Jensen Beach Mooring Field
Statute Mile: 981.3
Lat/Lon: near 27 15.0 North/080 13.2 West
Location: Just offshore of the Jensen Beach Causeway, at 2402 NE Causeway Boulevard, on the Indian River Lagoon
Minimum Depth: 7 feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 50 feet
See Marina Listing for More Details: /marina/jensen-beach-mooring-field
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Below, you will discover our COMPLETE listing of Eastern Florida anchorages, arranged in a rough, north to south, geographic format. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO NARROW YOUR SELECTION of EF Anchorages to those in a specific geographic sub-region, locate the RED, vertically stacked menu, on the right side of this, and all Cruisers’ Net pages. Click on “Eastern Florida.” A drop down menu will appear, with a blue background, Now, click on “EF Anchorages.” A sub-drop-down menu will now appear. The first selection is “All Eastern Florida Anchorages,” which is where you are now. Below this selection, however, you will find listed 12 Eastern Florida geographic sub-regions. Select your waters of interest, and after clicking on your choice, a list of EF anchorages will appear, confined to the sub-region you have picked!
Fernandina Beach Waterfront Mooring Field (NOTE: No mooring balls as of October, 2016, due to Matthew)
Statute Mile: 716.5
Lat/Lon: near 30 40.204 North/081 28.147 West
Location: just off the Fernandina Beach waterfront and hard by flashing daybeacon #12
Minimum Depth: 6 feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 50 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Fair, wide open to southwestern and, to a lesser extent, northeastern breezes
Rating: 
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We stayed at this anchorage on 11-18-11, and there was a fairly strong northerly wind, and it was quite challenging anchoring because the strong current made it difficult to get the nose of the boat to point into the wind. Our boat sat at a funny angle to the wind all night and it was somewhat uncomfortable. The wind also blew very foul smelling fumes from the two factories nearby all over the anchorage. Not pleasant. The town of Fernandina is very nice, however, and there is a fabulous farmers market on main street on Saturday mornings. You can also take showers at the Fernandina City marina for just a few dollars.
Way Happy
Ditto on a good stop here. Same for the quaint town
anchored there spring 09, but a little further north, at the end of the group of anchored boats SW of R10. good holding.. came in around 1am and i wasnt’ going to be picky about the views! just a safe stop to catch some zzzz
pascal
MY Charmer, 70′ Johnson
Bells River Anchorages
Statute Mile: 716.5
Lat/Lon:
30 40.700 North/081 28.777 West (downstream anchorage, just north of intersection with Lanceford Creek)
30 41.366 North/081 29.084 West (anchorage short of river’s turn to the west ‘“ after passing through this turn, the river splits)
30 41.316 North/081 29.581 West (anchorage on western fork of Bells River, east of charted Tiger Basin)
Location: these anchorages are located along the splintered course of Bells River ‘“ this stream intersects the ICW abeam of the Fernandina Beach waterfront, hard by flashing buoy #10
Minimum Depth: 7 feet in the unmarked channel
Swing Room:
sufficient room for vessels as large as 45 feet in downstream anchorage
sufficient room for vessels as large as 42 feet in anchorage short of river’s turn to the west
sufficient room for vessels as large as 38 feet in anchorage on western fork of Bells River, east of charted Tiger Basin
Foul Weather Protection: Fair in downstream anchorage ‘“ open to northern winds; Good in both upstream anchorages
Rating:
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We have anchored our 60′ LOA Hatteras with plenty of room in the north/south stretch of Bells River three times, twice below the charted shallow spot and once above. This is one of our favorite stops and we coincidentally rode out some bad weather in the fall of 2008 there. As noted there are some soft places, so take the time to get a good set.
Great dinghy dock facility, but be courteous and check in with the marina. We had a very good experience with the marina when our generator had an issue, they quickly made a spot for us and got us a local tech pronto.
