Every December, I seem to get at least one email with purported scientific evidence that chocolate is good for you. Yet, I promise, we weren’t looking for chocolate, we were just waiting for the Red Coats Are Coming parade the other night in St. Augustine … And there was the sign: Claude’s Chocolates. Hand made Belgian chocolate. Oh.
So, here’s my theory. If you’re going to have sweets and other things good cruising yogis and yoginis are supposed to avoid, I say, do it right, with intention, focus and complete commitment to the present moment. Make indulgence an art form.
Claude’s Chocolates in St. Augustine is here to help. In the name of yogic science, infused with the holiday spirit of historical reenactment parades, and out of abiding respect and love for our editor Claiborne Young and his first rate first mate Karen, I sampled the following items at Claude’s and pronounce them worthy of chocolate yoga:
1. Dark chocolate bark with hazelnuts and almonds.
2. Dark chocolate covered orange peel dusted with ancho chili powder.
3. Dark chocolate covered almonds dusted with cocoa.
4. Dark chocolate bark with nuts and fruit.
I’m allergic to milk, but my first rate first mate Michael tried — twice — the soft serve chocolate ice cream.
I asked the lovely lady who served us whether the chocolate is really made here and she said, not here but in our other store on US 1 in St. Augustine. She added: “He buys the chocolate from Belgium, but it is all made here.” Close enough for “here”; note to self-rationalizing self: Locavore virtue added to it tastes ridiculously good.
Is he nice? I asked. “We’ve been married for 35 years,” she replied with a wink. “I think so.” Note to self-rationalizing self: Nice chocolatier, nice chocolatier’s wife, this really is hand-made.
I have two words for you: Go there.
Claude’s Chocolates. 51 King Street, St. Augustine (short walk from Municipal Marina). Phone: (904) 808-8395. http://claudeschocolate.com
Captain Jane
S/V Lady Jane

Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor is off the Waterway’s western shoreline, south of unlighted daybeacon #7 and just north of the Vilano Beach Bridge. And, of course, Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor is A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR!

November 20, 2010
I believe most boaters generally feel as though they are at the mercy of yacht yards and marinas, and that they always overpay for most goods and services associated with boat ownership and operations. It is not unusual to read of such dissatisfaction in boat related magazines and web sites. Every now and then however, someone in the marine industry goes above and beyond that which is reasonably expected of someone in any business. When that happens I believe we should make that known as well.
In my recent case, that someone was one Peter Sabo, President and owner of the Camanchee Yacht Yard located at 3070 Harbor Drive, St. Augustine, FL 32084. The yacht yard is associated with the full service Camanchee Yacht Harbor Marina. Both are just off the ICW and just 2 miles from down town St. Augustine.
Our story began on the evening of Saturday, October 30, 2010 at around 1800 hrs. Cheryl, the admiral, and wife of the captain, was below preparing dinner. I was lounging in the cockpit with an adult beverage. That is when I heard `Why won’t the stove stay lit?’ Well, in the interest of brevity, it was determined rather quickly that the electric solenoid controlling the propane was defunct.
That was certainly an inconvenience, but did not seem to be a big problem as we would simply delay our departure one day and go to the local West Marine to pick up a solenoid in the morning. I called West Marine first thing Sunday morning to ensure they had the item in stock. Well, `no, we don’t have that item in stock, but I can get one from the warehouse in California and have it here on Wednesday’ was the reply.
We had been underway, from Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts toward home, in Burnt Store Marina, Punta Gorda, Florida, since July. By now we had very itchy feet, and did not relish a delay of three or four days. Based on the advice of another cruiser, I placed a call to the Camanchee Yacht Yard in hopes they might have a solenoid in stock. I heard the fully expected voice recording to `leave a message and we will return your call ASAP’. I was not the least bit surprised, after all, it was Sunday. I didn’t bother to leave a message, as I needed this part today.
I decided I could by-pass the solenoid with a simple pipe coupling then turn the gas bottle on and off the old fashion way. While I was on the phone, locating a hardware store, another incoming call went to voice mail. Cheryl retrieved the voice mail and told me it was from a fellow named Peter Sabo, from Comanche Yacht Yard and Marina, and that he was apologizing for not getting to the phone in time and missing the call. Huh? It’s Sunday.
I called Mr. Sabo right back. He again apologized for missing the call. I explained I just took a chance and really hadn’t expected anyone to be in the office on a Sunday. He explained he was not in the office, but at home doing yard work, and, that he has the calls forwarded to his cell phone. I apologized for disturbing him on a Sunday, at home. He assured me it was no problem, explaining he owns the Comanche Yacht Yard, and `how can I help you’? My, oh my. I apologized again further explaining, with some embarrassment, that I was not even staying at his marina. He said cheerfully `that’s OK, how can I help you’?
I explained my dilemma. He was certain he did not have a solenoid in stock. He agreed that my idea to bypass the solenoid would work as a temporary fix. He thought he might have just what I needed. He then explained he was just on his way to Home Depot, would stop by his shop on the way, and then swing by the city marina to deliver the part. If he did not have the part I needed in the shop, he would pick one up at Home Depot. He just asked for some time as he had been working in the garden. I was in total disbelief, but very grateful, for his most generous offer. We agreed to meet ashore in an hour or so.
As promised Peter Sabo arrived at the city marina with the piece I needed. The price marked on the piece was $4.95. As I pulled some cash from my pocket, he apologized for not having any change for my five-dollar bill. Obviously, I said that’s no problem. He then refused, very much to my disappointment, to accept any further monetary expressions of my gratitude for his extraordinary customer service to a non-customer.
Needless to say both Cheryl and I thanked him profusely. He appeared genuinely happy just to have been able to help us out. Needless to say, the next time I pass through St. Augustine, I will stay at the Comanche Yacht Yard and Marina. Simply based on our experience with Mr. Sabo, the Camanchee Yacht Yard and Marina must be a top-notch operation and I would highly recommend it to anyone else.
Gordon & Cheryl Fogg aboard S/V Foggy Notion

