| Did you ever have a “hole in your soul,” a missing bullet in your resume, an itch you’ve always wanted to scratch? Add up all those things and that how I’ve felt about never visiting Steinhatchee. I’ve criss-crossed Florida from Jacksonville to Key West to Tallahassee to Pensacola and back scores of times, but for a whatever reasons never ended up in Steinhatchee.
I’ll bet you haven’t either. This community numbering only about 2,500 lies on our state’s “Big Bend” where the Gulf coast isn’t quite a part of the northwest or the more vertical portion to the southeast. It’s 10 miles or so west of State Road 19-98, the nearest “big” town being Cross City. Steinhatchee is famous for its scallop season that runs from July to September. Kelly Braden and I visited this past weekend for an overdue R&R session.
What a stress-busting atmosphere: Oaks laden with Spanish moss, winding S-curved roads with hardly any traffic, amazingly charming lodges and resorts, and a friendly spirit on the part of locals that all make you want to move there.
We stayed at Steinhatchee Landing Resort (www.SteinhatcheeLanding.com), a place that captures the spirit and romance of Old Florida like few places I’ve seen. The beautiful church near the entrance got our cameras clicking right away, and not surprisingly a wedding took place there the next day (not ours!). Activities offered include canoeing, kayaking, bicycling, a petting zoo, a pool and hot tub, tennis and badminton and volleyball courts, boat docks and fish-cleaning station, and lovely cottages that dot the 35-acre property – all amid splendorous oaks, flowering shrubs and native plants. You can even take guided river tours on their pontoon boat. Talk about fun and romantic!
Our cottage (#24) totally took our breath away, with a rich apple-cinnamon aroma greeting our entry. This one-bedroom villa features a porch, a glass-encased gas fireplace, beautiful pine architecture, a huge spa tub (and 19-inch TV to while away relaxed soakings), a full kitchen and washer-dryer, and a large flat screen TV with cable access. I especially loved the rich antique pine ceiling and fireplace beams dating back to 1836 that came from a venerable hotel in Macon County, Georgia – just one example of the attention to detail by Steinhatchee Landing Resort owner Dean Fowler, himself a true southern gentleman and great ambassador of the area.
We wanted to try our hand at some fishing and met Capt. Jim Henley (www.saltwaterfishn.com) early Friday morning at resort’s adjoining dock on the Steinhatchee River. An excellent inshore guide with a smooth-as-pie disposition, Capt. Henley sure knew his stuff as Kelly and I caught our limit of trout , battled Spanish mackerel and gag grouper, and really enjoyed our day on the water. He explained that the Steinhatchee River that divides Dixie and Taylor counties is spring-fed and composed of limestone bottom, with healthy but fragile seagrasses lining the surrounding bay and shoreline.
A good fishing tip if visiting in the winter months: Capt. Henley says that when temperatures get cool, he searches for dirty water with sediment in it because it’s warmer than surrounding water – and where more fish will be.
You mustn’t leave Steinhatchee without dining at two well-established eateries on the Steinhatchee River: Fiddler’s Restaurant (www.steinhatchee.com) owned by Jim Hunt, and Roy’s Restaurant (www.roys-restaurant.com) owned by Linda Wicker. I mention their names because if you ask for them, they’ll stop over to say hello, pat you on the back and treat you like a cousin. Kelly tried fried mullet for the first time, and loved it – she ordered it the next night too while I scarfed down soft-shell crab and scallop entrees.
I’m so glad to finally visit Steinhatchee. If you get a hankerin’ for a great getaway that’s remarkably picturesque and with a laid-back ambiance, you won’t go wrong either. |
