St Augustine Trip Report and pix

Richie89

Richie89

Active Member
Aug 20, 2012
599
Miami Beach, FL
Boat Info
450 Sundancer
Engines
Twin Cummins 480 Zeus
Wife and I had a perfect trip from St Simons Island, GA down to St. Augustine FL. We left out on an unusually calm morning.
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We decided to head out the St Simons Sound and travel offshore to the St John's inlet and then travel in the ICW to St Augustine. The seas were super calm with 1-2 waves and 5 know winds.
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It took us about 2.5 hours to get to the St John's inlet. From there we travelled inside. Jax down is really easy in the ICW with very few low wake zones and great scenery.
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Richie, thanks for posting the story and pics. Now that you've owned your Venture for a bit, how does it compare to your 290 in terms of handling, low speed maneuvering, quiet at planning speeds, etc.

Looking forward to the rest of the story and your comparisons of the boats. Oh, and more photos.
 
Great photos.

Question: How did you secure your bikes to the swim platform and did they cause any problems?
 
Gofirstclass, comparison - the Venture runs offshore like a sport fish. On our last trip in our 290, we are below Miami in rough water. A 40ish foot sport fish boat came cursing by us like he was in a lake while we were suffering. It was then I knew I had the wrong boat. This boat handles rough seas awesome. for us, it is there perfect compromise. It is very comfortable for 2, but runs around like a much smaller boat. I love the outboards! Now that I know how this boat reacts and have gotten used to it, docking and slow speed maneuverability is very good. Not like Bravo III's, but very stable. The dock hand at St Augustine Municipal Marina mentioned to me how graceful and easy I was able to bring it in, and that marina has some tricky currents. When using the twin screws for docking, idle is nothing and that was a big adjustment. Once i got over the need to use RPM's when docking, it is very controllable. As far as quiet, it's almost too quiet. with those pockets the engines are in, i have to use the gauges to make sure it's running. once, i accidentally forgot to turn it off at a fuel dock. my cruising speed offshore is 30mph. for a cruiser, i think that's really good.
 
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WDC, I mounted 'gutter mount' mounts on the swim platform that are usually used to mount bike racks on a truck bed shell, then secured a roof rack with bicycle mounts on those. it works great, even bouncing offshore.
 
Did you go to the Alligator Farm? Just a couple mile bike ride across the Bridge of Lions. I recognize that slip. Its the exact same one they put me in on my trip there.
 
One of our favorite restaurants was a place called Beaches on Vilano Beach where you could eat on the sand. It was a bike ride across the bridge from the marina
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On the way home, we again had great conditions. 3 plus swells from St Aug to Jax, but even those were spaced far apart. from Jax north, 1-2 foot. And because the Venture is so awesome, we blasted the whole way from St. Augustine to St Simons in just 3.5 hours! Then just as we were coming in the channel for home, the Coast Guard decided I was making too good of time, and decided to board. about a half hour later, I got my gold copy :)
We had a great short trip and upon learning we can jet down there in just 3-4 hours means we will be running down there regularly. It's kinda a quirky little town down there that in places has an almost Key West feel. Wife loved it. Boat handled everything great.
 
Richie and Crew - thanks for the pics and the trip. I really enjoyed it. I have a good friend who moved to St. Augustine last Feb. I may go see him by boat after reading this thread and seeing the marina. Thanks again. Nice boat.
 
Roger that Captain Rusty! Would love to meet you one of these days!
And 270, you should definitely make the trip. I bought my current boat in Shadyside, Maryland, so I've made the entire trip from the Chesapeake Bay south. Much respect to you northern boaters, but I do not plan to venture back up above SC :)
 
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