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor

Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor

The new St. Augustine mooring fields are located just off the path of the AICW, north and south of the Bridge of Lions in the heart of St. Augustine.These twin fields have been warmly welcomed by those who cruise those waters.

Dear Taylor Engineering and St. Augustine Marina,
First of all, thank you for the new mooring fields!…and for including BIG boats in your plan. Unfortunately, there is a significant design mistake: the painters are too short for larger powerboats…and they end in an eye slice, which, even if the painter were long enough, cannot be dropped over a cleat. In my case, a 58 ft motoryacht, we could not even reach the eye slice from the bow, which is 9 ft off the water. Remember, Auggie almost always has current and wind, so the mooring ball is seldom immediately under the bow (at least this captain is not that good).
Other well conceived mooring fields (i.e. Newport, Nantucket, even Little Harbour in the Abacos) have long painters which can be snagged with a boat hook and simply pulled aboard and dropped on a cleat. The extra length allows you to snag the painter even if you are not directly over the mooring ball…or, more likely, allows you drift room as you attempt to pull the loop aboard. I suggested to the St. Augustine marina office that a loop extension was needed for the larger boat moorings, but I fear it fell on deaf ears.
Meanwhile, if you have a tall bow, you must moor from the stern and transfer to the bow after you splash the dinghy, as I did. However, due to the significant Auggie current, the slack created in the transfer needed the power of the windlass to pull aboard.
A ten-foot loop through the eye slice would solve the issue, which, if brought aboard and dropped on a cleat, would not effect the swing radius of the design. We love moorings…please consider making these more usable. Thanks,
Captain Robert Calhoun Smith Jr, aboard M/V MARY KATHRYN

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For St. Augustine Northern Anchorage

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Anchorage Directory Listing For St. Augustine Southern Anchorage

Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of St. Augustine Mooring Fields

The new St. Augustine mooring fields are located just off the path of the AICW, north and south of the Bridge of Lions in the heart of St. Augustine.These twin fields have been warmly welcomed by those who cruise those waters. Captain Shreve describes them well below.

