Beaches in St. Augustine, FL?

[mts]

My family is trying to schedule our Summer vacation (Mid-July). One of the proposed spots is St. Augustine, FL. Does anyone have any info on metal detecting as well as the general quality of the beaches there? Is it a decent place for a family to visit? Detecting will not be my primary reason for going and I'll probably only have time to get out once or twice regardless of where we go. I've read some good things so far about St. Augustine in general.

thanks!

 

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[Southernstyle]

I am originally from the Gainesville area and St. Augustine is my all time FAVORITE place to be. You may not find much metal detecting as all those beaches have been replenished in the past few years and there are a lot of MD'ers around there, but you will LOVE that area. If you can, go towards Flagler, Crescent and Daytona as they are not far away and are good places to be. A lot of local spring breakers hang there, just as I did back in the day. If you do some research you will see that back in the 1920's the peir in Flagler used to be around the 20th block, North of where the pier is now. It used to be a very popular site and old timers will tell you that old bottles still show up out of the sand around that area. There is also a bar/restaurant/hotel south of Flagler, but still in Flagler called the Topaz or Blue Topaz can't remember but they have a lot of artifacts found on the beach ib there restaurant found and donated by locals. It's a cool place to check. A little expensive but worth going in there for a drink and looking around.

As much as I love metal detecting, I love St. Augustine more. I hope you guys have a great time and check the Oysters at Scarlet O'haras in the main square.....TO DIE FOR.

Just a great place with many friendly people, I could walk around that place All Day Every Day.......Believe It Or Not!

Chris
Cayman Islands

 

[stevemc]

The old part of St Aug is the tourist area. It is nice, and there are some historic places too. The old fort is neat, and there are some other things. The light house is fun to go up in and look around. Some of the beaches South of town, you can drive on. I dont think the beaches are that nice, some may be, but I havent seen them. And as for detecting, they are really sanded in, and maybe some are not, but I dont know. I would find the busiest beach if looking for modern jewelry, or if looking for older stuff, which I know is very scarce, maybe near the inlets. Maybe on the north side of the inlets. Problems may be parking for that.

 

[Southernstyle]

Stevemc reminded me of something...DO NOT park towards oncoming traffic if you park on side of the road. I have seen so many people getting tickets because they are parked on the side of the road FACING traffic. That is A definite ticket around those areas. Trust me, the cops wait for that stuff.

Chris

 

[Diver_Down]

I would definitely recommend St. Augustine for your family vacation. Very educational for the family with lots to do. The beaches are great for a family. Parking/Driving on the beach. Very clean and lots of beach. That is the problem for detectorists. There is over 16 miles of drive-able beach with over 41 miles of beach in St. Johns county. The crowds aren't concentrated but are spread out. In addition, Anastasia Island (St. Augustine Beach and south) is a very wide beach (the wet lane can range from 50 yards wide to 100 yards). From the towel line to the outer sand bar can be a very large area to find the goods. You can improve your luck by choosing certain entrance/exit points as the crowds will gather at these points. Crescent Beach ramp, Ocean Trace, A-Street all are very good. Avoid detecting the towel line to the North of Mary St. ramp. Crowds don't go there but this past winter/spring there was a right whale necropsy performed on the beach. The remains were interred on the beach at the high-tide line. They did dig down deep, but I wouldn't want to uncover some of the remains only because some clad rang out. Also, don't ignore Villano beach for detecting. It is a very narrow beach with a large crowd. You can park on the beach there, but be warned that it is a different sand than the replenished hard-pack on Anastasia Island. It is like quick sand. Great for detectorists as drops are eaten by the sand, but bad for driving.

 

[Tigger]

They gave you the metal detecting perspective, let me give you a Mom view.
You didn't say the age of your kids. As a mom, I hated the drive-on beaches - too dangerous for the little ones. If you do use them, set up on the beach side of the driving area, even if its wet. From a family perspective, we like Ponte Vedra, up A1A from St Aug, almost to Jax (Jacksonville). Has bathrooms, shells, possibility for small shark teeth.
St. Augustine is a good base for exploring that stretch of coast. There's a visitor center basically across from the fort. The fort (Castillo de San Marcus) is AWESOME for history lovers (time your visit to include a cannon firing), St. George Street is good for souvenirs, and if you are into history, do the Colonial Spanish Quarter with re-enactors and demos. The Lighthouse (and maybe the old jail?) is supposed to be haunted - check the Ghost Hunters web page and see if they have a link.
We just had spring break here and all the high schoolers went to Crescent Beach, as usual.
Have fun!
Tigger

 

[Diver_Down]

Since Tigger mentioned it (paranormal/hauntings), there are plenty of tours catering to such experiences. Many have been documented. Scariest (bad things have happened) section of town is Potter's Wax Museum and Aviles street. The original Spanish Military Hospital was in the area, and consequently a lot of soldiers/townspeople died in the area. Potter's seems to be a favorite for some wayward souls.

Don't be afraid of the driving as Tigger mentioned. The Beaches have clearly marked which side is for vehicles and which side is for pedestrians. There is also a speed limit of 10 mph that is strictly enforced. Look both ways and the kiddies will be fine.