Rode out a 4-day storm in May, 2008 in the branch of the Bells that turns south between the two upstream anchor marks. Anchor did drag a couple of boat lengths when the winds went over 40 kts, then reset (44 Bruce on a 21000 lb ketch). Otherwise secure and at worst moderate seas. This storm dumped so much water in N. Fl that at high tide the Bells River became the Bells Lake. All of the marsh land that forms the banks were under several feet of water. The tops of the marsh grass was under water. With no channel marks in this portion of the river I would have had to blindly trust my chart plotter to re-anchor if the Bruce had not reset. Bottom line: A good anchorage, but if a really bad storm is coming I would now try to get into one of the marinas on Amelia Is. See also: http://www.svsarah.com/Sailing/ewBahamasNorth.html for more details on my adventure.
John – SV Sarah
We stayed in the “downstream” anchorage and it was fine with a good anchor and plenty of rode. A bit spalshy ride to town but that is what the dink is for. Great lunch intown. Another ruiser said the marina facilites (available to us on anchor, too) were really nice.
J. S. Woodward – MV-Avalon
Waterway Anchorage
Statute Mile: 718.5
Lat/Lon: near 30 39.623 North/081 29.160 West
Location: south of flashing daybeacon #1, just off the western shoreline of the combined track of the Amelia River and the ICW
Minimum Depth: 6 feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 55 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Fair to poor, particularly open to southern winds
Rating:
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Jackson Creek Anchorage
Statute Mile: 719.5
Lat/Lon: near 30 38.700 North/081 29.014 West
Location: off from the Waterway’s eastern banks just south of flashing daybeacon #3
Minimum Depth: 6 feet BUT channel is MUCH narrower than appears to be the case at high tide
Swing Room: sufficient room ONLY for vessels as large as 32 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Fair
Rating:
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Upper Amelia River Anchorage
Statute Mile: 720
Lat/Lon: near 30 38.367 North/081 29.697 West
Location: on the waters of upper Amelia River, which intersects the ICW southwest of flashing daybeacon #7
Minimum Depth: 7 feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 38 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Good, except in unusually strong eastern and northeastern winds
Rating:
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Alligator Creek Anchorage
Statute Mile: 726
Lat/Lon:
30 34.491 North/081 28.288 West (anchorage south of intersection with Alligator Creek
30 34.690 North/081 28.127 West (anchorage northeast of intersection with Alligator Creek)
Location: entrance lies north-northeast of the ICW’s unlighted daybeacon #36
Minimum Depth: 6 ½ feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 45 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Fair to good, but open to southwestern and northeastern winds
Rating:
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Anchored here on 4/13/13. Entered and exited by the south end. Came in near low tide and bounced twice. Have anchored here last year also and find holding is good. Current is not too bad and protection is good. Waited in morning for rising tide, no problem leaving. Would rate it a 3 because of the problems entering at a lower tide. s/v Skye
We anchored here recently and found the water deep and holding good. Our spade dug in instantly.
Our 2009 copy of Skipper Bob’s Guide to Anchorages warns not to enter or leave through the northern end of the anchorage but we found good water in the center when we left northbound.
Fort George River Anchorage
Statute Mile: 735
Lat/Lon: near 30 26.460 North/081 26.285 West
Location: lies just west of unlighted daybeacon #5 ‘“ the westerly entrance to Fort George River, from the ICW, lies east-southeast of flashing daybeacon #72
Minimum Depth: 6 feet minimum in the channel
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels only as large as 36 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Fair, except with strong eastern winds in the offing
Rating:
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Had no trouble exiting ICW to Ft George River. Anchored overnight 11/30/2011 opposite plantation main buildings by mark “5”. Depths 10’+, good holding. Dinghied to park dock just before ranger closed the gate to it at 1630. At dawn, slack tide left it to the wind to push us close to the southern shore. Started engine to keep us off. Tidal current took over again and gave us time to walk the plantation, before leaving mid morning. Recommend this anchorage.
We anchored here winter of 2011. Came in at low tide. Sticking close to the southerly shore. Anchored initially just to the east of the plantation. We experienced a great deal of boat traffic. Center cockpit fishing boats racing through. Felt like we were taking up the whole river. I was not comfortable with it. Picked up and moved just to the south east of green #18 Chart showed a little 5 ft deep area .We draw 3’10” did a lot of sounding around to pick a spot as close to the north shore as possible. Felt better about it then being in the center of the channel. That night the “Flounder Barge” spent about 3 hours around the plantation. For those not familiar with the “Flounder Barge” from what I could tell it looked like a giant air-boat, with a huge generator on it. This was to power the billion candle spotlights used to search for the flounder. Being not only the loudest machine man has ever made. It appears to be one of the deadliest. It skims the shallow areas looking for prey. On the deck stand what seem to be drunken college kids with spears which they stab at whatever looks like something that might be alive on the bottom. The only thing louder then the generator and giant fan are the hoots of a successful kill. It was a tough night to sleep.