Cruising News:
Two nights ago (11/9) we spent the night at the new mooring field at St. Augustine and we could not have been happier. Like others we have anchored there in the past and the current is daunting to say the least. The moorings are easy to pick up and the spacing of boats is excellent. Gone are the derelicts that used to clutter the sea scape there. Also, for the $20 nightly fee (plus tax of course) not only do you get use of the dinghy dock (that cost $12 last year alone) but also free pump out at your mooring. We’ve paid $20 just for pump out at some marinas, so in my eyes the $20 is a bargain. The only thing that they haven’t worked out yet is paying the fee over the phone, but if your dinghy is on the deck or your outboard is out of commission they will come by your boat and pick you up in the pump out boat and ferry you to the office. The guys there are working their butts off to make everyone feel taken care of (I wish the bridge tender at Bridge of Lions was as concerned about customer service: last year we were told to hurry up and get through the bridge or we might lose out mast!)
Captain Barry Shreve

In my reply to Barry, I commented how nice it is to see a Florida city doing things to make transient boaters welcome, to which he responded:

Larry,
It is indeed refreshing. Compared to our visit last spring with all the derelict boats bunched together the mooring field was a breath of fresh air.
Barry

Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of St. Augustine Mooring Fields

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For Bridge of Lions

Rivers Edge Marina is located upstream from the AICW/San Sebastian River intersection, on the western side of the Waterway.

We were just there earlier this month(October). Found everything close. Bathrooms, laundry room- clean and working. Loved the people here. Capt Eric and Annie were are neighbors and what a help they were. Hurricane Patti’s is right there and offer drink specials to the boats at the marina. This is a DEF for stopping again. Easy to get in and out and you were away from the wind.

Click Here For The Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For Rivers Edge Marina

The new moorings fields in St. Augustine are immediately north and south of the Bridge of Lions in the heart of town. The south field, the larger of the two, is just south of the City Marina and closest to the dinghy dock and amenities. For rates and reservations, contact the City Marina at (904) 825-1026.

Drove in a car through St. Augustine and across Bridge of Lions today returning home from Savannah along A1A (a beautiful drive from Amelia Island, BTW). We had to stop as the draw raised to allow a sailboat to pass, so we had a chance to glance at the new mooring fields. The southern mooring field had a high occupancy rate – in fact we couldn’t see any available mooring balls but it was quite some distance away. I was surprised to see that there was also a mooring field north of the bridge with at least five mooring balls (three with boats); there were quite a few other smaller white balls on the north side in several lines which were much smaller than those with the boats – not sure what they were – might have been markers for future mooring balls. There were several boats anchored further to the north in the bend as the river turns toward the inlet.
Bob McLeran and Judy Young

Click Here To View An Earlier Update on St, Augustine’s Mooring Fields

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For the Northern St. Augustine Mooring Field

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For the Southern St. Augustine Mooring Field

Captain Bliss is a member of the Port Authority and is requesting your input regarding anchoring north and south of the Bridge of Lions in St. Augustine.

City moorings now cover most of the S anchorage. $20/night. Anchoring can take place further S of the mooring, but that’s pretty far from the city dock’¦. I’d like to know cruisers’ experiences here in St Augustine. I’m on the Port authority board (NOT part of City moorings) and we’d like to be informed, thank you. jblissuno@hotmail.com.

City has a mooring installation contract here in the N anchorage, operating slowly along the seawall and just off the Castillo San Marco. Call City Marina 904 825 1026 for updates or mooring availability. You’ll see boats anchored outside the perimeters, which should be fine. Email me with grins or grimaces, thanks.

Salt Run is in the process of having City moorings installed. Limitied anchoring might be available around the boat ramp at the base of the Lighthouse. Dredging is being conducted in the channel until early December. Best to call Cdr Fox, SAPD, 904 825 1073 if you want to disembark. City Marina is 904-825 1026. Email me jblissuno@hotmail.com with your gins or grimaces.
jblissuno@hotmail.com
Capt Jay Bliss

Click Here To Open A Chart View Window, Zoomed To the Location of St. Augustine

0

Rivers Edge Marina is located on the San Sebastian River. This stream leaves the northwestern banks of the AICW, southwest of marker #12.

