David Kelly Consulting

Tucked up into the northeast corner of Florida lies an island known for its historic charm, its pristine beaches, and its warm hospitality. As a part of the Sea Islands chain that runs from Florida to South Carolina on the Atlantic coast, its lush boggy landscape and white sandy seashore make it the perfect place to visit for outdoor fun.

Since outdoor fun is what we do, we headed north.

We contacted long-time islander Tarah Dunlop of Amelia Island Vacations to secure our accommodations and get her inside recommendations on what to do. Amelia Island Vacations and Dunlop Property Management oversee dozens of island homes, condominiums, and vacation rental properties, so we knew that Tarah would have just what we needed as a base for our island explorations. We had so many options – spacious or snug, beach front or tucked away, house or condo. It was impressive.

We opted to stay at “Casa Amelia.” Located in the world-renowned Amelia Island Omni Resort, Casa Amelia is an expansive new pool home tucked in between the ocean beaches and the Intracoastal Waterway and surrounded by incredibly lavish greenery. Our winding drive into the neighborhood took us past live oaks dripping with Spanish moss as we headed deeper into our cozy community.

It was so much easier working with a property management group rather than an individual VRBO house – their easy-to-reach staff was always only a phone call away, and they have an office located mid-island for convenience. The house itself came with everything we needed for up to eight people, including three roomy bedrooms with en suite baths, a huge full kitchen with expansive dining areas, and even an upstairs balcony patio. The outdoor living space had comfy couches in a large, covered seating area, an openair kitchen with gas grill, and a private lap pool.

It was the perfect spot for our stay.

Once we had settled in, it was out on the island to explore. First up – some local food and drink to get us started. We headed to Salt Life Food Shack at Main Beach Park, home to a volleyball court, the Putt-Putt Fun Center, and sandy beaches beyond.

As we headed to the open-air second-floor deck, we passed a wall that was home to the Rum Shack - specialty rums from throughout the Caribbean, all beckoning us to sample their exotic tastes. When we got to the top, we ordered up and sampled classics such as Papa’s Pilar Dark Rum and Kraken Black Spiced Rum while overlooking the sunny beach. We chowed on some fresh calamari and oysters on the half shell, then doubled down with their Beach Boil of shrimp, crab legs, sausage, and more served in their special seasoned boil.

The brand Salt Life itself was founded over 20 years ago when four guys from the Jacksonville area started a small logo business based on their love of the Florida outdoors – the “Salt Life”. It soon grew into an apparel company with dozens of stores around the country. The style became popular with fishermen, surfers, and divers.

After lunch, we strolled through downtown Fernandina Beach, the island’s largest city that some call “The Key West of North Florida.” Restaurants such as Brett’s Waterway Café sit on the shore of the Amelia River and overlook the shrimp fleet that works out of the area to this day. Scenic Centre Street is lined with cafes, boutiques, and quaint shops, all with a nod to that Old Florida feel. We had a drink at the Palace Saloon, which opened back in 1903 and is known as the oldest continuously operated drinking establishment in the state. It was even the first hard liquor bar to ever serve Coca-Cola.

We loved our afternoon of eating, drinking, and shopping in this picturesque town.

(Continue reading below photos).

The next morning, we headed out to Fort Clinch State Park. Part historic fort and part naturally scenic beach and park, this 1,400-acre swath of greenery at the northern end of the island is home to a vast network of hiking and biking trails lined by massive live oaks. Birds, rabbits, and even gopher tortoises abound, and with over three miles of ocean and river coastline, there are plenty of opportunities for swimming, surfing, fishing, and shelling. Two separate and unique campgrounds offer 69 individual campsites ranging from wooded seclusion to beachside paradise.

The far tip of the park is home to Fort Clinch. Construction on this historic brick structure began in 1847 as protection of the entrance to Cumberland Sound, but by the beginning of the Civil War, only about two-thirds of the project had been completed and its cannons had not yet been mounted on the gun platforms, so it was left empty. The fort was maintained by the U.S. Army until 1898, when it began its brief use as a barracks and ammunition depot. Because of the beauty of the site, it became one of Florida’s first state parks in 1935.

On the way back to Casa Amelia, we stopped by Egans Creek Greenway, a network of rural trails and bridges designed as an undeveloped park for passive recreation and conservation. Its 300 acres are teeming with a variety of natural vegetation and wildlife, with its north end near Fernandina Beach consisting of a saltmarsh ecosystem and its southern landscape dominated by secluded forest and freshwater ponds. It was great to experience such unspoiled lands so close to a city.

