The Lighthouse Pier, St. Augustine’s Most Secluded Tourist Attraction

photography by: Omri Westmark

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Founded in 1565 by Spanish colonists, St. Augustine is the oldest city as well as the oldest uninterruptedly inhabited European settlement in the United States. As such, the city regularly attracts throngs of tourists all year round. Nevertheless, only a small percentage of the city’s annual visitors cross the iconic Bridge of Lions into Anastasia Island, of whom, merely a fraction finds the Lighthouse Pier, a recreational wooden jetty that provides a glimpse into St. Augustine’s lesser-known sides.

Located on the eastern side of Anastasia Island, one of two barrier islands off the coast of St. Augustine, the Lighthouse Pier is easily accessible by car and is abundant with plenty of free parking all around, including an adjacent parking lot. Alternatively, you can walk roughly 30 minutes from the Downtown area along the Anastasia Boulvard, and then turn left at Busam Street.

photography by: Omri Westmark


The pier is named after the nearby St Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum, an 1874’s black striped lighthouse that replaced the first beacon that ever operated in Florida.
Originally built as a watchtower by the Spanish, the structure survived for more than 100 years before succumbing to a beach erosion, then subsequently was rebuilt in a more inland location, where it stands today.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Founded in 1873, St. Augustine Yacht Club was formed by a group of yacht enthusiasts who sought to promote sailing and yacht racing as a major leisure activity in the region. Throughout the years, the club has migrated between several locations before settling down in its current location in 2007, in front of the Lighthouse Park.

 

The charming wooden building, endowed by the city of St. Augustine, serves as an administrative center and a meeting point for members who venture out to the many in-shore and off-shore yacht races along the city’s insanely convoluted coastline.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Anastasia Island is sandwiched between the Matanzas River in the west and the Salt Run in the east, the latter of which is the small inlet whose banks are home to dozens of jetties, boat ramps, the aforementioned yacht club and the Lighthouse Pier, a newly renovated wooden jetty that juts out into the Salt Run.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Protruding more than 100 feet into the Salt Run, the pier stands out as the only public jetty along the inlet coastline, and as such, it’s frequented by locals who look for a pleasant place to hang out and relax.

photography by: Omri Westmark


As you walk along the pier and look westwards, you’ll see the yacht club’s boat ramp from where every week yachtsmen embark on their way to races and sails, inundating the waters of Salt Run with tens of vessels that compete for brief moments of local fame.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Alongside the boats, yachtsmen and other visitors is a clamorous orchestra of sea birds, accompanying any stroll along the pier with chirps and squeals.

photography by: Omri Westmark


The view northwards reveal the countless private piers scattered along the island’s eastern coastline, as well as the Francis and Mary Usina Bridge, linking St. Augustine with Vilano Beach over the Tolomato River.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Several benches were installed along the jetty, making it a street-like structure where people not only stroll for a short period of time, but also socialize for hours.

photography by: Omri Westmark


As you look southwards, you’ll have a glance of unsurprisingly, more jetties, all of which can be seen on the backdrop of Anastasia State Park, a pristine piece of untouched nature, dominated by dunes and marshlands.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Besides its recreational role as a pleasant public space for local residents, the wooden platform also serves as a fishing pier, frequented by many fishermen, all of whom are licensed, as the Salt Run’s waters are rich with redfish, gator trout and flounders.

photography by: Omri Westmark


The pier features a small processing facility where fishermen often clean their catch of the day, while any discarded waste is immediately swarmed by a flock of hungry seagulls.

photography by: Omri Westmark


While the skyline of nearby Anastasia Island is primarily flat, as most of the island consists of low-rise residential area, the 49-meter-tall lighthouse conspicuously looms in the background, featuring as the protagonist of the pier’s breathtaking 360° vista.

photography by: Omri Westmark


As one can see, the wooden deck is structurally sound thanks to a series of concrete beams that support the pier, making it visibly light, free of any excessive elements that otherwise might result in an eyesore.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Surrounded almost completely by the Salt Run, the tip of the jetty has a graceful sitting corner that provides a spectacular glimpse of the inlet, brimming with yachts, a plethora of sea birds and sizable fish.

photography by: Omri Westmark


Unlike a couple of the far more famous jetties along the US east coast’s barrier islands, the St. Augustine Lighthouse Pier offers an authentic experience, unspoiled by mass tourism and commercialism, while also bestowed with sheer tranquility.

photography by: Omri Westmark