We are docked here at the Rivers Edge Marina for the 2010 hurricane season and we really love it here,, great boaters and staff.. super clean marina and the city is the best!!! by far!!! This is our third time staying here now,, (even back when it was called Oyster Creek Marina), and we will be back in the spring of 2011. Check out their new web site http://www.29riversedgemarina.com
Cheers, Annie & Capt. Eric

Click Here For The Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For Oyster Creek Marina

St. Augustine City Marina is a fine municipal facility, and it is located within easy walking distance of the city historic and business district.

St. Augustine, FL, ICW mm 778. This is a MUST STOP for us on our way south!!! The staff is very skilled, the marina offers excellent services, and the proximity to downtown is unmatched! We love this marina and the town, and highly recommend it to all who are heading south. They have an inlet that provides superb access to the Atlantic Ocean, or you can stay on the ICW on your southbound journey. Either way, this stop is well worth the effort!
Sabra Morgan

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For St. Augustine City Marina

Click on Chartlet Below to Open a Chart View Window,
Centered on the Location of This Marina:

If you have been following the Cruisers’ Net, or most any of the other nautical web sites or mailing list, you almost certainly know there is an issue about whether the newly rebuilt Bridge of Lions that crosses the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in St. Augustine, Florida, has less than its charted, mean high water, closed vertical clearance of 25 feet. One week ago today, we issued an alert in response to a message we received from Ms. Laurie Sanderson, Public Information Officer for the Bridge of Lion Rehabilitation Project, in which we put forward our belief that this span now has only 22 feet of closed vertical clearance.
All this discussion was initiated by a report from Captain Bob Mimlitch, who noticed that his craft’s antennae seemed MUCH closer to the bottom of the bridge than they should have been, when he passed under this span. Over the past several days, Captain Mimlitch has copied the Cruisers’ Net on a LIVELY series of messages which have passed between himself, Ms. Sanderson, and two members of the USCG! Read on!

I told some of you that I would report on the Bridge of Lions when we passed it northbound. Here are my findings:

Approaching the Bridge of Lions from the south

The following two photos were taken on 15 June 2010 at 9:49am, as we passed under the bridge.

The south clearance gauge (tide board)

After photo analysis, the clearance gauge reads 19.5′, plus or minus an inch, which is clearance at “low steel”. The sign also states 4′ additional clearance at center. Thus clearance at center is 19.5′ plus 4′, or 23.5′. All drawbridges are governed by 33 CFR, which states:

§ 117.47 Clearance gauges.
(a) Clearance gauges are required for drawbridges across navigable waters of the United States discharging into the Atlantic Ocean south of Delaware Bay (including the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal, DE) or into the Gulf of Mexico (including coastal waterways contiguous thereto and tributaries to such waterways and the Lower Atchafalaya River, LA), except the Mississippi River and its tributaries and outlets,
(b) Except for provisions in this part which specify otherwise for particular drawbridges, clearance gauges shall be designed, installed, and maintained according to the provisions of §118.160 of this chapter.

§ 118.160 Vertical clearance gauges.
(a) When necessary for reasons of safety of navigation, the District Commander may require or authorize the installation of clearance gauges. Except as specified in §117.47(b) of this chapter for certain drawbridges, clearance gauges must meet the requirements of this section.
(b) Clearance gauges must indicate the vertical distance between ‘˜’˜low steel” of the bridge channel span and the level of the water, measured to the bottom of the foot marks, read from top to bottom. Each gauge must be installed on the end of the right channel pier or pier protection structure facing approaching vessels and extend to a reasonable height above high water so as to be meaningful to the viewer. Other or additional locations may be prescribed by the District Commander if particular conditions or circumstances warrant.

The hand painted north clearance gauge (tide board)

