For those who don’t actually live in the Jacksonville area, yet, you probably don’t know this but Ponte Vedra is really considered part of the Jacksonville, Florida area. Even though, technically, it is located in St. Johns County instead of Duval County, many of our residents think of this area as the ritzy side of the Jacksonville Beaches Area. Yes, that is where the Tournament of Players Golf thing is held every year in May at the Sawgrass Country Club Resort. There are lots of homes, condos and some apartments in the area that are quite expensive. The area has only grown this big in the last 15 years. Prior to that it was a very small outback area with only a few houses and a store or two.
I remember the two lane road leading to the area that is part of Hwy 210 with a few ranches and lots of woods and swampy areas. The fishing was good along the Intercoastal and the mosquitoes were so big they would carry a small child away. One of my favorite places was the “Crossroads” area where A1A and Mickler Road met. You could go onto the beach and enough a day swimming, fishing and surfing without the crowd. Palm Valley Road was great to cruise down and look at the different kinds of houses that were nestled in the woods. The best part was the little store/diner over the low metal draw bridge that crossed the intercoastal and onto Palm Valley Road. Now there is a huge overpass and the road is called Nocatee. Boats would pull up to the little store for gas, ice and drinks. The restaurant served some great food and most of it came from the local fishermen.
We visited this area this month to find that the little restaurant is still there, you can put your boat in, or sit on the bank and fish. Be careful though because the current under the bridge is quite swift. The overpass does provide some much needed shade. It was too early to check out the restaurant and I didn’t see a sign saying that the store part was even still there. Anyone who lives in the area and would like to clue our readers in feel free to comment here (after you subscribe) or put a post in the guestbook area.
Below are some of the pictures we took. Hope you enjoy them1
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