Florida - Day 30 - back down to Tomoka State Park

Tomoka State Park, Ormond Beach

Wednesday, 15 February 2023

today's route

On the way to the campground yesterday, I'd noticed what looked like a public park on the beach, so today I made that our first stop.  It was a public park and it was right on the beach.  Several people were sitting in the sun on benches at the beach's edge, reading or watching the surf.  Seems like a nice way to start a day.  

I didn't see any signs saying no dogs, so Dext and I walked a little on the beach.  I'd hoped it would perk him up, because he and Gracie used to go crazy with delight when they got on a beach.  But either he's lost that with age or he needs someone like Gracie to share it with, because today he enjoyed it but was very sedate about it.  

I drove back through Fernandina Beach, passing the St. Peters Episcopal Church that looked like a castle.  Really.  It had a historical marker, and if you want to check this link, you can see a couple of photos of the church.   https://www.hmdb.org/st-peters-church

I was sorry I couldn't spend more time in this area.  I understand there are some good museums in the town, which has had what you might call a colorful past.  Pirates - real ones - were frequent visitors here because the port is accessible even at low tide, and even by deep-keeled vessels.  Among them were Jean LaFitte, Blackbeard and Captain Kidd.  Apparently that's a fact.

Amelia Island itself is known for, among other things, being a prime place to watch birds.  It's on the Eastern Migratory Flyway and offers a variety of habitats to attract birds.  It's the most southerly of the Sea Islands chain that runs from South Carolina down to here.  It just sounds like there's a lot to see around here, and it's a place I'd like to come back to sometime.

I crossed back over the Amelia River and worked my way around the outskirts of Jacksonville to get to its beaches.  I was heading to Neptune Beach (both a beach and a town) because I think that's where Anna picked up some amazing sea shells at Christmas, and I drove in the area by the sea.  There were plenty of places for beach access, but these roads were narrow and in a residential neighborhood (albeit one right by the beach), so I couldn't find anywhere to park.

I did stop in Jacksonville Beach, the town immediately next door, because I needed groceries, plus it was lunchtime when we got there.  Driving around the area, I saw a store with a sign that said, "My stomach is flat.  The 'L' is just silent."

Eventually, I got on I-95 heading south and intentionally revved the engine up as I was accelerating to highway speed.  I thought that might make the check-engine light go away - and, it did.

And after a while, I got back on the Old Dixie Highway, which I remembered as being very bumpy from the last time I was over here.  Either it helped to be mentally prepared for that, or it wasn't as bad as I'd thought, because it didn't seem as bad today.

Remember the "Ride Quietly Please!" signs?

We went back in the campground we'd stayed at a month ago.  This time I didn't have my choice of campsites, even on a Wednesday, and ended up with one of the only ones not already reserved.  The ground in that site was packed with tree roots, making it almost impossible to find a level area.  Because we planned to be here for 2 nights, I tried hard to find the most comfortable location I could but was only partially successful.

Anna reminded me that today is the 5th anniversary of starting this trip.  In some ways it feels like it's been longer than that, and in other ways it feels like it hasn't been nearly long enough because I've missed so many sights I wanted to see on the way.  And there'll be more to come, I'm sure.