After photo analysis, the clearance gauge reads 22.5′ plus or minus an inch, which it states is clearance at center, not “low steel” as required by 33 CFR. This nonstandard clearance gauge does not conform with 33 CFR.
The south side indicates 23.5′ at center and the north side states 22.5′. There is a one foot discrepancy.
The listed clearance on the charts and according to the contractor rebuilding the bridge is 25′ at center. Charted heights are based on clearance at Mean High Water (MHW). MHW for the tide station next to the Bridge of lions at the St. Augustine City Dock is listed as 6.41′. MHW reference: http://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/data_menu.shtml?stn=8720576%20St.%20%20Augustine,%20FL&type=Datums
This means that if you pass under the bridge at a low tide of zero, the clearance at center would be 25′ plus 6.41′, or 31.41′. We passed under the bridge with a tide of 4.0′ so we should have had a clearance of 31.41 minus 4.0′, or 27.41′. Said another way, we were 2.41′ less than MHW, so 25′ plus 2.41′ or 27.41′.
When we passed under the bridge at 7:45AM on 28 April 2010, with a 4.5′ tide the north clearance gauge read 22′ at center, which was our boat’s height with VHF antennas up. Because we were almost 2′ below MHW, we expected 25′ plus 2′ or 27′ at center. When we saw the north clearance gauge reading 22′ at center, Sue ran to the upper helm and watched the antennas miss the bridge by less than a foot. If the listed 25′ clearance was correct, we would have had 5.5′ above our antennas.
Sue did not miss estimate our clearance as less than a foot instead of 5.5′. The north gauge appears to be correct, which means the listed clearance of 25′ cannot be correct. The listed clearance may be off by as much as 4 or 5′.
According to Laurie Sanderson, the Public Information Officer for the Bridge of Lions, the Contractor still maintains that the listed clearance of 25′ is correct.
I don’t have all the answers, but I know the following calculations for clearance at center, based on a 4′ tide, don’t match:

South clearance gauge = 23.5′
North clearance gauge = 22.5′
Listed clearance = 27.4′

Something is still very wrong. Was the old bridge really 25′ and the new bridge 20′ or 21′?
Captain Bob Mimlitch
USCG 100 ton Master Captains License #1002684

And, below, based on the above described observations, is a copy of an e-mail sent from Captain Mimlitch to Ms. Laurie Sanderson:

Laurie,
I realized that as Public Information Officer for the Bridge of Lions, you may not realize the importance to mariners of the Vertical Clearance listed on the charts and in the cruising guides. As a Captain, I don’t know in advance what the clearance gauge is going to read until I am very close to the bridge. Any Captain knows that in normal conditions and at tide levels less than Mean High Water (MHW), he should have more than the listed Vertical Clearance. It is against the law for me to request a bridge opening when my boat height does not required – thus I must plan ahead. As I approached the bridge on 28 April, I had planned on the listed Vertical Clearance of 25′ plus two additional feet because the tide was 2′ below MHW. This should give me a Vertical Clearance of 27′. My boat required 22′ of Vertical Clearance, so I did not request an opening.
I approached the bridge with the current behind me. The current here can reach 2 knots in this area. To maintain rudder steerage of my vessel I need a speed through the water of 4 knots. Heavy currents passing under the bridge and between the fenders can cause eddy currents and challenging steering. Thus I am approaching the bridge at about 6 knots and expecting 5′ of clearance above my antennas.
What I found was a 5′ disparity between my planned clearance and the tide board reading. What do I do? I can slam both engines into reverse and try to stop in time, back out of the bridge entrance and try to resolve the real height. If I had thought that I only had a couple of feet clearance, with the current behind me, I would have requested an opening just to be safe. Because the listed Vertical Clearance is wrong, my planning was in error.
We, as boaters, should not have to wait for an accident and the accompanying law suits to resolve the true Vertical Clearance of the bridge. Organizations such as the Waterway Guide, ActiveCaptain, and[Salty] Southeast Cruiser’s Net stand ready to get the correct bridge height out as soon as the contractor can determine it. Please, as the Public Information Officer for the Bridge of Lions, insure that the contractor knows that this Vertical Clearance must be based on MHW.
Thanks for your help in this matter.
Bob Mimlitch

And, Ms. Sanderson’s reply:

