This blog will chronicle our (Pat and Patty Anderson's)
cruising adventures on the Great Loop!
DAY 6 - April 6, 2017
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| Jonathan Arthur, Honest John's |
At the invitation of Jonathan Arthur ("irlboater" on C-Brats), we took a day off from cruising today and spent a delightful day at Honest John's Fish Camp at Melbourne Beach with Jonathan, his partner Rosa, Jonathan's mom Barbara, neighbor Jimmy and ace outboard mechanic Dr. Dave. We did literally nothing, except sit on the dock and talk, and it sure felt good! Jonathan's ancestors established the Fish Camp in the 1880s and the Arthur family continues the tradition to this day! We are tied up to Honest John's dock, and will spend the night here.
We left our Pine Island anchorage about 9:30 a.m. for Honest John's Fish Camp, and as soon as we were out in the ICW, the thunder, lightening and rain started. Visibility was marginal for a little bit, but with the help of the electronic charts and the channel markers, we covered the 15 miles or so at our usual 7 - 8 statute miles per hour in a bit over two hours. It cleared up the farther north we traveled. We threaded our way very carefully with our outboard up through some very shallow water to reach the Fish Camp once we turned off the ICW, but we made it without grounding! Jonathan, Rosa and a couple of other people were at the dock to take our lines when we arrived.
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| Honest John's Chickens! |
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| Big Red |
Honest John's Fish Camp is a really unique little bit of rural Florida paradise that, as they say, "sends you back in time to a Florida most have forgotten." It is situated on approximately 40 park-like acres, with a pond, a mango grove, coconut palms, chickens, and a pig. It was originally a 160 acre homestead but parts were sold off over the years. The business end of the fish camp involves 14' aluminum boat/motor rentals, kayak rentals, wet and dry boat storage, and anything to do with fishing. Jonathan was working a 12 hour day today, but made time to talk to us about the Fish Camp when he was not helping customers. We also gave a couple of tours of Daydream to Jonathan's friends
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| Salty |
We got a great tour of the property when Jonathan, Rosa and Barbara walked to the end of the internal dirt road to lock the gate. Jonathan mentioned he would like to have spaces for RVs, and this would be a great place to park an RV, especially for people who want to go fishing, or just go boating to see the manatees and dolphins! Jonathan has a C-Dory 22 Cruiser named Salty, in which he has already done the Great Loop twice, and he plans to depart on his third Loop on April 16. We may or may not connect on the Loop, but it is doubtful it will be for long if we do, because he'll be traveling a lot faster than we will!
It was great to meet these people and learn about the history of Honest John's Fish Camp. Jonathan, Rosa and Barbara have our sincere thanks for their hospitality and sharing their little slice of paradise with us!
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| Honest John's is on Mullet Creek off Indian River |
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| Honest John's Boat Ramp |
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| Dock at Honest John's Fish Camp |
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| Artfully Arranged Lures Jonathan Has Salvaged over the Years |
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| This Outboard is Probably Not in the Rental Fleet! |
Pat and Patty, Don't forget, it is not the water under your keel as you travel, but the people you meet, and the places you take the time to explore, which is the adventure of the cruise.
ReplyDeleteYes, "doing the loop" is a voyage, as there are many other voyages. What you will remember many years from now, is who your met, and how they impacted you. You don't fall into this category, but too many of the "loopers" are just seeing the same people day after day--the marinas change. They are not fully experiencing the trip--and don't step off the beaten path as you did today. Look for places like Honest John's Fish Camp all along the way!
What a neat place. Good times
ReplyDeleteWe appreciate your taking the time to share your Loop adventure. Great job!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to more!
Dan & Peggy Bowers
'Lake Effect'
From AC, not sure how you update...
ReplyDeleteThere are more reports of dredging happening on recreational areas than I've ever seen in the last 10 years. Ft Pierce, Matanzas, and all the problem areas in the Carolinas appear to be getting attention. For Matanzas, make sure to get the latest hazard data because the dredge there is causing confusion about where to go and there's not a lot of room for error.
For apps with offline ActiveCaptain data, make sure to do a quick update every day if you're moving north. The new data coming in has more volume than the hurricane Matthew reports and is averaging more than one update every minute, 24/7.
Luckily the shallow waters of the Okeechobee Waterway did not cause you guys any major grief. Interestingly, a few days after having read your comments about the skinny waters there I saw a N.Y. Times web article about a much larger boat - a ferry drawing ~ 6' - that had earlier tried the same path w/ their eventual goal of heading to New York City that had to turn back. This piece can be seen on that website at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/27/nyregion/new-york-city-ferry-service-journey.html . That ferry, which wound up taking the longer route, subsequently safely made it to N.Y. as you can see in a later N.Y. Times piece at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/02/nyregion/new-york-ferry-bill-de-blasio.html?mabReward=A3&recp=0&module=WelcomeBackModal&contentCollection=N.Y.%20%2F%20Region®ion=FixedCenter&action=click&src=recg&pgtype=article. Anyway, glad you made it thru that earlier portion of your trip w/ no issues.
ReplyDeleteStay safe Pat and Patty and keep the posts coming!