Butch and Teresa (the owners of Georgetown Landing Marina) were kind enough to let us borrow their truck so we could drive seven miles to the neighboring town of Welaka and visit the…

Welaka Maritime Museum

This museum has a collection of one-of-a-kind wooden boats that were all built by Richard Speas and is now maintained by his son Rand (below-center). Of all the museums we’ve been to this was one of the best, not just because it was all about boats, but because they were all so original and very well maintained. A bygone era well preserved thanks to Rand.

Just can’t seem to get away from all the gator stuff. Rand has a little corner of the museum for one large stuffed gator (11 feet long – caught on the St. Johns River) and a few items to show what can be done with a gator pelt.