After breakfast, I jumped on the Internet and started searching for tour maps. I found a map that was published by Old Town Trolley Tours of St Augustine. It was very detailed, and even showed places to park for free. Andrew and I looked at it, then tried to print it out from the laptop to the printer in the other room. We hit print, but nothing happened. We tried again; same result. Then I realized that the main computer was not on. DOH! Once Andrew turned it on, out of the printer came the map... twice.
 |
| Tour map of St. Augustine |
Susan packed a cooler full of drinks, lunch meat, and fruit while I searched for things and tried to keep Andrew focused on getting out the door. Once loaded, we were on our way. To my surprise, we didn't remember what we forgot and have to turn back and get it; so did we forget to remember, or did we actually bring everything we needed?
The drive north was a little over two hours. We arrived in town right at 11:00 am. We followed our map to the free parking lot and went searching for ticket prices. Andrew and I checked out the old jail, the old tractor, and other oddities while Susan got the low down on the prices. Turns out the trolley is pretty expensive. We wanted the guided tour... but not for that price. We decided to pay $10 to park in the visitor center lot and do our own tour instead.
 |
| Andrew wrestles an alligator |
 |
| Andrew and the old steam tractor |
We decided to eat lunch in the car, in the visitor center parking garage, before getting started. After lunch, Susan filled her water bottles at the visitor center and found another map of town. Andrew and I checked out the mock pirate ship, then we started our tour. Our first stop on our self-guided tour was the old fort, which is officially called the Castillo de San Marcos. The fort is surrounded by a large lawn with hills sloping away. In Florida, finding a hill is a BIG deal. We noted that several kids were entertaining themselves by rolling down the steepest grade.
 |
| Andrew and Susan, outside the fort |
Thanks to Veteran's Day, the fort was free to enter. Once inside, Andrew immediately began exploring all the nooks and crannies. He was especially interested in the workings of the drawbridge and main entry door. The main entry led to a small courtyard surrounded by various rooms. We explored the soldiers' living quarters and the prison before heading up the stairs to the upper wall. There must have been 50 cannons of various sizes along the walls, pointing out in a crossing arrangement that would surely make any advancing enemy think twice before approaching further.
 |
| Andrew inside the fort |
We continued our tour of the fort back down in the courtyard. We visited the store rooms, then a small room that was showing a video. The video described the process of shooting a cannon and a musket in great detail. When we got up to leave, we found a small group of “soldiers” standing in loose formation. We asked what was going on and they told us they were about to fire a cannon. Seeing the cannon fire immediately jumped to the top of my must-see list! I quickly maneuvered the family back outside and around to the river side of the fort. Andrew was feeling a bit timid - he doesn't like loud sounds - so I continued alone to a spot near the cannon that was about to be fired. From there, I shot this video on my Droid.
With nothing more to see at the fort, we turned our focus to the streets of the old town. I was starting to think about dessert. About that time, we came across a candy shop and the girl inside was making waffle cones. The scent was enough to draw anyone in off the street. Everything in the store looked delicious, but most items had nuts. We decided to get a small dish of mint chocolate chip ice cream.
We continued south through town and eventually reached Flagler College and the Lightner Museum. Everything was very beautiful, but Andrew was getting anxious to go to our next must-see location - the lighthouse. To get there we needed our car, so we walked north along the river toward the visitor center. As we approached the fort, we saw more kids rolling down the hill. With just a little input, we were able to persuade Andrew to join them.
The final must-see item was the lighthouse. The lighthouse turned out to be a great destination, for an unexpected reason. After checking Andrew's height - must be taller than 44 inches - we got our wristbands and started walking toward the lighthouse entrance. Along the way, we found trails entering the woods. Andrew and I spent the next ten minutes running up and down the small hills, through the hammock. Andrew just loves running in the woods.
And then it was time to take the challenge. The lighthouse has 219 steps. Of course, Andrew wanted to be the first to the top, and I wasn't all that concerned about coming in second. Along the way, there were little distractions to allow us older folk to take a little breather. We looked out over St. Augustine on one level, and the ocean on another. One had a bucket that the keeper would fill with oil and carry to the top. It contained some weights to simulate the actual weight. I wouldn't make it one flight carrying that thing!
 |
| The lighthouse entrance |
The trip up all those stairs was certainly worth it. The lighthouse is 162 feet tall (I believe). From the ledge, you can see 25 miles in all directions. The thing I found the most odd was that the lighthouse was not actually on the coast. The guide explained to us that the old lighthouse was on the coast, but was destroyed. The current lighthouse was built further back from the coastline, but still on the coastline. In the 1970's, the current sandbar developed, separating the lighthouse from the coast.
After about 20 minutes, we descended the 219 steps back to planet earth. I was glad to be back on solid ground. On the descent, I noted many cracks in the old seams between the bricks and was convinced the whole thing might come crashing down at any moment. The next stop was the keepers house. It was filled with maritime memorabilia and models of old sailing ships. Outside, we visited the kid's area and tried tying some of the knots that were on display. Andrew made one last trip through the trails, where we found a giant spider clinging to its web.
 |
| Giant spider in the woods |
With no more must-see items on the list, we started looking for a place to eat. We passed a barbecue place on the way in, so I had only one thing on my mind. We found another place closer and I ordered a barbecue pork sandwich, baked beans, and mac 'n cheese. The sandwich was pretty good, but the meat was not cooked in the sauce, so it was a little dry. Oh well, the search for fantastic barbecue continues.
Posts
1 comment:
Thank for our St. Augustine adventure and for writing about it!
Post a Comment