The snow was falling in Newport News as we boarded our evening flight to Jacksonville so it was wonderful to awaken the next morning to the sound of waves crashing on the beach outside our balcony. The temps never rose above 60 during our weekend stay but we were happy to avoid the windy, cold weather home was getting. Our hotel was the lovely Ponte Vedre Lodge which turned out to be the perfect place to spend Valentine's Day weekend. This was to be a combo romance and family weekend. I'm not sure how well those two mix but we were visiting our son who had moved down to Florida for a construction job.

The Lodge is on the beach with an outdoor pool, hot tub, and fireplace patio facing the water. There is a nice fitness club across the street and a gorgeous tennis facility, spa, and golf course a couple of miles up the road at the sister property, Ponte Vedre Inn. Our room was large and comfortable plus it had a huge, luxurious bathroom and the previously mentioned balcony overlooking the beach.

We ate all of our breakfasts in the dining room at the Lodge. The food was good and the windows overlooking the beach gave us a great view of all the dogs frolicking on the beach. On Friday, DS had to work so DH and I drove down to St. Augustine to visit the fort, the Castillo de San Marcos, and wander around the colonial quarter. The fort is fascinating and worth a visit but you might want to visit early in the day. We were there on a cool and windy day in February and still had trouble parking. We found town to be very crowded. I can't imagine the place on a nice day in peak season. It must be nuts.

On our way back to our hotel, we stopped for a short hike in the Guana River Reserve. It is a beautiful and peaceful place with very nice trails along the marsh, over wetlands, and through wooded areas.

Dinner that night was at Restaurant Medure. All of us loved our meals. The restaurant has a contemporary but comfortable atmosphere. There was live music in the bar but the dining room is far enough away so we didn't find it disturbing. We had intended to stop at Pussers, in the same complex, for drinks. DH and I had been in the BVIs a few weeks previously and I was going through painkiller withdrawal. Pussers was packed, however, so no yummy rum drink for me that evening.

The next day, the guys were playing golf at TPC Sawgrass on the Valley course so after a overly hearty lunch at the clubhouse there (the salads and sandwiches are huge!), I left them for some sunning and some shopping. We met up later at Moxie in St. Johns Town Center for a Valentine's dinner for three. DS made some points that night with his mom for agreeing to have dinner with his parents on the biggest of date nights. Moxie is more casual than Medure and the food may not be as refined but it's awfully good. It was my second visit there and I'd return again.

On Sunday, our last day, I woke up early to cheer on the runners in the Donna marathon and half marathon. It's a breast cancer fundraiser so the dogs were in tutus and a lot of guys were wearing bras. The stretch outside our hotel was very early in the race so the mood was still very festive. We were also at a layer dumping spot and a runner handed me a tech race shirt. Score! Feeling motivated after clapping for the runners, I hit the beach for a run. Ponte Vedre is a gorgeous flat beach at low tide but this was high tide and Ponte Vedre also has a lot of shells which don't make for the best surface to run on. I was quickly looking for a way off the beach but there are very few access areas because of the large houses lining the beach. Finally I was able to pick my way through an empty lot. It struck me that Ponte Vedre is a gorgeous, long beach but there are very few places where the public can access it. The few places where there is public access have a limited number of parking spaces which, I imagine, fill up quickly on a nice weekend day.

The rest of the day was spent hanging out with DS and having lunch at one of his new hangouts, Blackfin. We didn't indulge in the cheap mimosas but we had fun watching crazy rugby players try to kill each other in a tournament playing on one of the many big screen tvs in the sports bar.

Our flight home was uneventful, luckily, but it was freezing when we landed. I'm looking forward to more warm weekends and more exploring in Jacksonville.

Life list addition: wood stork, Mycteria americana

Birdie-- I too enjoyed my stay in the Jacksonville & St. Augustine Dec. 2013/ Jan. 2014, with the Castillo San Marcos a definite highlight. I'm happy to hear the fort gets a considerable number of visitors even in mid February, as I truly found it to be one of the US's most fascinating historic treasures--so I'm glad that people are visiting, even though I'm sure the headaches in parking that result are not fun!

Within Jacksonville proper, I especially enjoyed the Five Points area (Riverside-Avondale) and even found some things to like in the downtown core. Definitely an underrated part of the country-- thanks for writing a trip report! Daniel

Sounds pretty wonderful!

That weekend was race weekend, Daytona 500 and we have many visitors staying even in St Augustine. Hotels are a bit cheaper and they don't mind the drive to the track. It does get crowded there on the old part of town. It is a beautiful coastal drive though.

It sounds delicious.

My BF has five little granddaughters and the grandmothers go along on the beach trip each year and Ponte Vedre is her favorite of all.

Now I'm doubly jealous and want to go!

Sounds like a great trip and so nice that DS was able to spend some time with you.

Great report and thanks. Two friends of ours just moved up the beach to Jax and we are planning an overnight with them in May. Two years ago I attended a military reunion on Jax Beach which I thoroughly enjoyed; great stretch of sand.

Thanks, everyone!
I would like to explore other areas of the city especially up near the river, Daniel.

flpab, that drive is beautiful. There are some pretty swanky houses along there.

Starrs and Dukey, it's a nice beach destination.

Cmcfong and emalloy, it was very nice. I miss that boy.