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After a two-night layover, due to high winds, in Palatka, our last stop on the St. Johns River was also where we began it. However that day, a couple of weeks ago, Bella Luna was with us heading south on the river. One of the nicest things about traveling on this…

It’s cold and rainy today so we sought refuge at the free dock in Welaka. We made note of this dock as we were heading south on the river. As boaters are always looking for an inexpensive (or even better) free dockage. We think it’s important to make sure we go…

After another leasurely morning and with no exact destination in mind other than turning our boat around and heading north towards Jacksonville, we decided to make a big day of it by traveling 34 miles to Silver Glen Springs, just off Lake George. Silver Glen Springs  We weren’t sure we…

Because we were only traveling eight miles today we had a leisurely morning at anchor enjoying the beauty of nature before heading to Hontoon Island State Park. In the course of these eight miles we saw three bald eagles, five or six mannatee, several alligators and a big stork. The…

After our farewell with Louis and Diane we had a nice walk through Sanford before we embarked for a leasurely eight mile cruise north, to an oxbow across from Wekiva River. We had heard taking a dinghy ride up this river was something we should not miss and we were…

For the last six weeks we have had the pleasure of sharing our boating travels with Louis and Diane Wade, Bella Luna. We have had dinners on-board one or the other boat or we’ve all gone out to have a taste of the local cuisine. We’ve played games, made repairs to…

Sanford, Florida, the most southern point on the St. Johns River concludes the first half of our trip before we head north and stop at some places we missed on the way south. So we decided to stay two days so that we could take our time exploring. Between rain…

A beautiful, tropical spot to anchor for the night. Shortly after the anchors are set the dinghies are dropped for a trip over to visit Blue Spring State Park, just around the bend from our boats. Blue Spring State Park  One of the wildlife highlights of our St Johns trip…

From mile 115 to mile 143 is where we saw the most wildlife. It was this stretch where we had a friendly wager with Bella Luna on who would see the first alligator, bald eagle and manatee for the day and it was also this area where we saw so…

Butch and Teresa (the owners of Georgetown Landing Marina) were kind enough to let us borrow their truck so we could drive seven miles to the neighboring town of Welaka and visit the… Welaka Maritime Museum This museum has a collection of one-of-a-kind wooden boats that were all built by Richard…

As potential bad weather was forecasted for the next couple of days we left Murphy’s Creek and made our way for Georgetown Landing Marina, just south of Welaka on the St. Johns River. We wanted to be tied up snuggly while the inclimate weather made its way past us. It…

Our first anchorage after Palatka was in an oxbow (a u-shaped bend in the course of a river) in Murphy’s Creek, just off of Dunn Creek. Once settled Lisa and I lowered the dinghy to go explore for gators, eagles and turtles three to four miles up Dunn Creek. It…

Once the winter home of the Mellon banking family and the end of the line for railroads, Palatka was once the largest shipper of cypress wood in the world. This town is also considered the spot where the St. Johns River starts to become wild with natural habitat… gators, manatee, birds, eagles,…

After lots of discussion and planning we’re finally heading into the St Johns River to explore Florida’s hidden gems including the wildlife we’ve long heard and read so much about. First stop was a free dock at Six-mile Creek and a visit to the Outback Crab Shack, the restaurant which…