St. Augustine to Flagler Beach – Down the Intercoastal Waterway

Another great day that began with a nice breakfast at the Penny Farthing and shortly afterward we were on our way.  Rob had perfectly planned and executed our route out of town which was a bit complicated. First was getting to and over the Bridge of Lions, then through neighborhood streets before joining A1A, then through other neighborhood streets, crossing over A1A Beach Blvd, then a quick stop at the bike shop for good air, then a couple of neighborhood bike paths, then joining A1A Beach Blvd, following it until it merged with A1A (Scenic and Historic Coastal Byway), which we rode all the way to Marineland. We had a pretty good shoulder and traffic was manageable.  When we got to Marineland we took a lunch break, such as it was – leftovers from our pack.  Then we hopped on the Marineland-Flagler Beach Bike Trail, which parallels A1A the whole way.  At Flagler Beach, the Trail ends, and we rode a couple more miles on A1A to our hotel, with a great ocean view.

A bit of history: 

The Bridge of Lions is a historically significant double-leaf bascule bridge (a movable bridge using a counterweight to balance a span through its upward swing to let boats move underneath, i.e. a drawbridge) that spans the Intracoastal Waterway.  It so happened that as we started up the bridge, the gates came down to halt traffic, and the spans came up to let a boat pass.  Of course, that meant pedestrian traffic backed up on both sides of the spans, preventing us from zooming down the other side.  Oh well, such is life.

The Intercoastal Waterway is a 3000-mile inland waterway along the U.S.’s Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts, from Boston to Key West, then back up Florida’s Gulf side and around to Brownsville, Tx.  Some sections of the Intracoastal Waterway comprise natural inlets, saltwater rivers, bays and sounds, while others are artificial canals.  There is a rich history to the development, growth and upkeep of the waterway.

As we biked down to Flagler Beach we were between the Intercoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean.  It was so good to smell the ocean and recall the other two times we biked to the Atlantic (in 2003, from  Westport, WA to Provincetown, MA; and in 2011, from Cape Flattery, WA to Key West, FL).  This time, of course, was a much shorter journey, but we did bike coast to coast (St. Petersburg on the Gulf to Flagler Beach on the Atlantic).

We arrived in good time at our hotel.  Rob did the laundry while Diane prepped for tomorrow’s ride, and a rain storm passed through.  Then we had a great dinner at the Island Grill (Ahi for Diane and Chicken Gorgonzola over penne pasta for Rob, and a shared GF Chocolate Lava Cake topped with whipped cream for us both.  Great meal!

Tomorrow we bike further south, and a bit inland to avoid Daytona Beach traffic, to New Smyrna Beach.  Promises to be 41 miles of good weather. 

Happy sails to you!

Diane & Rob

For your photographer, today was about traveling quickly from A to B -- so not many photos. Rob

Running south on A1A, across one of the inlet bridges. One of the few times we actually saw the ocean. 

On rare occasion the Trail/bike path left the side of the highway for a stretch of hammock or swampy land. See above and below. 

But for the most part, the bike trail was really a long straight wide sidewalk along A1A.

With a few patches of wildflowers. 

But tomorrow promises to be a more interesting ride.