St. Augustine & St. Simons Island | Sailing & Sightseeing
Sailing PILAR in St. Augustine & St. Simons Island | EP 55 | Blue Dot Voyages
Thinking about visiting St. Augustine? Here’s a bit about our recent sailing experience in the St. Augustine area and our recommendations for your visit.
TIMELINE:
0:00 Intro summary
0:47 Sailing
1:43 St Augustine Inlet
5:00 Mooring and Anchoring at the St. Augustine Municipal Marina
8:57 Cathedral Basilica
9:11 Around Town
9:24 National Greek Shrine
9:30 Flagler College
9:47 Harry’s Seafood
10:10 Matanzas Inlet/Crescent Beach
10:25 St. Augustine Lighthouse
10:54 Villano Beach - Otttis Castle
11:06 Salt Run Mooring Field
11:46 Anastasia State Park
12:15 Stephen’s new dinghy rod holders
13:05 Return to St. Simons Island - Morningstar Marina, Sea Island, Little St. Simons Island, Biking
Easter Weekend 2021 we sailed from St. Simons Island, GA to St. Augustine, FL. We averaged 7 knots SOG for 12 hour sail on 15 knot winds with fairly close 6 ft waves. Although we thought it would be parasailor weather, it turned out the Genoa and the Main sailed well for the majority of the day.
Arriving at the St. Augustine inlet, we were warned of the narrow channel and numerous shoals. Our 5 AM departure got us a 5 PM arrival with plenty of light to navigate the channel. Following the markers, it was an easy entry even in the frothy seas. We headed for the Bridge of Lions to wait for the bridge opening (every 1/2 hour on request).
We had planned on anchoring just past the city marina mooring field, however were hailed on our approach that they had a mooring ball for us - thanks to being on the wait list. We settled in on mooring ball #5. A note on anchoring for masts over 65 ft - the area before the bridge can be quite rocky so try to avoid it. Salt Run (which we did later) is a good option depending on your draft and is much quieter as it is a good distance from the city.
Read the rest on our blog site.
LINKS:
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INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotvoyages.sailingpilar
VIDEO SHORTS - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaOcbszDZomQLhRz9PeLVL2G
ALL EPISODES - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaPq2o05r6wnJqaqyeABUKiu
LONG VOYAGES - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaMVYY-0QB1x8dgRkA9laYnD
Blue Dot Voyages is a Sailing Adventure Company. On our Leopard48 Sailing Catamaran PILAR, we sail, fish, snorkel, scuba, and we offer travel advice on our blog and vlog. We offer charter sailing experiences when we can. Watch our videos and live vicariously through us!
Master Captain: Stephen Bell
First Officer: Dawn Bell
#StAugustine #StSimonsIsland #Cruising