Bob,
I appreciate the e-mails you have sent this morning. I also appreciate your position, and the very real concern you present. The information I have provided to you is that which was provided to me by the project engineers and the contractor’s personnel. I have forwarded the e-mails you sent this morning to the Senior Project Engineer and to the contractor, so they may hear directly from you the concerns which you have detailed for me. Thank you again for bringing this matter to our attention.
One tiny edit, if you please:
`According to Laurie Sanderson, the Public Information Officer for the Bridge of Lions, the Contractor still maintains that the listed clearance of 25′ is correct.’
The contractor actually maintains that their tide gauge is correct, not that the listed clearance of 25′ is correct. If the listed clearance of 25′ is incorrect, the Department of Transportation believes it is not within their jurisdiction, but within the jurisdiction of the U.S. Coast Guard, to make that correction. The Department of Transportation is responsible for overseeing the contractor and ensuring that the tide gauge is correct. I have forwarded your e-mails to the Senior Project Engineer and to the contractor.
Sincerely,
Laurie Sanderson
Public Information Officer
Bridge of Lions Rehabilitation Project

From Captain Mimlitch:

I don’t know whether it is DOT’s responsibility or the USCG’s responsibility, I would assume that Laurie is correct; so who do we contact in the USCG. I hope that one of you have contacts.
Thanks,
Bob

Below, Captain Mimlitch brings this matter to the attention of Mr Dragon, the USCG Chief of the Bridge Branch

Dear Mr. Dragon;
I would like to bring a situation with the Bridge of Lions to your attention. I have been discussing this with Laurie Sanderson, the Public Information Officer for the Bridge of Lions, and others for about two months and in todays email Laurie states that the responsibility for insuring the accuracy of the 25′ Vertical Clearance listed on nautical charts and published on government website is the responsibility of the USCG. Below Laurie’s reply, you will find my email detailing my findings and photographs of the conflicting bridge height data.
Thank you for your help.
Bob Mimlitch

And that, sport fans, is where things stand as of late Friday afternoon, June 18. We’ll keep you apprised as more develops!
In any case, for the moment, we strongly suggest that all skippers count on a MAXIMUM closed vertical clearance of 22 feet when passing under the Bridge of Lions, possibly 21 feet!

Rivers Edge Marina is newly renamed Oyster Creek Marina. This facility is accessed by way of the San Sebastian River, which leaves the AICW south of the St. Augustine City Marina and anchorage/mooring field.

10 May 2010.
I heartily agree with the previous comments. Paul is a gem and where else can you go where you will find a Winn Dixie and a West Marine in the same shopping plaza, a short walk away? The next door to the marina restaurant and pub, Hurricane Patty’s, is excellent value for money, and for marina patrons, it is at all-day happy hour prices. Ask Paul about it.
The marina has changed its name to River’s Edge for some reason, risking confusion with one further north on the ICW. Signs for both names remain on the property.
When Paul learned about our ice box and $.30/day electricity usage, he charged us only a couple of dollars for our 5-day stay, saying it was ridiculous to ask for more. At last, a sane marina operator! Paul told me some of his story, a sailboater coming from New England ‘“ Nantucket ‘“ finding it increasingly difficult to find an available, affordable mooring, receiving a pink slip at work and deciding to sail away for other climes.
Paul was informative about what is driving marina pricing these days which is useful for understanding their side of the story, at least up to a point. Paul said municipalities are increasing charges to marinas for city services ‘“ water, sewage, electricity ‘“ in order to stay within their cash-strapped budgets, despite marinas telling them they will pass the costs on to their customers.
Marinas, however, are not equipped to meter usage so they apportion costs by dividing their bill amongst their clients, with little regard to the difference between say, a 30-foot sailboat using ice for refrigeration and a 30-foot power boat, more common from our experience ‘“ or sailboat, less common ‘“ with air conditioning and a refrigerator.
The result is, some people make out like a thief while others are required to pay for the thievery and marinas are let off the hook for installing metering. Am I surprised marina customers are mostly powerboats in Florida these days?
What is not being acknowledged, however, is another factor ‘“ the corporatisation of marinas. River’s Edge ‘“ nee Oyster Cove ‘“ is a family-run operation. The industry ‘“ attempting to establish `industry standards’ ‘“ is increasingly being taken over by corporations ‘“ buying or managing. From my experience, marinas have traditionally been owned by people who love the business. It has never been a huge money-maker but a labor of love ‘“ obvious if you look at the reality of overhead and effort involved in running marinas.
When corporations move in, the corporate bottom line dominates to maximise profit. They offer access to `resort facilities’ ‘“ swimming pools, etc ‘“ at a price. It’s nice to dip into but deadly if that is all that’s available.
For the sake of those who cherish the old cruising values and want the option to continue, it is useful to support the existing family-run marinas. May they always continue.
Fair winds and following seas,
Austin Whitten, S/Y Discovery II

Click Here To View the Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For Rivers Edge Marina

St. Augustine City Marina is a good facility, and it has the advantage of being within easy walking distance of the historic districe, but don’t overlook Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor, just to the north, and Conch House Marina on Salty Run. Both of these latter facilities are SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSORS!

