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St. Petersburg, Florida
More than a century ago, two developers drew straws to decide which
one names the Florida city they were building. Railroad tycoon and immigrant
Peter Demens won the draw and looked at the idea taking shape outside.
It reminded him of his hometown on the Baltic Sea: St. Petersburg, Russia.
The rest, as they say, is history.
As you read this,
however, it should be noted the ice is just beginning to melt in St.
Petersburg, Russia. Add to the fact the Florida St. Petersburg
holds the Guiness World record for most consecutive days of sunshine
(768) and it becomes pretty clear why Mr. Demens sought a new world.
St. Petersburg has an average temperature of 73.7 degrees and brags about
having an average of 361 days of sunshine every year. This isn’t
a new fact. Major Lew Brown told customers in the 20’s his Evening
Independent would be free if the sun didn’t shine. The paper stayed
in business a long time until it merged with another in town.
Bring the sun and they will come
Of the more than 14 million people who have visited Florida since January,
many have arrived with a trailered boat in tow. As a peninsula with
a 234-mile coastline on Tampa Bay, the Gulf of Mexico and the Intracoastal
Waterway, it ‘s easy to understand why this is such a popular
destination as well as a home (248,323 full time residents live in
the St. Petersburg metropolitan area).
The center of activity in St. Petersburg is found, of course, on the
water. The Pier, as it is called, juts a quarter mile into Tampa Bay.
It features shops, restaurants an aquarium and the unique Hands On Museum
designed for entertaining and educating children with interactive exhibits
(although adults have been known to participate as well). At the top
of the five-story inverted pyramid located at the end of The Pier is
an observation deck where visitors can watch cruise ships, container
ships and, of course, trailer boats on Tampa Bay.
You will see
a lot of boats from this vantage point because St. Petersburg’s
municipal marina is just to the right as you face the water. A boat ramp
is found next to the gas dock and faces 2nd Avenue North. The marina
has a 500’ transient dock for overnight or weekly stays.
Getting Around
Here is an important point about driving in St. Petersburg: the directions
can become confusing to a newcomer. While the city is divided north
and south by Central Avenue and east and west by 34th street, avenues
in St. Petersburg run E-W while streets run N-S. The result is a good
chance of being given directions of going to 2nd and 2nd. That, in
itself, can create confusion but you also have to know if it’s
north or south.
One other issue
to remember when driving to St. Petersburg: many of the bridges running
from Tampa to the city or from the city south to
Bradenton (Sunshine Skyway Bridge 275) or from the city west to St. Pete
Beach on the Pinellas Bayway, charge a toll. If you are pulling a boat
and trailer, you are going to pay per axle. It’s never a lot of
money but it is a cost that will add up if you are going to a new launch
ramp on a daily basis.
St. Petersburg
is home to world reknown centers of art and nature. The Salvador Dali
Museum features the world’s largest private collection
of this flamboyant artist’s original works. The popular Sunken
Gardens began in 1935 when an avid gardener drained a small lake and
created waterfalls to accompany hundreds of plants, butterflies and flamingoes.
Both are open to the public throughout the year. If you enjoyed the movie “Cocoon,” many
of the scenes were filmed in St. Petersburg.
The best beaches in Florida are located on the Gulf of Mexico, just
9 miles west of St. Petersburg. Taking the Pinellas Bayway (.50 toll
and .25/axle each way) across Boca Ciega Bay to St. Pete Beach. Be aware
St. Pete Beach and St. Petersburg are two different places and are the
basis of untold confusion for first-timers to the area. At one time,
the city called itself St. Petersburg Beach which resulted in even more
confusion than exists now.
This part of
Florida is considered all the more special because of the number of
passes to the Gulf of Mexico that are within just a few miles
of eachother. John’s Pass, located between Madeira Beach (north)
and Treasure Island (south) was formed when an 1848 hurricane came through
the area, opening up one more way to reach the Gulf. The trailer boater
can tie up at Johns Pass Marina on Treasure Island. You can walk to the
world’s longest waterfront bar, Gators, and watch the activity
in the Pass. Johns Pass Village is on the Madeira Beach side of the pass
and features a 1,000-foot boardwalk. There are more than two dozen separate
beaches either north or south from this point. Going south will bring
you to Pass-A-Grille beach (it is believed the name comes from the fact
people grilled fish over their campfires here). Whether you buy that
theory or not, the Hurricane restaurant on Pass-a-grille beach is known
for its grouper sandwich as well as a rooftop deck with spectacular views
of the sunset over the Gulf.
Traveling south to Fort DeSoto State Park (toll is.35 with an additional
.10 per axle), there are numerous long sandy beaches en route. There
is a huge boat ramp (800 feet wide) as you come into Mullet Key in addition
to a seven-mile stretch of beach.
From here, a trailer boat is easily within distance of Egmont Key which
is a 440-acre National Wildlife Refuge. Boats are welcome here but be
advised this is also a nesting area for loggerhead turtles at certain
times of the year. If someone in your family is a shell collector, Egmont
Key is considered one of the prime places for this kind of activity.
Egmont Key is located at the mouth of Tampa Bay and has a lighthouse
that was built in 1847. Just offshore from here is the Egmont Channel
where container ships from around the world travel as they enter or depart
the Port of Tampa. This is also considered a prime fishing area.
Crossing Tampa Bay (275 South out of St. Petersburg) takes you on the
4.1 mile Sunshine Skyway Bridge (toll is $1.00 and .50/axle). It is important
to note this bridge is closed to traffic any time the wind exceeds 50
mph which happens from time to time in the autumn. The Skyway Fishing
Pier is located near this bridge and runs three-quarters of a mile long
on the north end and a mile and one-half long on the south end. Anglers
can drive their cars onto the pier and park next to the area where they
will be fishing. This is possible because the part of the pier was once
the bridge that carried traffic across Tampa bay prior to the construction
of the Sunshine Skyway. There is a $3.00/car toll and a charge per person
to use the fishing pier.
The Sunshine Skyway crosses Tampa Bay into Manatee County. The barrier
islands and keys continue along the Gulf while the city of Bradenton
is directly to the east on the Manatee River. The Intracoastal Waterway
passes through Bradenton as well (and if you are visiting during March,
this is where the Pittsburgh Pirates hold Spring Training).
Plans are underway to establish a ferry service from Bradenton to Key
West using a catamaran capable of reaching speeds of 70 mph with a capacity
of as many as 150 passengers. A Bradenton dock has yet to be selected
but the Key West landing will be at the Hilton Hotel.
As is
always the case when boating in Florida during the summer, the threat
of afternoon thunderstorms is to be taken seriously. But as seems to be
a trend in this town, the sun always appears shortly thereafter. If you
have a boat on a trailer, the St. Petersburg area is a guaranteed good
destination.
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Getting
There:
Provincetown, MA 1491 miles
Houston, TX 1003 miles
Detroit, MI 1214 miles
Buffalo, NY 1289 miles
Seattle, WA 3181 miles
Milwaukee, WI 1328 miles
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