The Dome House: Part I

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it … well, once or twice here, but a lot of times in real life: St. Augustine is a weird, weird place.

I was about to say that despite all the oddities, it’s really endeared itself to me over the past year or two I’ve become a regular visitor — but really, I think it’s endeared itself to me because of all the oddities. Let’s face it — I like weird stuff, and St. Augustine is filled with it.

While I have many favorite spots, all must-visits while I’m there, I have one that takes the cake — The Dome House.

Weird, right? It’s a house, but it’s a dome! It’s The Dome House! 

In the spirit of full disclosure, I need to tell you something before we continue on this fabulous, three-part adventure of my love affair with The Dome House. All the photos you will see here were taken within the past two years. However, The Dome House no longer stands as of a few months ago, so this is a tragic love story, of sorts. Its demise is a sad, sad chapter in this saga, but I felt the need to share this fact before continuing on. Otherwise you would have felt the crushing sense of loss (I wish I was exaggerating) I did at the news that The Dome House had fallen.

So, yes, moving on.

Now, I have to tell you. I did not seek out The Dome House when I arrive at St. Augustine, unlike many of the other oddities I have visited. In fact, The Dome House found me.

Actually, Ron and MaryLou live right across the street from The Dome House’s beach.

You see, The Dome House is located on some prime waterfront property. Actually, it’s more than prime — it’s literally on the beach. Like, high tide basically knocks on its front door (well, it doesn’t really have a door anymore) every single day.

Here, you can see the highway that separates Chez MaryLou with The Dome House. This is a view from a second-floor deck, and you can kind of see the ocean behind the dunes. Seriously, it’s really, really waterfront. If it didn’t have those pillars holding it aloft it would have been washed away a long time ago.

Anyway.

I was immediately intrigued by The Dome House, so naturally, I had to visit.

Just to backtrack for a moment — I need to tell you about the location of Chez MaryLou. Directly behind the house, in between the backyard and the road you see above, is a dirt road leading to a county park that borders the Intercoastal Waterway. If you take a three-minute walk eastward from the back door, you encounter a bridge (which is part of the aforementioned road). At low tide — mind you, this is difficult, but possible, at high tide — you walk below the bridge, and onto a large, sandy expanse that used to be the Summer Haven River.

Today, the inlet is filled in by sand (seriously, there are boat docks there that are completely landlocked), but a few years ago, it wasn’t. A debate is currently raging w/r/t the possible dredging of the area, but I won’t get into any of that here.

Suffice to say, you can walk to the beachfront that houses The Dome House. And the view along the way is spectacular.

[Note: that roof toward the left is The Hut, which is a very cool building located right next to The Lodge.]

So. About a quarter mile down the beach from The Hut — just south of the end of Old AIA, right past its intersection with Gene Johnson Road — sits The Dome House.

And mind you, that quarter mile is home to some weird stuff, like what appears to be the foundation of what was once a house …

[Side note: since this photo was taken, this is completely gone. However, remains of pipes, as well as remnants of the people who lived there like glassware that appears at low tide, remains.]

… and many turtle nesting areas. That’s right, I said TURTLES!

They lay eggs all along the coast, and their nests are roped off to protect the eggs. More on their role in The Dome House Saga later.

Once you pass the old foundation and the turtle nesting spots, though, the final destination is right there: The Dome House.

Coming up in Part II of The Dome House Saga: Desperately Seeking Information