Is there one place on Amelia
Island where you can sample some of everything this barrier island has to offer? It would
have to have a beach, preferably scattered with shark teeth, fishing spots, hammocks,
marsh, wildlife viewing, perhaps accommodations and restaurants, and certainly history and
historical architecture. Only lacking a gourmet restaurant, there is a spot on the north
end of the island with all of the above and more - Forth Clinch State Park. It truly has
everything Amelia Island offers.
For beachcombers and swimmers there are over two miles of beach
to walk. It's proximity to the mouth of the channel dredged for King's Bay submarines
makes for great shark tooth hunting.
A view of the parade grounds and brick buildings
inside the walls of Fort Clinch.
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Also at the beach are a 2,400-foot pier (1,500
feet are over water) and jetties, accessing fishing in the Atlantic Ocean. Anglers also
try their luck from the shoreline along Cumber-land Sound and the Amelia River. From these
spots, fortunate fishermen may pull up speckled trout, striped bass, redfish, drum,
sheepshead, flounder, whiting or pompano. For the sportsman who prefers deep sea fishing,
a boat ramp on the Amelia River is available for launching at medium or high tide.
If water activities do not appeal to you, there are 1,400 acres
to explore by land. Bikers can enjoy tree-canopied paved roads winding through beach
hammocks and for more adventuresome peddlers, try six miles of off-road bike trails
through the hammocks along salt marsh and beachfront.
Hikers may use the bike trails, too, or explore the Willow Pond
Nature Trail, reserved just for those on foot. Saturday mornings at 10:30, guided tours of
the Willow Pond area are available. Tour guides bring your attention to many
ordinary-looking flora and fauna, easily missed by hiker and predator alike. It is
doubtful that you will be looking for food, but guides Carl and Judy Watson can show you
things you never thought were groceries. For instance, the sabal palm produces "swamp
cabbage," or the hearts of palm that grow at the center of the tree. (Hearts of palm
are available canned, in the grocery store.) Mr. Watson even has a recipe for acorns. For
the strong of stomach there is the drink made from the yaupon holly, "casina,"
once enjoyed by the Timucuan Indians. The Seminoles also made a drink from the same plant
that they called "black drink," which they imbibed before battle.
Guides have a practiced eye for finding predators and prey alike.
They point out alligators, camouflaged in duck-weed thickened ponds or overhanging brush.
Yes, there are alligators in the trees! Keen observation reveals skinks, birds, squirrels
and insects going about their daily routine.
Many animals are there that you wonąt see, but guides can find
evidence of their activity. Hungry armadillos leave snout-hollowed holes where they
foraged for last night's supper. Alligators drag their tails as they amble through mud and
deer tracks lead into woods, thick with camouflage. One itchy deer had scraped his antlers
on a cedar tree along the trail. Mr. Watson estimates there are about 50 deer on the park
property.
Along the Willow Pond Nature Trail, a lizard sunbathes on a palmetto frond.
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A juvenile alligator basks on tree limbs overhanging the water.
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Looking for accommodations? Fort
Clinch State Park offers campsites in two areas, beachside or riverside. Sixty-two camp
sites have water and electricity and primitive camping is available at the Youth Camp for
youth groups. Camping areas are also equipped with restrooms, hot/cold showers, laundry
facilities, and telephones for the necessary chores of civilization.
Civilization and history are actually the main attraction at Fort
Clinch State Park. The park is named for the fortress made of almost five million bricks
that guards the entrance to Cumberland Sound. Here you can satisfy your taste for history
and historical architecture.
Fort Clinch, named for General Duncan Lamont Clinch, an important
figure in Florida's Seminole War of the 1830's who also fought in the War of 1812, is one
in a system of permanent coastal fortifications once planned by the federal government.
Construction of Forth Clinch began in 1847 and has never really
been finished. Confederate forces occupied the fort briefly during the Civil War until the
largest amphibious landing at that time by the United States military overtook the fort
for the Union. Far from major battles of the war, soldiers' duties included fort
construction. Garrisoned for only a few more years, the fort became obsolete, not able to
withstand destruction by new weapons. It was placed on caretaker status in 1869. In spite
of its obsolescence, Fort Clinch was called to duty again during the Spanish-American War
(1898) and was used during World War II as a communications and security post. In 1936 the
state of Florida acquired the land for use as a state park.
Re-enactments at Fort Clinch feature park rangers and
volunteers dressed in period clothing.
(Photo courtesy of Fort Clinch State Park)
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When you visit the fort, you may feel
you're back in the 19th century. That's because fort rangers characterize 1864 union
soldiers. You can observe them maintaining the fort, cooking meals and performing sentry
duty. The first weekend of each month volunteers join park rangers for more duties,
including working in the blacksmith's shop and firing cannon. Full-garrison re-enactments
are featured in May (Union re-enactors) and October (Confederate re-enactors). Regardless
of who is present, exploring the brick corridors, walls and out buildings thrills the
senses with uncommon architecture.
Special programs honoring the United States military occur on
Memorial Day Weekend and Veteran's Day. Starting in May, candlelight tours are available
on Friday and Saturday nights. Reservations must be made at the ranger station.
Whether you are a naturalist, an historian or someone in between,
Fort Clinch State Park can satisfy your tastes.
The park is open daily from 8:00 am to sunset. Admission
is $3.25 per carload (up to 8 persons) and $2 per person to enter the fort. An annual pass
good for admission to all Florida state parks is available for $32.10 (individual) and
$64.20 (family pass). Pets are allowed in designated areas. It is recommended that campers
make reservations. For more information contact Fort Clinch State Park, 2601 Atlantic
Avenue, Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034. (904) 277-7274.
