconut fried shrimp and mahi-mahi. The sun was glorious and the wind quieted down and it was warmer out as we watched the sun go down. It was great to watch the news and see that Minnesota is getting more snow as I kick off my sandals by my front door.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
From Apple Valley to Crescent Beach, Florida
I woke up to more snow and went to bed with the window open and the sound of pounding surf. In between we traveled. Rick and I both wondered where you can go by plane that does not take all day.
We first flew to Detroit after a pretty quick security check in Minneapolis. We had an hour between planes which turned into two as we waited for a problem to be fixed with a wàrning light. Our flight to Jacksonville had some pretty grumpy passengers by the time we were in the air including a baby in the seat ahead of us. Boo hoo.
We arrived in Jacksonville and drove out of the rental garage as the sun was setting. Spectacular but discouraging. We had eaten a sandwich seven hours earlier and juice and peanuts for dinner. I programmed a supermarket in St. Augustine into our GPS and we drove into the twilight. An hour later it was full dark and we were at one of the many shopping malls having a sandwich and buying some groceries. We like to stay at places where we can cook breakfast and lunch.
In the full darkness we drove along A1A which is major Florida artery and looked for our Condo in Crescent Beach which is fifteen miles south of St. Augustine on the Atlantic Ocean. There is no office open after 5 PM, but we had a code for a lockbox. We found the door, but no lockbox, until I looked down and saw that it was attached to the bottom of the balcony railing. We went in and right away opened the sliding door at the front of the unit and listened to the sound of booming surf. There is a riptide alert and a major shark migration along this shore, but we can enjoy the sound of the ocean anyway.
By the time we got our luggage up two flights of stairs and unpacked it is almost 11 so we will fall into bed and sleep to the sound of the surf. We made it out of the snow and in to the land of palm trees.
We first flew to Detroit after a pretty quick security check in Minneapolis. We had an hour between planes which turned into two as we waited for a problem to be fixed with a wàrning light. Our flight to Jacksonville had some pretty grumpy passengers by the time we were in the air including a baby in the seat ahead of us. Boo hoo.
We arrived in Jacksonville and drove out of the rental garage as the sun was setting. Spectacular but discouraging. We had eaten a sandwich seven hours earlier and juice and peanuts for dinner. I programmed a supermarket in St. Augustine into our GPS and we drove into the twilight. An hour later it was full dark and we were at one of the many shopping malls having a sandwich and buying some groceries. We like to stay at places where we can cook breakfast and lunch.
In the full darkness we drove along A1A which is major Florida artery and looked for our Condo in Crescent Beach which is fifteen miles south of St. Augustine on the Atlantic Ocean. There is no office open after 5 PM, but we had a code for a lockbox. We found the door, but no lockbox, until I looked down and saw that it was attached to the bottom of the balcony railing. We went in and right away opened the sliding door at the front of the unit and listened to the sound of booming surf. There is a riptide alert and a major shark migration along this shore, but we can enjoy the sound of the ocean anyway.
By the time we got our luggage up two flights of stairs and unpacked it is almost 11 so we will fall into bed and sleep to the sound of the surf. We made it out of the snow and in to the land of palm trees.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Looking for Florida sunshine
We have seen our share of snow this winter and spent more than the usual number of days stuck in the house. Our latest 10" is still piled high in our driveway, but the clock sprang ahead last night so Spring is on its way. To give it a boost we are headed to Florida for a week of warmer weather and leaving our down coats behind.
When our kids were small we drove to Miami with our camping trailer. We stopped for the night on the northeast coast of Florida, outside St. Augustine, at Anastasia State Park. Our campsite was just over the sand dunes from the ocean and I remember Arik and Matt running up and down the beach in the dusk and wishing that we could stay there for the week. We had to get to Miami for Rick's business meetings so we drove out early the next morning and never had time to see the old city of St. Augustine.
On Tuesday we are returning to this area and staying in a condo on Crescent Beach, just south of St. Augustine and Anastasia State Park. I have a huge list of things to see and do. It seems that many friends and relatives have enjoyed this area as well, so we are looking forward using their suggestions on many great spots for sightseeing and wildlife viewing.
We will be close to the beach and the ocean, but the weather looks like it may be a little chilly for much swimming in the Atlantic. There will be plenty of time for walking the beach and watching the sunrise over the ocean, however. I can't wait to get some sand between my toes. St. Augustine, here we come.
When our kids were small we drove to Miami with our camping trailer. We stopped for the night on the northeast coast of Florida, outside St. Augustine, at Anastasia State Park. Our campsite was just over the sand dunes from the ocean and I remember Arik and Matt running up and down the beach in the dusk and wishing that we could stay there for the week. We had to get to Miami for Rick's business meetings so we drove out early the next morning and never had time to see the old city of St. Augustine.
On Tuesday we are returning to this area and staying in a condo on Crescent Beach, just south of St. Augustine and Anastasia State Park. I have a huge list of things to see and do. It seems that many friends and relatives have enjoyed this area as well, so we are looking forward using their suggestions on many great spots for sightseeing and wildlife viewing.
We will be close to the beach and the ocean, but the weather looks like it may be a little chilly for much swimming in the Atlantic. There will be plenty of time for walking the beach and watching the sunrise over the ocean, however. I can't wait to get some sand between my toes. St. Augustine, here we come.
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