Just stayed there 4 days. Nothing bad about this marina except the noise of the construction crews working to dismantle the temporary bridge used when they were doing the major overhall of the Bridge of Lions. Very convient to downdown St.Augustine. One of our favorite cities in our cruise down the ICW this spring.
Highly recommend this marina.
SV Aquarius

Click Here For The Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For St. Augustine City Marina

St. Augustine City Marina does sit near the near to the town’s wonderful historic district, but please remember that two other nearby facilities, Cammachee Cove Yacht Harbor and Conch House Marina Resort are SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSORS!

St Augustine City Marina is great. Good docking help, immaculate restrooms, near many great restaurants.
Capt Dave

Click Here For The Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For Cammachee Cove Marina

Click Here For The Cruisers’ Net’s Eastern Florida Marina Directory Listing For Conch House Resort Marina

Click Here For The Cruisers’ Net’s Easern Florida Marina Directory Listing For St. Augustine City Marina

This is the second article to be submitted to the Cruisers’ Net by our fearless roving reporter, Captain Jane Tigar!!! What a great report about one of our favorite ports of call in northeastern Florida!

St. Augustine is a favorite stop of ours and this year, our late start, while troublesome from the point of view of one cold front and small craft advisory after another, also meant we spent Christmas and New Year’s in St. Augustine. This happenstance means we can enthusiastically recommend a visit to St. Augustine during the winter holidays. Do they put on a light show! It’s just magical to walk around downtown at night with the Bridge of Lions and shops and streets all lit up.

Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor
Our favorite place to dock in St. Augustine is Camachee Cove [A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR]. I know, I know, unlike from the city marina, you can’t just walk into downtown, but staying on the north side of the Bridge of Lions opens to you other charms of this great city you might otherwise skip. Besides, with two courtesy cars and easy pick up service from Enterprise a mile or so away, all of the city is available to you.
Camachee Cove features enthusiastic ‘can do’ staff, the afore-mentioned two courtesy cars, clean and modern facilities, three strategically-located heads/showers/laundry, a restaurant, a breakfast and lunch cafe, the best book swap on the ICW, a great engine guy and ship’s store, and now, there’s also a place to buy fresh fish.
It also offers superb sunrise and sunset vistas and, as it is surrounded by wetlands, there is wonderful birdwatching. The proof is in the two photographs here from A dock.
Camachee Cove features easy access with a clearly marked channel on the ICW parallel to the Vilano high rise bridge. Make note that this is a great place to stop Northbound if you want to get the Bridge of Lions current opening issues out of the way. Just keep an eye on the side-moving current as you enter the channel — you may need to keep up the revs to stay on course.

Vilano Bridge at Sunrise

New at Camachee Cove: Fresh seafood store.
Camachee Island Seafood opened three months ago. We bought a beautiful piece of fish, reasonably priced, from proprietor Bill Bailey. His son caught this Cobia, not your usual fish item at the super market and it was delicious. While you are waiting for Mr. Bailey to wrap your fish, check out the photos on the wall, including some “vintage” photos of Mr. Bailey fishing and some more recent of his son. One particularly striking photo shows his son releasing a marlin. By the way, I have never seen a cleaner fish store. The day we were there, there was a good selection of fresh wild caught fish, shrimp, and clams and also some items in the freezer like snow crab legs. Mr. Bailey also sells a variety of condiments such as cornmeal fry coating and sauces on shelves.

Camachee Cove: A great stop for engine work, canvas, or boat supplies.
This is also a good stopping point on your way south or north if you need any work done on your boat. We had some canvas work done at Coopers, right here in the Camachee Cove complex; they did a superb job at a fair price. We have had excellent experiences over the years at First Mate. Bo does fantastic and smart engine work — we’ve relied upon his talents and services over the years and been very pleased. They also have a well-stocked ship’s store.

