See Photos Below Text

Just got back from a great weekend in Jacksonville where we met my mom and dad and celebrated their 83rd birthdays. We stayed at Kathryn Hanna Park. This is a city park that is an exceptionally beautiful place. It is located in a dense live oak forest but is right next to the ocean. It is one of the finest campgrounds we have ever stayed in. It is close to Mayport, Florida which is a small fishing village right next to the Mayport Naval Station. I was stationed at Mayport briefly in the 60's when my ship was there for some repair work. We had some great seafood dinners at the local restaurants in Mayport where you can eat and watch the ships come and go right outside your window.

It was too cold to fly kites or do much activity outside but we had a great time exploring and eating seafood in Mayport. We ate lunch one day next to a table where a local author Bill Reynolds was signing his books. We did not know who he was until they left and the waitress told us. We bought his book in hopes of seeing him again to get him to sign it but no such luck. After we got home I did go to his web site and sent him an email which he replied to graciously. Mr. Reynolds said that if we were in Jacksonville again he would be happy to meet us and sign the book. By the way, the book, Jetty Man, is a very good read if you like southern gothic novels. Check out his web site at www.jettyman.com. .


We took the St. John's Ferry over to Fort George Island where we watched kite surfers for a while. The bay at Hugenot Park on Fort George Island is a perfect place for kite surfing as it is shallow and protected from the wave action in the ocean. After that we returned to Mayport Village for a seafood lunch and then back to the campground.

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Here are some photos of the area:

Park Entrance	Boardwalk
Park Road	Too Cool
Shrimp Docks in Mayport	Captain Ray's Museum
Singleton's Seafood	On the Ferry