St Johns River, Fl?

Dec 27, 2012
587
Precision Precision 28 St Augustine
We put our house up for sale in NJ and it practically sold overnight. Our plan is to temporarily move into our sons house in St Mary GA. once there we will start looking for a house in NE Florida, possibly St Augustine. I’m having the boat shipped on 11/3. It’s going to a marina in Green Spring Cove Fl On the St John River. This will be temporary. Once I get established the boat will probably be moved to another location. I am not familiar with the area. The marina was chosen because it’s inexpensive and the delivery person recommended it.

Doing a brief internet search it seems that many people sail the river. Im hoping to hear some responses regarding sailing the river, tide flow rate, bridge clearance, etc.
 

SFS

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Aug 18, 2015
2,065
Currently Boatless Okinawa
I'm working from memory here. There is a LOT of current in the river between Jacksonville and the ocean, but Green Cove Springs is way upriver from the city of Jacksonville (so it's even further from the ocean, if that matters to you). Not too far north of GCS the river gets very wide, and I suspect that is where most people sail. For the same absolute amount of water moving, a wide river has less current than a narrow one, so in this wide area the current is less pronounced. The current is quite impressive in downtown Jacksonville, where the river is very narrow, making it an interesting area in which to operate.

Make sure you can get from GCS to wide part of the river (the northern bound of which is approximately abeam the naval air station) without any fixed bridges terminating your progress northward. I suggest looking at a chart. OpenCPN is free to download on your computer, and the charts are free from NOAA. It is a fabulous resource for planning, as well as navigation.
 
Dec 27, 2012
587
Precision Precision 28 St Augustine
Thanks for the quick response. This entire situation came upon me fast so I ended up responding prior to doing my homework.
 
Jan 1, 2006
7,039
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
I had kinda the same thing happen a year and a half ago. It's been a bit of a ride but I'm glad I made the change and glad I did it while I'm still young enough. Good luck!
Sorry but I don't know anything about the St. John's River.
 
Apr 22, 2011
865
Hunter 27 Pecan Grove, Oriental, NC
I have hauled out at Green Cove Springs a couple of times and made one trip up the St. Johns all the way to Sanford. What stops most sailboats from this journey is the 45' bridge just south of GCS. As a previous poster stated, the river is wide between GCS and Jacksonville allowing great sailing. South of GCS you might as well put the sail cover on (although you could do some sailing when getting to Lake George). You are in power boat territory here. There are lots of marinas, interesting towns to explore, and great anchorages. Hontoon Island state park has docks and trails and is a must stop. We really enjoyed the cruise.
 

jfgy

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Jun 8, 2004
32
Sabre 30 mk III Gainesville, FL
I have hauled out at Green Cove Springs a couple of times and made one trip up the St. Johns all the way to Sanford. What stops most sailboats from this journey is the 45' bridge just south of GCS. As a previous poster stated, the river is wide between GCS and Jacksonville allowing great sailing. South of GCS you might as well put the sail cover on (although you could do some sailing when getting to Lake George). You are in power boat territory here. There are lots of marinas, interesting towns to explore, and great anchorages. Hontoon Island state park has docks and trails and is a must stop. We really enjoyed the cruise.
 
Dec 27, 2012
587
Precision Precision 28 St Augustine
Im anxiously waiting for my first sail on the St Johns. We moved to St Augustine 2 weeks back. My boat was just picked up in NJ today for transport. Should be here Thursday morning.
 
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Oct 22, 2014
20,989
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Good luck with sailing your new waters. Visited the area about 5 years ago. Had a wonderful time. Looking forward to hearing about your adventures.
Fair winds.