 

[Daedalus]

I lived on Ormond Beach just up the road from Daytona and I loved it. Even as they have worked the beaches it was still a good place to detect , I have not been there for two years but in less something has changed you could detect . The only time when you would have issues was when the turtles were coming on the beach to lay there eggs . Or when they where hatching and making the run for the water.
And all the times I saw this it was at night .

I went to St. Augustine quite a lot , but it was so crowded and so many people around that I did not like it much as it was just to hard to do anything and to find a place to park. That was my main complaint for that area .

But other than that it was a very nice place to go.

 

[mts]

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the feedback. I think that we are sold on going to St. Augustine for vacation this year. I also appreciate all of the tips about beaches, parking, driving, and detecting.

Thanks again!

 

[Patrol]

Detecting in the City Of St. Augustine is not allowed. Very historical. The beaches are ok. There is a new pirates museum right across the street from the Fort. (Castille de St. Marcos) Both the fort and the pirates museum are very interesting and educational for both kids and adults - a must see. Also, there is a National Monument Park at Matanzas Inlet (not far south of St. Augustine on Hwy A1A) that provides free boat rides out to Fort Matanzas. (a small Spanish fort) The tour takes about an hour total and is very interesting. The ranger gives a historical account and on some weekends they have live fire displays with reenactors.

Good Vacation
Tom

 

[mts]

Detecting in the City Of St. Augustine is not allowed. Very historical. The beaches are ok. There is a new pirates museum right across the street from the Fort. (Castille de St. Marcos) Both the fort and the pirates museum are very interesting and educational for both kids and adults - a must see. Also, there is a National Monument Park at Matanzas Inlet (not far south of St. Augustine on Hwy A1A) that provides free boat rides out to Fort Matanzas. (a small Spanish fort) The tour takes about an hour total and is very interesting. The ranger gives a historical account and on some weekends they have live fire displays with reenactors.

Good Vacation
Tom

Thanks for the info Tom. Actually, it was the new pirate museum that led me to investigating St. Augustine. This museum used to be in Key West but was recently moved. We had originally thought about going to Key West instead but started to consider St. Augustine when we found out that the pirate museum had been relocated. Also, thanks for the tip about the free boat ride. That sounds like a lot of fun. We definitely intend to check out many of the local forts.

Thanks again to all that have responded!

 

[LM]

You've got good advice in here.
I'm a St. Aug Native currently 'on hiatus' in Chicago.
Know the town like the back of my hand. When I was in high school, used to MD in all the historic places that today would probably get you arrested, save for the fort grounds. Always knew better than to try that caper, but I was tempted and had it all planned it out in my mind

Even got to MD the Lighthouse grounds around the Keepers House, when a relative worked there. Now, trying that would probably result in the SWAT team getting called out.

Beach detecting St. Aug is like beach detecting most anywhere else. You're gunning for the same 'lost' stuff. Ever since the renourishment, the 'old stuff' is buried too deep. You have to walk damn near 3 miles north down the island, through the state park to the inlet to get where there's still virgin, non-renourished beach. I hit that area this Christmas- random clad from the 70's-early 90's and junk. A couple encrusted objects I didn't bother to clean, but I only worked the dry.

Going out after big storms can be productive in terms of interesting artifacts. There *are* wrecks out there. As a kid, we used to play on St. Aug Beach and gather up handfuls of dime-sized fragments of white and blue shipwreck pottery (English, I think?), then just leave it there because no one cared about it at that time. Here's an ancient wooden shipwreck timber with iron spikes my mom found after a storm.

As far as the touristy stuff, can't give much good advice on that since after ya live around it for so long, it ceases being relevant- but the Fort is a must, a walk to the top of the lighthouse is underrated and the Alligator Farm is cool. Anastasia State Park is nice if you like nature'y stuff (Used to ride my bike in there and MD the intercoastal beaches all the time with my ancient Whites Coinmaster hastily semi-waterproofed with rubber cement, electrical tape and a coating of black spraypaint . Again, didn't know I wasn't supposed to, but no one cared. Things are way different today... and sadly, it isn't like I'm "old")

Man, do I ever miss home.

 

[mts]

Thanks LSMorgan. It would be a real treat to find some shipwreck artifacts but I'm not going to hold my breath. That ship timber is fantastic.

 

[LM]

On finding shipwreck stuff: Don't hold your breath, but don't convince yourself it won't be there to the point of overlooking it.

When mom got that great old Shipwreck timber (with spikes still embedded) some years back, she had gone out for a walk on the beach after a storm. There was a pretty sizable crowd of old ladies out shell hunting, yet it was lying right on the surface and people were actually stepping over it. When she picked it up (recognizing what it was), one of the old ladies complimented her on the 'nice piece of driftwood'.

The pottery chards will most likely be found on the surface amongst the little shells that make up the visible the tide like. You'll see it when you get out there. A lot of people don't even know to look for that, so keep an eye out. I sure wish I had saved all the ones I used to find and kept them in a jar, or something.

 

[RustyRelicHunter]

I have always done well hunting the beach on Anastasia Island around the Park; there is no driving on the beach there. Also, if you like garlic you should try the 1905 salad at the Columbia Restaurant in the middle of Old St. Augustine.

 

[audigger73]

Rustyrelichunter is right don't miss the Columbia. I too love St. Augustine you will have fun. Detected Anastasia once Found about 12 mercs in a cut but have never done that well again HH.