On 4/9/2010 we entered Fort George River from the ICW, passing closely to the ICW (R”72″) marker at the mouth and favoring the southern shore all the way past Kingsley Plantation. At dead low tide, we never saw less than 7 feet. We anchored just beyond the plantation and went ashore witht he dinghy for a very informative visit of a unique piece of American history. Lots of no-see-ums and it is a main thoroughfare for a bunch of center-cockpits in a hurry, but they are gone after dark. Lots of current too, but a nice anchorage and lovely spot.
We’re presently in this anchorage, with two boats near G “3” and three closer to G “5”. We arrived at about half tide and found the bottom coming up uncomfortable quickly (6′ draft) as we approached the dock (shown as two pilings in the chart) for Kingsley Plantation (marked “ruins”), a National Park Service site. We opted for the bight on the north shore near the G “3”. There’s more swing room and holding is good. One source suggests following a line between Fl R “72” and R “2” to enter the river – don’t. It leads through a charted shoal. Instead, favor the north shore and follow current charts. Otherwise, this is a standard issue SE GA, NE FL anchorage with lots of marsh, no-see-ums, and tidal currents – but it sure is pretty.
About the plantation – this is a good trip ashore. The park closes at 5PM but the dock closes at 4:30PM; “closes” means a ranger comes to the dock and chains the gate shut. Curiously, the same sign announcing the 4:30PM closing time also states that docking is limited to 59 minutes (one wonders what bureaucrat dreamed that up…). Plan your visit accordingly.
After leaving St Mary’s, Kittiwake stopped here for the 3rd time in 5 years. No trouble getting in , with tide rising (about mid-tide, almost full spring Nov 1), but had vibes. Sure enough, aobut 4 AM, front came through with some NW and N wind, and Kittiwake was heading for the plantation docks. Up the hook, ride around in the dark and settled in a little further West until enough light to start traveling. Can’t figure out anything I could have done different, but next time will try to Talbot River anchorage (oxbow on W side of ICW, just N of Ft George River anchorage) – not as much water or room – but talked to the folks anchored there overnight, it had better protection from NW and N in the south end.
One and Only Anchorage
Statute Mile: 744
Lat/Lon: near 30 19.709 North/081 26.212 West
Location: south of unlighted daybeacon #15, and just north of the San Pablo Bridge
Minimum Depth: 10 feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 38 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Very good
Rating:
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10/27/2019 We anchored my my Catalina 36 here after several failed attempts to find good holding along the ICW for 7 mi further north. We surveyed the bottom in this area and found it more than sufficiently deep-30 ft in some areas and more than 12ft right up to shore. I believe there is room enough for 2 or 3 boats. Holding was strong as we pulled 3/4 throttle with the current to check.
Greg Zarus
Pine Island Loop Anchorage
Statute Mile: 765
Lat/Lon: near 30 03.059 North/081 21.951 WestLocation: south of unlighted daybeacon #25, off the eastern banks of the Waterway
Minimum Depth: 7-feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 48 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Good, except during strong eastern and northeastern winds
Rating:
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When we arrived on 4/20/10, we found 3 sailboats and a trawler already there and all the prime spots taken. We took the last spot, out near the channel. Two other trawlers came later, looked for a spot, but finally gave up and proceeded back down river looking for an anchorage.
Some shoaling at entrance. Buggy if winds are calm and especially if you turn lights on inside. Good holding.
Good anchorage, but anchor farther in if your concerned about the occasional wake. Quiet, no traffic after sunset.
Captain Sterling
Anchored here April 6, 2010 with seven other boats. Wind was East in afternoon about 15K but died down at night. No-see-ums in the morning. Nice peaceful anchorage
In November 2009, we anchored in 12 feet of water with 7 other boats. Holding was very good and there were no mosquitoes. Wind was SE 10 to 12 kts.
