The Vilano Boat Ramp Is Due for Repairs. Where Will Vilano Boaters Launch This Winter?

The Vilano Boat Ramp sits at 101 Vilano Causeway, just west of the Vilano bridge on A1A. St. Johns County lists three launch lanes, two docks with floating docks, a picnic pavilion, a restroom building, concessions and a parking lot there. The County calls it one of the most heavily used public boat launches in the St. Augustine area, serving both residents and visitors. From there it's a short run to the Intracoastal Waterway and out to the Atlantic through the inlet.

The ramp is now scheduled for structural repair, and the timing affects anyone who trailers a boat. Work is expected to begin this fall and finish next summer, so it covers the months when sheepshead and black drum stack up on structure and flounder harvest reopens. Two smaller county ramps in Vilano, Usina and Boating Club Road, will carry much of the load while the work is underway.

What the County is fixing under the concrete

Most of the problem sits below the surface. A June 2026 engineering assessment led to a project that addresses ongoing erosion, soil loss, structural deterioration and voids beneath and next to the existing ramp. The County's plan is phased. Crews will pressure-grout the concrete slabs to stabilize them, install sheet piles to slow erosion and add support, and make targeted repairs to the seawall. The County expects the work to add about 10 years to the facility's useful life.

Here's how the project reached this point:

1. June 2026. An engineering assessment identifies ways to keep the ramp working, improve its stability and extend its service life.
2. August 20, 2026. The St. Augustine Port, Waterway and Beach District approves $500,000 for the repair and stabilization project.
3. September 3, 2026. St. Johns County announces the award as part of a $1.483 million package. The other $983,000 goes to the Summer Haven River Dredge and Dune Project farther south.
4. October 20, 2026. The County Commission votes 5–0 to approve its consent agenda, which includes Resolution 2026-349 appropriating the grant.
5. Fall 2026 to summer 2027. Engineering, permitting and construction are expected to start this fall, with completion expected next summer.

The County's agenda item for the October 20 meeting is direct about what boaters should expect:

"Construction is expected to result in intermittent impacts to the boat ramp and parking areas, including periods of partial or potentially full closure. Additional details regarding construction impacts, closures, and the anticipated schedule will be communicated to the public before construction begins."

"Intermittent" is the important word. You'll probably still launch at Vilano on many days during the project, but not every day, and on some days with only part of the lot or the ramp open.

Vilano's two backup ramps, by the numbers

Vilano has more launch options than many coastal neighborhoods. St. Johns County runs 15 free boat ramps, and two of them sit in Vilano and North Beach. Here's how they compare with the main ramp, along with the next-closest options outside the neighborhood, as listed in the County's boat ramp directory:

Usina and Boating Club Road together have three launch lanes, the same number as the Vilano ramp. Those lanes are split between two lots, though, and only Usina has a floating dock. That makes a difference on a breezy morning when one person holds the boat while the other parks the trailer. The County places Usina on the west side of the Intracoastal. Boating Club Road is at the end of its street.

Lighthouse Park is the next two-lane option, across the inlet on Anastasia Island. Palm Valley and the Guana State Park ramp on North A1A are to the north. The County's listing doesn't give amenities for the Guana ramp.

The County's directory was last updated in September 2025. Amenities at these ramps can change, and the County's boating line, (904) 209-0328, is the place to check current conditions before you hitch up.

Who else depends on the ramp

Not everyone who goes out from Vilano uses the public ramp, and that affects who'll feel the closures most.

Boats kept at Camachee Cove Yacht Harbor, 3070 Harbor Dr., go out from their slips. The marina lists a fuel dock with ethanol-free gasoline and diesel, a marine store, and bait and tackle. Its posted hours are 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, and it asks boaters to call ahead to confirm fuel dock hours. Camachee Island Sportfishing Charters lists the same Harbor Drive address. Freedom Boat Club runs its member boats from 3036A Harbor Drive in the Camachee Cove Marina complex.

Trailer boaters are the ones who need the ramp, and so is at least one charter. Fishstick Fishing Charters lists 101 Vilano Causeway as its address and the Vilano Boat Ramp as its pickup and drop-off point, with the captain supplying bait and tackle. If you've booked a winter trip with a ramp-based charter, ask about the meeting spot when you confirm. Once the County publishes its schedule, a closed lane or lot could move the meeting point.

For bait on the way out, Avid Angler is on the mainland at 2101 North Ponce De Leon Boulevard.

The construction window is the heart of the inshore season

The timing matters because of what's biting. In its fall 2026 fishing report, dated October 13, Avid Angler lists redfish and spotted seatrout as the main inshore targets, sheepshead and black drum around shell and structure, and pompano, whiting and bluefish in the surf. The shop suggests paying more attention to sheepshead and black drum around structure and deeper edges as November cools.

The shop's winter guide to St. Augustine and Vilano Beach, from December 2025, describes the same fish holding along the Tolomato River's channel edges, pilings, shell and creek systems. At the St. Augustine Inlet, it points to sheepshead on the jetty rocks and bull redfish near bridge pilings and the sandbars at the inlet mouth. On calm winter days, it adds nearshore reefs for black sea bass, vermilion snapper, porgies, grunts and triggerfish.

All of that water is close to the Vilano ramp, and Usina and Boating Club Road reach it from the same side of the bridge.

The calendar has one more date to watch. FWC closes flounder harvest each year from October 15 through November 30, so harvest reopens December 1. Here's a quick look at the current FWC rules for the fish in those reports, each linked to its FWC page:

• Flounder: 14-inch minimum, 5 per person daily, closed October 15 through November 30.
• Red drum, Northeast region: open year-round, 18 to 27 inch slot, 1 per person daily.
• Spotted seatrout, Northeast region: open year-round, 15 to 19 inch slot, 3 per person daily, with no fish over 19 inches in possession.
• Sheepshead: open year-round, 12-inch minimum, 8 per person daily.
• Black drum: open year-round, 14 to 24 inch slot with one fish over 24 inches allowed, 5 per person daily.
• Black sea bass, Atlantic state waters: 13-inch minimum, 7 per person daily.

This list is general information, not legal advice. FWC sets and updates these rules, so check its pages before every trip.

When the lot is full, fish from shore

Some winter days won't call for the boat at all. The Vilano Fishing Pier, at 260 Vilano Road, is a public Intracoastal pier open dawn to dusk. The County lists a floating dock, a pavilion, restrooms and parking there. It's a separate facility from the County's ocean pier at 350 A1A Beach Blvd. The County's fishing pier directory lists that pier as closed for repairs. Usina's ramp also has its own fishing pier and observation platform.

Kayak anglers will need to plan around a different calendar. North Guana Outpost, at 4415 Mickler Road, rents fishing kayaks and paddleboards and will deliver to Nocatee Landing beside the Tolomato River with advance notice. Its launch locations in the Guana preserve run February 10 through November 10, so that season closes for the year after November 10 and reopens in February. By then, the County expects the Vilano Boat Ramp work to be past its winter stretch and heading toward a summer 2027 finish.

At Michele Tremblay, we follow changes like this one closely because they affect how a waterfront home in Vilano works day to day. If you're thinking about a home near the Intracoastal and want to talk through which ramps, marinas and docks are closest to it, Request a Private Consultation and we'll go over it together.