Astor Florida - A Little Piece of Paradise

I love having my morning coffee on the dock just enjoying the beauty of the river and the wildlife.

Astor is known by most as the jewel of the St John's River. The residents say it is a quaint drinking town with a fishing problem. I have come to know both to be true.

Astor is indeed a wonderful jewel, it is still a piece of unspoiled wilderness nestled in the Ocala National Forest on a river that is not only beautiful but is great fishing. The wildlife that can be seen on any given day is amazing. The osprey is Astor's mascot bird and you can catch them flying overhead anytime. You may spot a black bear, bobcat, wild turkey, wild boar, rattlesnake, or even a rare Florida panther. We regularly see otters, manatee, alligators, great blue heron, egret's, water turkeys, sting ray and so much more right from our back yard.

Just take a boat ride down the river and you cannot help but to unwind and relax. Take a look up in the sky and watch the bald eagle's majestic flight over the beautiful trees. Drift down some winding creeks, through silent hammocks, and crystal springs. Watch an amazing sunset over Lake George. Ahhhhh.......a little piece of paradise.

The St John's River flows north from the swamps west of Vero Beach to Jacksonville. Traversing 310 miles, it is the longest river in Florida. This slow moving river used to be the heart of the region.

In the 1800's settlers would come to Astor via steamboat, most coming to central Florida to homestead government property.

The St John's River is high on the list for best statewide fishing sites. It weighs in as fourth best site for catfish and third best site for striped, sunshine, and white bass.

About 5 miles north of Astor, we come across Lake George. Lake George, the second largest lake in the state is classified as a freshwater lake but has a significant salt content. Numerous salt-water fish and plants can thrive in it's waters. The source of the salt are massive underground deposits left from when the St John's River Basin and the land east were part of the Atlantic floor. You will find Lake Gearge topping the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission list of Top 10 Black Bass fishing areas. It is known for it's incredible yields of trophy largemouth bass.

Astor is a great SMALL town so you must be thinking there is not much to do. Wrong! There is always something going on here or very near.

Of course you have the great fishing and miles of boating. If you do like to boat, you have to take a trip out to Silver Glen Springs. It is a beautiful 20 -30 min ride up the river and across Lake George. Once you arrive to Silver Glen Run you will notice the water clearing and see large schools of fish, then amazingly the water is crystal clear. The water temperature is a cool 72 degrees year round, native Floridians know the best swimming pools are not in someone's yard, but have been provided by Mother Nature. The crystal clear cool waters of springs is wonderfully refreshing on a sweltering summer day. Check out the picture of Silver Glen Springs from Memorial Weekend. There is a big party here every year. If you like it a little quieter, just visit the Glen during the week, very relaxing, and most weekends are not near as busy as this one.

Blue Spring Run through the trees by flipflopnana



Blue Spring Boil by flipflopnana
greeting card on Zazzle

With summer comes heat and lots of it. The best way to keep cool in Astor is by boat. This is Memorial Weekend on the river. If you prefer a little more quiet you may want to avoid holidays.

I think the biggest event is the annual boat parade put on by the Blackwater Yacht Club. This is a great annual event on the 1st Saturday in December. Anyone can enter with any size boat, with some great prizes being awarded. It is also a beautiful event just to watch, just one of the best places to watch the parade from is Blackwater Inn or the Astor Bridge. Judging is done from Blackwater Inn.

Here are a few boats from last years parade which was great as usual.

Join us for the biggest weekend in Astor. On Saturday,December 3rd, Astor will come alive with the Christmas Street Parade with outdoor events and the Annual Lighted Parade of Boats.

The boat parade is open to all interested boaters. Light up your boat and you could even win some cash and prizes. Not bad for a small town.

No boat? NO PROBLEM, come and have a fun evening watching the parade. What a FUN way to kick off the holiday season!

This year's theme is (has not been determined yet)

Astor Christmas Parade of Boats Application will be here as soon as it is available.

Fishing Problem by flipflopnana

Fishing Problem by flipflopnana

Astor is a wonderful place to get away. But if you find things a little too quiet, a short drive in any direction will help solve that. The amount of things available and to do in an hour radius of Astor is amazing and endless.

Some of the biggest events in the country are nearby, starting with Daytona Beach and Speed Weeks in February. March brings the sound of motorcycles through town on their way to Bike Week. Of course you could just hang out at the beach, go deep sea fishing, or hop on a casino boat.

Want to go to a theme park? Again a short drive can take you to Disney World, Sea World, Univeral Studios, and all of the other attractions.

If you head north you could spend the day or a weekend exploring St Augustine.

West will take you to Ocala and Silver Spings Park with the glass bottom boats or go on a little further to the gulf coast and all that it has to offer.

Want shopping? There is an abundance of malls, outlet malls, flea markets, farmer markets, quaint downtown areas any direction you go.

Don't forget to visit a local festival while you are here, there is almost always one going on somewhere nearby from seafood to strawberries, corn, wooden boats, beer, pioneer, blue crab, art, music, okay you get the idea.

Silver Springs Park in Ocala, FL
Taken from the top of the lighthouse ride looking down at a glass bottom boat tour through the springs.

This photo won Rocket Moms Photo of the Week Contest. Come on over and check out some of the other great winning photos. Coreen (Clouda9) has done an amazing job with this contest and displaying all of the photos.

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