Later that evening, we dined at Lagniappe, a unique restaurant in the center of Amelia Island that is a favorite with the locals. Chef Owner Brian Grimley has infused his extensive knowledge of Southern food, service, and hospitality into luscious meals. Taking fresh local ingredients and flavors influenced by foodie cities such as New Orleans and Charleston, he and Executive Chef Brett Heritage incorporate the French concept of “lagniappe” – a little something extra – into each of their dishes.

You can taste that little something extra across the menu options. The chefs take the basics and kick them up a notch with true Southern flair. It starts with their wide-ranging drink menu, where traditional classics are enhanced with inventive twists, such as the Mac Nut Old Fashioned, where bourbon is spiced up with Trader Vic's macadamia nut liqueur. Our appetizer of pulled pork spring rolls with house slaw and smoked peach BBQ sauce was tangy and amazing. For our main courses, we chose the chefs’ evening specials of pork shank and pan-seared flounder, both of which were absolutely dazzling.

Lagniappe is that little something extra that you do not want to miss.

WE SAVED THE BEST FOR LAST

We saved the most exciting island experience for our last day – an afternoon at the beach with Alberto Vanegas, owner of Amelia Island Land Based Shark Charter. Alberto fishes at American Beach – a quiet sandy patch on the Atlantic Ocean about midway down the island that is a bit deeper than the rest of the region’s shoreline. His fishing charters are indeed land-based, with lines tossed in from the beach itself rather than from on a boat out in the ocean.

If you think that you cannot catch a big shark so close to the shore, you are mistaken. In Alberto’s 10-plus years of angling on the island, he has found that a typical trip lands one or more sharks, often between six and ten feet in length. He has landed bull sharks, tiger sharks, and even hammerhead sharks, but the most common are the blackfins. Generally five to seven feet in length, they are active, fast swimmers that offer a great sporting challenge.

How does it all work? We rode right down to the shoreline in Alberto’s truck, its bed customized with rod holders and an elevated platform to facilitate reeling in these huge beasts. From there, he outfitted his large drone with about eight pounds of bait, usually pieces of bonito or crevalle jack, then attached the Sputnik sinker, hook, and line and sent it out over the ocean. Once it reached the desired distance from shore, he released it, and it dropped to the bottom of the ocean. We did this several times, allowing us to get anywhere from three to five rods in the water at the same time while setting the bait at different distances from shore.

Alberto explained that we were using a variety of classes of reels from 80 to 130, all with 200 pound line. Each leader is a whopping 30 feet long with an additional 7 feet of braided cable and ending with a 24/0 circle hook – perfect for the big predators we were hunting. We put three rods in the water and secured them on the raised back platform of the truck bed, then stuck two additional rods in the sand to increase our odds.

Once the hooks were out and the lines were tight, we chatted with Alberto about his experiences in this unique sport. He related that he is proud to be a catch-and-release fisherman, often tagging his sharks through the NOAA’s Cooperative Shark Tagging Program, or CSTP, to help chart their future paths and habits. And despite what might seem to some like a macho sport, Alberto noted that most of the parties that charter with him are families with children, often cooking out on the beach with him at the end of the day.

While we were talking, one of the reels started clicking, just a bit at a time as a shark took the bait and eased away. Suddenly, the line began screaming off of the reel. Shark on! We watched hundreds of feet of line unspool as our target headed out to the open water, adding drag a little at a time to help wear him out.

Rod tip bent over, we fought our prey for an hour, reeling hard each time the line went slack. Having the rod set in its holder on the truck platform helped us conserve our energy, knowing that the monster that we had hooked probably weighed more than any of us.

Finally, we landed him – an 8-foot bull shark. Using his experience and a popular fisherman’s formula based on length and girth, Alberto estimated the shark’s weight at a whopping 250 pounds. We took a few quick photos, checked the shark out for general health, and released him back into the sea.

The adrenalin from the experience took hours to fade.

If you are looking for outdoor activities in beautiful North Florida, Amelia Island should be at the top of your list of places to visit.

ROUND UP

Amelia Island Vacations

904-321-8680

AmeliaIslandVacations.com

Salt Life Food Shack

SaltLifeFoodShack.com

Fort Clinch State Park

FloridaStateParks.org/FortClinch

Lagniappe

LagniappeAmelia.com