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Northeast Florida
Straddling the beautiful St John’s River, Jacksonville is located in the northeast corner of Florida on the Atlantic Ocean. The historic districts of St Augustine and Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island are situated nearby.
CLIMATE: The Northeast Region offers mild winters, a cool spring and fall, and it is generally warm during the summer months.
Jacksonville & Area
The Jacksonville Landing, on the north bank, is bustling with restaurants, nightclubs and shops, all housed under one giant orange-roofed facility. The Museum of Science and History and the nationally acclaimed Cummer Museum of Art and its gardens are situated in the city centre, just a few minutes away from the Jacksonville Museum of Contemporary Art.
The First Coast area is one of the few unspoiled areas of the Atlantic Coast. Nature trails and national parks line the seafront, providing opportunities for hiking, kayaking and camping. Just a few minutes northeast of the city is the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, an 18,500 (46,000-acre) wetland and historic community. The trails and waterways are filled with indigenous and endangered wildlife such as ospreys, herons, bald eagles, sea turtles, manatees and wood storks.
The Talbot Island State Park provides miles of pristine beaches, dunes, coastal hummocks and marshlands. Big Talbot Island boasts spectacular bluffs, 19km (11.5 miles) of untouched beaches, two plantation ruins, sand dunes, salt marshes, tidal creeks and a driftwood forest. South of Big Talbot is Little Talbot Island, an undeveloped barrier island. The entire 1000ha (2500-acre) island is a protected State Park and has white sand beaches and a popular campsite.
Fort George Island State Cultural Site contains the longest record of civilisation in Duval County. The huge oyster shell mounds found on the island are evidence of Timucuan Indian habitation dating back over 7000 years. Katherine Abbey Hanna Park is Jacksonville’s premier 180ha (450-acre) beachfront getaway and boasts sunny beaches, freshwater lakes and wooded campsites.
Established in 1914 with just one animal, a white-tailed fawn, the Jacksonville Zoological Gardens is today alive with more than 800 animals from around the world. At the Okavango Petting Zoo children can pet domestic African animals such as pygmy goats, dwarf zebu, miniature horses and Sardinian pygmy donkeys.
SPECIAL EVENTS: Apr Beaches Weekend Festival, Jacksonville; Riverfest, Jacksonville. May Spring Music Festival; Shrimp Festival, Jacksonville. Sep International Festival by the Sea, Jacksonville; Springfield Jazz and Heritage Festival. Oct Greater Jacksonville Agricultural Fair. Nov 23rd Annual Jacksonville Jazz Festival.
TRAVEL: Jacksonville International Airport (JIA) (website: www.jaxport.com) is 20 minutes from the town centre and is serviced by 15 major airlines. The Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA) provides a local bus service seven days a week with 50 routes. JTA also operates the Automated Skyway Express, a monorail system serving the city centre.
St Augustine & Area
The USA’s oldest city is a time capsule capturing nearly 500 years of fascinating history. Situated on the uppermost Atlantic Coast of Florida, the water’s-edge colonial village has 144 blocks of historic houses listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Castillo de San Marcos endures as the nation’s oldest and only remaining 17th-century masonry fort. Now a National Monument, the Spanish-built bastion guarded the mouth of Matanzas Bay from British invaders. The Spanish Quarter is a living history village where Spanish soldiers and settlers in traditional costume re-enact 18th-century crafts.
Other attractions include Anastasia State Recreation Area, a 1700-acre bird sanctuary; Fort Matanzas; the still operational Lighthouse Tower and Museum of St Augustine; and the USA’s first alligator exhibition farm, St Augustine Alligator Farm. Just past the beaches of Anastasia Island lies Marineland of Florida, the world’s first oceanarium. It features 1000 wonders of the deep, including 47-year-old Nelly, the world’s oldest known living dolphin.
SPECIAL EVENTS: Mar-Apr EPIC Celebration of Spring, St Augustine. Apr St Augustine Easter Parade, St Augustine. Jul 4 Fourth of July Fireworks, St Augustine. Nov-Jan 2003 Nights of Light, St Augustine.
Copyright © 2003 Columbus Publishing Ltd.
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