Sunday, July 17, 2005

Final Steinhatchee Scallop Tips


STEINHATCHEE SCALLOP TIPS # 8,9, 10, 11, AND 12.
(In which I become a restaurant critic.)

TIP # 8: On the river, when the signs say "Idle Speed, Minimum Wake", that's what they mean. A large wake can damage boats tied up at the various marinas...be a courteous boater.

TIP # 9: Steinhatchee is really out there, don't just jump in the car and go. Hit the internet or the phone book to gather info, or you may arrive and have no place to stay.

TIP # 10: There are several marinas in Steinhatchee that will launch, store, and refuel your boat. We have never had bad service at any of them. I'm not the chamber of commerce so I would tell you if we did. We have personally used Westwind, Ideal, and Seahag marinas. They have all been great. We are partial to the Seahag Marina since we have a long history with them, but as stated before I would not hesitate to use any of these three.

TIP #11: Eat at Roys. It's right on the river and has great food, quick service, and reasonable prices. Even though we knew that, we made the mistake of eating one evening at a restaurant named after a small saltmarsh crustacean in which the male features one enlarged claw used for defense and attracting females. There, I didn't name the restaurant,...but you marine biologists can figure it out. Anyway, the service was incredibly slow. We (admittedly a group of 16) waited over an hour after ordering from an overpriced menu. The food when it arrived was not bad, but we were basically starving by that time...

TIP # 12: Final advice. Be safe. Be legal. Know your bag limits, your boating safety rules, and DON'T take more scallops than you are willing to clean.

4 comments:

Suzanne said...

I visited Cedar Key in February. If I'd have known there were such fun happenings just a little farther north I would have continued on.

But what I did instead was drive over to Cross Creek. I see you've got "The Yearling" on your list of favorite books. I can't tell you what the trip to Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings home meant to me. I was almost afraid that the old Florida had never existed, or was just a figment of my childhood imagination. The sandy soil, the sleeping porch and doors leading to the outside just made me feel like I was "home".

R.Powers said...

Zanne,
The Rawlings homestead is a neat place. I haven't been there for a long time, but that would be a good post. Thanks for stopping by. Take care.

Thingfish,
I don't think the legend of the stingray wing scallops will ever die.

Karen Schmautz said...

I've never seen scallops in the shell...do you suppose you could put up a picture one of these days? I'm such a hick...and a sheltered one, at that.

R.Powers said...

Hick,
Will do. I actually took a few underwater shots while scalloping, but did not finish the roll. Gimme a day or so...