Seems like history is repeating itself. Development is all around us, both in Tennessee and Florida. A few days ago, I posted a video of our favorite gunkholing spot on Lake Nickajack (TN River MM 426.9), and told our boater friends that they may not recognize this place if and when they come back! Here's the original post, with the new video below.
Original post
Several days ago I wrote the article The best day trips outside of Jacksonville, Florida. It brought back memories of the time (June 2003 - April 2004) we spent at the Ortega River Boat Yard (now Port 32 Marina, Jacksonville.) 2004 was the year Jacksonville was put on the map. It hosted the Superbowl in January; do you remember what teams were playing? I do not. What I do remember was Janet Jackson's fiasco with her wardrobe when she performed with Justin Timberlake at the half-time show. While we were not crazy about Jacksonville city proper, we love the charming neighborhoods around the marina. Ortega River Boat Yard was one of the best marinas we've stayed. We met so many interesting people from all walks of life during our ten months living aboard there.
At the intersection of the St Johns and Ortega River, the marina is a hurricane hole and a favorite for many cruisers. Some had sailed around the world while others came from faraway places like the UK and Israel. There was a big liveaboard community. The boatyard, located on the edge of charming Avondale, is in a great location - near other boatyards including the prestigious boat builder Huckins, and thus very easy to get marine parts or get work done on the boat. It is also an easy walk to Roosevelt Square which has almost all your needs (our favorite supermarket Publix, Panera Bread, Belk department store, to name several).
After the tech bubble burst in 2000 and the Sept 11 terrorist attack in 2001, the only thing that kept going up was real estate prices. Nowhere was this more evident than the waterfront properties, and developers took notice. When they bought the Ortega River Boat Yard and marina, we boaters found ourselves on the verge of being kicked out. We and our land neighbors against new developments rallied and participated in town hall meetings to get our voices heard. We left Jacksonville in April 2004. The last we heard was that the developers won. They drove all the boaters away and built upscale highrise condominiums with private docks. Another marina bit the dust.
Below is the video of our good old times at Ortega River Boat Yard (Potluck on the docks and the Jacksonville Sea and Sky Spectacular in 2003)
After the tech bubble burst in 2000 and the Sept 11 terrorist attack in 2001, the only thing that kept going up was real estate prices. Nowhere was this more evident than the waterfront properties, and developers took notice. When they bought the Ortega River Boat Yard and marina, we boaters found ourselves on the verge of being kicked out. We and our land neighbors against new developments rallied and participated in town hall meetings to get our voices heard. We left Jacksonville in April 2004. The last we heard was that the developers won. They drove all the boaters away and built upscale highrise condominiums with private docks. Another marina bit the dust.
Below is the video of our good old times at Ortega River Boat Yard (Potluck on the docks and the Jacksonville Sea and Sky Spectacular in 2003)
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| Blue Angels at the Jacksonville Sea and Sky Spectacular |
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