It’s a long trek down a well marked channel from the waters of the Northern Gulf to reach Shield’s Marina, but it’s worth it. We have always found this to be a superior marina.
I’m particularly intrigued by Captain Judith’s reference to the “new Shields Marina.” Perhaps there have been improvements here since I last visited. Anyone have more info about that?

Our first stop was St. Mark’s (20 miles south of Tallahassee), staying at the new Shield’s Marina (showers/laundry/well stocked chandlery/full service) and a couple of anchorages in the beautiful St. Mark’s River. We lunched at the Riverside (Paradise) Cafe, walked the park, museum/fort, and the railroad converted to bike path. The area/fort has been significant historically since the 1500’s (and 12,000 yrs before) under the control of 9 different cultures. The area provided the most important salt for the Confederate troups. They have a post office and a limited grocery store and are the heart of the Stone Crab industry with a festival in October. A man came to talk with us for awhile and loaned us his car to go to the St. Mark’s Wildlife Preserve and The Lighthouse. We saw many alligators sunning. We found out later, the owner will loan you his car for Walmart or the lighthouse/nature preserve tour.
Judith and Paul
Tranquilo
26′ C-Dory

Click Here To View the Western Florida Cruisers’ Net Marina Directory Listing For Shields Marina

Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Shields Marina