Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Stienhatchee and Keaton Beach Florida…

Suwanhee River day trips 002
imageThe cooler weather subsided here at Suwanee River Rv Rendevous so we decided to make a run over toward the coastline as this is the only part of coastal Florida we haven't explored. I wasn’t really expecting much as most of what I read about this part of coastal Florida was that it had virtually no beaches and was primarily a fishing hotspot. There was however a small man-made beach in the town of Keaton Beach that I thought we might check out.
Suwanhee River day trips 005The plan was to drive a 107 mile loop and see what was in this area. First we headed toward the town of Stienhatchee, Florida which is about a forty minute drive southwest of here. The landscape in this part of Florida is a mixed Pine Oak Forest with lots of large Live Oaks draped in Spanish Moss. There was a lot of swampy wetlands all along state road 51 where we spotted some egrets, herons and an occasional Belted Kingfisher.
The town of Stienhatchee is a scenic little town that is mostly located north of the Stienhatchee River that flows into the Gulf of Mexico. A really neat little fishing village but once we got out of the car we realized that it was still a bit chilly to really enjoy the day. The winds were blowing off the Gulf of Mexico and the with the ocean Suwanhee River day trips 007at around 59 degrees Fahrenheit it made for a very chilly stop. We did walk around a bit and noted that a lot of small boats were heading out for a day of fishing and we found out why later in the day… 
We left Stienhatchee and headed Northwest toward Keaton Beach. About half way there I noticed there was a Wildlife Refuge along the road. Then we saw a gate open with an information billboard so we pulled in and discovered the Tide Swamp Wildlife Management Area. We drove down a dirt road named Dullas Creek Road for a few miles and it ended at a picnic area with a boat launch. Lots of fishermen were here too and as we chatted with a few of them we discovered why… It seems that this area is brimming with Suwanhee River day trips 008sea trout and as one fishermen put it “It takes us longer to go out to the water than it does for us to catch our limit of trout.” Dang, sure wish we had brought the kayak and my fishing gear…
Well that certainly explained all the fishing boats in this area…. Just before we left a bunch of Wildlife folks showed up and after chatting with one of the fellows I confirmed my suspicion that they were about to set off a prescribed burn. Having set off a bunch of these in one of my previous careers we left in order to avoid all the noise and smoke that was sure to follow shortly.
imageOur last stop was at Keaton Beach, even a smaller town than Stienhatchee. We found the small park with the man made beach. It too was chilly as the winds were still blowing off the cold waters. We walked out along the water’s edge and along a nice fishing pier until we decided it was simply too cool to enjoy as we would have liked. So we headed back to the RV Park and noticed as we got there that it was 10 degrees warmer inland than along the waterfront. So at home we had a nice Happy Hour outside and enjoyed a beautiful sunset with some tasty Sam Adams Seasonal Brews...



6 comments:

  1. We stayed at a Keaton Beach RV Park 5 years ago, and it has the most viewed/ hit of all my post on my blog. I guess people are trying to decide if it is worth the drive to see. We are at Henderson Beach State Park in Destin, FL. and find the weather is delightful because we spent the winter in Gulf Shores, AL., which got mighty cold this winter. But you two spent the winter in southern FL so this weather was cold to you.

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    1. we will be in Henderson Beach state park on Sunday for 2 nights... and yes it is colder up here!

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    2. That is so funny that you will be in Henderson Beach State Park on Sunday. We are leaving on Thursday, and going to Grayton Beach State Park. Our paths have just missed each other 3 times now. The first time on the west coast. We were going north and you were going south in Oregon. Than in Texas last winter, you were in Rockport 2 weeks before we arrived . Last summer you were going north in Michigan and we were going south in Michigan. We seem to be going to the same places but different directions on our routes! So this will be our 4th pass going different directions!

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  2. Too bad that it was so cold there this winter, but we can not control the weather.

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  3. Sure sounds like a nice day. I've never heard of a sea trout. I thought trout were fresh water. Beautiful sunset!!

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  4. Thanks for the look around an area of the coast i have never seen either. Sorryit was too chilly to explore and you missed the fishing. We are about 3 weeks behind you on our way to Betty's.

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