Tucked
away on St. Augustine's North Shore peninsula is a
hidden treasure known to the locals as Vilano Beach.
It's Florida the way it used to be -- peaceful, charming
and graceful. Located just 2 miles northeast of our nation's
oldest city, Vilano Beach is like an island, a quiet retreat,
by the waters of the Atlantic and the Intracoastal.
Guana
River State Park - This 2,400-acre state park has
5 miles of beach and borders a 9,600-acre state wildlife
management area. Pick up a park brochure from the self-service
box at the entrance gate, then follow the hard-packed,
sandy road about half a mile through low palmettos to
the small dam and unpaved parking area. Here you'll see
a sweeping view of the Guana River tidal marsh and adjoining
Guana Lake. Check on the information board at the dam
for maps of backcountry roads and ranger-led events.
The best times to view wildlife are early morning or late
afternoon. The osprey is one of about 185 bird species
found in this area, along with migrating birds. Falcons
and hawks can be spotted in fall and winter, and sometimes
the rare peregrine falcon as well. At the dam look for
brown pelicans paddling on the water and squatting on
the shore. Oyster beds, which look like grayish-black
clumps in the muck on the south side of the dam, are exposed
at low tide. Look in the marsh here for large wading birds,
such as great blue heron and great white heron.
If
you're up for it, you'll be able to take advantage of
some hiking where you'll spot white-tailed deer,
gopher tortoises, raccoons, and elusive bobcats. The lake
and inland trails are popular during hunting seasons.
The region's fish, shellfish, sea turtles, and abundant
mammals were hunted by the aboriginal Timucua Indians,
who piled up mounds of shells and other remains. Some
of these mounds can still be seen in the park.such. Some
of the trails available along this route are:
- 10-mile Hammock Road is
a narrow service trail
- 1-mile Shell Bluff Road
to the Tolomato River (which forms the
western
edge of the park)
- 3-mile Timucua Trail
- 2.8-mile South Peninsula
Loop.
There
are several public beaches along A1A, where you can stop
and visit the ocean. Two of which you will pass will be
South and North Beach. Parking for South Beach will be
on the left. The beach is across the highway. This beach
is often crowded, so you may choose to continue north
on A1A another 1.2 miles to North Beach, where parking
is also on the left. Neither beach has a fresh water source,
and the restrooms are port-a-johns. Whichever beach you
choose, you'll find 30- to 40-foot sand dunes punctuating
the landscape, supporting such plant life as prickly pear
cactus, cabbage palm, palmetto, sea oats, and beach wildflowers
such as fire wheel and Indian blanket. Climb the wooden
observation decks at each beach for a bird's-eye view
of both the Atlantic Ocean and Guana Lake. The decks are
also a good place to look for birds and migrating right
whales, which calve near the shore during the winter months.
Taking the boardwalk down to the beach, you can walk along
the high-tide line to examine seaweed, driftwood, starfish,
sea slugs, and shells tossed up by ocean waves. (Today
most beachcombers take only the shell skeletons, leaving
the live ones to reproduce.) If you are interested in
visiting a golf resort, you can continue from the park
beaches north about 2 miles to Ponte Vedra Beach. Otherwise,
trace your path back to the start of this drive for a
side trip to St. Augustine.