I hope this gives you an idea of why Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor is a favorite home away from home for Lady Jane. If we need to leave the boat here we know she is safe and well looked after.
While you are here, you may see the famous vessel “Chez Nous.” Yes, it’s “the” Chez Nous owned by cruising writers Tom and Mel Neale. If they’re in residence, stop by and say hello. Their daughter Melanie, whose growing up aboard the first Chez Nous is well chronicled in books you may have in your ship’s library, is now grown up and works at Camachee Cove Marina. In fact, she may be the one who answers your hail for docking assignment and instructions.

"A" Dock Resident - Snowy Egret Reprovisioning

Our favorite things to do in St. Augustine.
I love the antique carousel that is at the intersection of A1A and the road to Camachee Cove. The colorful horses, the friendly guy who makes sure you know if you got on one of the horses that doesn’t go up and down, the smiling children, the parents snapping photos outside … Bah Recession Humbugs, you can get all this joy for a dollar a ride.
If you’ve never sampled the sulfury brew from the Fountain of Youth — that’s a tour you should take at least once in your life. It’s hokey, historical, pseudo-historical and just plain fun. The same goes for the planetarium show — this is a very old planetarium and it’s a hoot and there’s a special kind of magic when you are seeing something this great great grandparent (gender neutral!) of the modern day high-tech planetarium shows that leave comparatively little to the imagination.

Food, food, food.
Our St. Augustine rituals include at least one visit to the Gypsy Cab Company restaurant. If you’re staying at Camachee Cove, you can book the courtesy car and it’s a short drive across the Bridge of Lions to get here. Don’t miss their house-made salad dressing — it’s liquid gold as the proprietor says. Made fresh every day, if you buy a bottle, note that you have to use it up within two weeks — no preservatives, this is the real deal.
St. Augustine isn’t St. Augustine for us without a pilgrimage to the Manatee Cafe. It’s technically health food-oriented, but even a health-food phobic person will have a good time here. We won’t reveal his name but we witnessed a hard core meat and potatoes guy chow down a lunch that included sprouts and admitting, with a wry smile that this is really good food.
Manatee Cafe is only open for breakfast, brunch and lunch — and despite the whole grains and vegetarian emphasis, they incongruously serve the best home fries I’ve ever had.
Michael, my first mate, and I are both fans of the burritos — full of fresh raw vegetables, hummus, black beans…
And, there’s a little store section in the front if you need to re-provision some of those special health-food items, from local honey in bear squeeze bottles to brewer’s yeast and yes, that important staple for some of us — organic chocolate bars.
We also have enjoyed Little Havana restaurant downtown — it’s a surprisingly low-cost restaurant delivering authentic (we think!) Cuban food. The specials are very gentle on the wallet and some nights there is live music.
For Camachee Cove transients, note that you can book the courtesy car for the evening, or, as we did on Christmas Day, we shared a car with another transient sailboat, making friends while we were at it.

Click Here To View the Eastern Florida Cruisers’ Net Marina Directory Listing For Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor

Capt. Jane got it right. This resident shares the high regard for Camachee, and would only add that Sailors Exchange on west King street is a great place to discover treasures you always wanted and never expected to find.
Capt. Jay

Below you will find a bevy of really useful cruising information and recommendations from Captain Jean Thomason, concerning the St. Augustine, Florida area. Notice her news about the new Bridge of Lions. Everyone in the cruising community will rejoice when this construction is finally completed. It seems to have already gone on forever!

We always enjoy our stay at St. Augustine City Marina. Hopefully the bridge work will be done soon- word is that traffic will start to use the redone Bridge of Lions next month. Of course, they will then be removing the temporary bridge. We had a leaking raw water pump and turned to First Mate Yacht Service to install a replacement pump. They came promptly Monday morning, dealt with the problem and we were on our way before noon. Give them a try if you need help. Sometimes I trek across the bridge and go to the little grocery store on the right a few blocks up. They don’t have everything but do have the essentials, especially meat and vegetables and fruits. Didn’t get to shop this time however.
Jean Thomason (DOVEKIE)