Shell Bluff Anchorage
Statute Mile: 767.5
Lat/Lon: near 30 01.342 North/081 20.977 West
Location: north-northwest of flashing daybeacon #35
Minimum Depth: 6-feet
Swing Room:
Foul Weather Protection: Fair to poor; sheltered only from eastern and northeastern winds
Rating:
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Open Anchorages
Statute Mile: 769
Lat/Lon:
29 59.782 North/081 19.872 West (anchorage east of flashing daybeacon #44)
30 00.061 North/081 20.229 West (anchorage east, northeast of flashing daybeacon #41)
Location: off the easterly flank of the ICW, between flashing daybeacons #41 and #44
Minimum Depth: 8-feet, but unmarked shoals abound; use of a GPS chartplotter is recommended to safely access anchorage east, northeast of flashing daybeacon #41
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 40 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Poor; fair weather anchorages only
Rating:
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Guana River Anchorage
Statute Mile: 770.5
Lat/Lon: 29 59.611 North/081 19.302 West
Location: off the eastern side of the ICW, south of unlighted daybeacon #44A
Minimum Depth: 5-feet, but be advised that this is a navigationally difficult anchorage
Special Note: this anchorage is rife with unmarked shoals, and even the main channel is subject to shoaling
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 40 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Good
Rating:
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Waterway Anchorage
Statute Mile: 775
Lat/Lon: near 29 55.628 North/081 18.247 West
Location: lies south-southeast of flashing daybeacon #55
Minimum Depth: 8-feet
Swing Room: virtually unlimited
Foul Weather Protection: Poor, fair weather anchorage only
Rating:
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spring 09
I preferred a spot just south of R54 and the small island. good holding, off the ICW although there is really no traffic at night so wakes arent’ an issue.
Pascal
MY Charmer, 70′ Johnson
Salt Run Anchorages
Statute Mile: 776.5
Lat/Lon:
29 53,517 North/081 17.389 West (anchorage east of unlighted daybeacon #14)
29 53.363 North/081 17.177 West (anchorage south, southeast of unlighted daybeacon #15)
Location: on the waters of Salt Run, south-southeast of unlighted daybeacon #11
Minimum Depth: 5 ½ feet
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 40 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Fair to good, open to northerly blows
Rating:
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We pulled into Salt Run on the evening of the 20th of November and our first observation was “Wow, where did all the junk go?” Our second observation was that there were several lines of crab pots. Upon closer examination the crab pots were white mooring balls, very neatly identified as SR 1, etc. We coasted up to one, caught the painter, and soon had Carolina snugged in.
Around 5:20 pm we were hailed by a St. Augustine Marina employee who got us registered, suggested a ball that had better for our draft, and we paid our $14.00 fee for the night.
We were given a card identifying the ball and the date which gave us access to everything we would have had at the City Marina, other than water and electric.
We fully understand the controversy over anchoring rights in and around various Florida municipalities, but having experienced what St. Augustine has accomplished, are very satisfied with the product.
Steve and Sheila Kamp
S/V Carolina
St. Augustine City Northern Anchorage
Statute Mile: 778
Lat/Lon: near 29 53.776 North/081 18.587 West
Location: will be found north of the Bridge of Lions, along the westerly banks
Special Note: this long-popular anchorage was converted to a mooring field by the city of St. Augustine in the fall of 2010
Minimum Depth: 8-feet
Swing Room: only limited by other vessels swinging at anchor on these waters
Foul Weather Protection: Fair to Poor; wide open to northeasterly winds
Waste Pump-out Availability: A free pumpout boat is available for boats in the mooring field, and boats also anchored in the city limits for a fee of $5. For more information go to http://www.staugustinegovernment.com/visitors/municipal-marina.cfm
Rating:
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St. Augustine City Southern Anchorage
Statute Mile: 778.5
Lat/Lon: near 29 53.402 North/081 18.445 West
Location: along the Tolomato River’s western banks, south of the St. Augustine City Marina
Special Comment: BE SURE TO ANCHOR SOUTH OF A POINT ABEAM OF THE SANTA MARIA RESTAURANT AND DOCK; this long-popular anchorage was converted to a mooring field by the city of St. Augustine in the fall of 2010
Minimum Depth: 6 feet ‘“ typical 10-foot soundings
Swing Room: only limited by other vessels swinging at anchor on these waters
Foul Weather Protection: Fair; open to southern, northern and southeastern winds
Waste Pump-out Availability: A free pumpout boat is available for boats in the mooring field, and boats also anchored in the city limits for a fee of $5. For more information go to http://www.staugustinegovernment.com/visitors/municipal-marina.cfm
Rating:
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When you anchored by the fort, where did you park your dinghy when you went to shore since anchoring does not get you permissions to the dinghy dock at the municipal marina? Thanks!
Overall, we much prefer the southern anchorage to the northern for room, some relief from swells from the inlet, and better access to the city marina. Note, however, that a shoal exists along a line from the R “12” to the R “10A” and on to the R “10”, west of this line there is good depth for most boats (we draw 6′). Photos from the air show this bar clearly. We’ve seen two boats (one was a cat) try to run between the “10” and “10A” at high tide and still take the bottom. The only way in or out is to pass north of R “10”.
Scenery is in the eye of the beholder – we have no problem with the surroundings. As to derelict boats, they are an unhappy fact of life here. We count about 6 in a very large, and busy, anchorage. Could be worse…
Anchoring in this area is not as scenic as north of Lions bridge and some of the boats look abandoned. Caution when exiting the anchorage, there is a shoal north and south of marker 10 less then 4 foot depth. Enter and exit the area from the north and to the west of red #10.
Emergency Anchorage
Statute Mile: 781
Lat/Lon: 29 50.994 North/081 18.258 West
Location: west and south of flashing daybeacon #18, and northeast and south of flashing daybeacon #31
Minimum Depth: 6-feet
Special Note: an obstruction which covers at mid to high tide has been reported in the southern 1/2 of this anchorage. It is strongly recommended that you drop the hook north of a position abeam of marker #20
Swing Room: sufficient for vessels as large as 50 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Poor; fair weather only anchorage
Rating:
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Anchored here with our NC44, Sea Angel, last night, 10-30-09 at about mid tide. Anchored about 500′ south of #20 in 16′ of water/21 at high. There are about half a dozen boats there on what are either moorings or perminently anchored. The derelect Catalina 25 is there as is the obstruction that is visible to the east of that boat. There is a small white float on the obstruction that isn’t visible at high tide. The obstruction appears to be about two feet indiameter at the surface and shows above the surface about 1 foot at low. Holding in sand/mud was very good. Anchor set quickly and held well through tide changes and contrary winds. Some wakes from ICW but overall a quiet anchorage in settled weather.
Be very careful here. On 10/10/09 we passed this anchorage travelling south on the ICW at almost exactly MLW. There is an obstruction here. From our vantage point on the ICW it looked like concrete and steel aproximately 5′ in diameter that would not be visible at half tide or higher. We were passing by on the ICW so I can not give it’s exact location. My best estimate – It appeared to be near the 8′ sounding west of a line between R20 & R22. There were several sailboats anchored in the area and I can not be sure which were transient and which were long term. Best eyeball advice I can give is if you see a 25′ (aprox) sailboat with missing o/b motor that looks shabby and something like a Catalina 25, the obstruction is 100 yards north. From my view I could not tell if the obstruction is in the 8′ depth area or the shoal east of the area. But for sure, it will not be visible at half tide or greater. My suggestion would be to anchor abeam or north of R20. We anchored there a year ago and encountered an afternoon thunderstorm of moderate strength. Holding was good. We did not see this obstruction a year ago.
Rick Parish
South Channel Anchorage
Statute Mile: 843
Lat/Lon: near 29 03.557 North/080 54.846 West
Location: north-northeast of the ICW’s flashing daybeacon #19
Minimum Depth: 7-feet
Special Note: shoaling at the intersection of South Channel and the AICW is now making successful entrance into this anchorage difficult, and these waters host strong tidal currents. We are downgrading our estimate of this overnight haven to “emergency only” status
Swing Room: sufficient room for vessels as large as 55 feet
Foul Weather Protection: Poor; fair weather anchorage only
Rating:
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tide moves too fast and there is bad shoaling. boats go trough sideways during a flow. hit bottom 2 times with 5.8 keel.then finaly got trough. with local help. You would be safer crossing the gulf stream with a north wind
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