November - It's camping time

Usually around the beginning of November the first real cold front comes through. That's when you know it's time to break out the tent, sleeping bags and the trusty Coleman lantern. It's camping time in Northeast Florida. With all the fantastic state and county parks, sometimes it's hard to decide where to pitch your tent. I tend to make this decision based on the outdoor activity I would like to enjoy on my adventure.

Last weekend, my sons invited a couple of their friends to join us on a trip to Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park in Jacksonville. We loaded the tents, sleeping bags, lanterns and stove along with our bikes into our do-it-all trailer and headed out. Hanna Park has outstanding trails for off road bicycling that can accomodate all skill levels.

Once we arrived at our site we set up camp. Temperatures were in the high 60's and ideal for relaxing in the woods. The boys decided to hit the bike trails while my wife and I put the final touches on making the tent site our home away from home. I strung some leftover Christmas lights around the camp to allow for night time ambiance, while my wife prepared the crock pot which would later serve us a delicious surprise. After building a fire, the boys made their way back to the campsite and coaxed me into a quick game of touch football. I became the fulltime QB and the game was on. Colin and Nick hung tough with the older boys, AJ and Chris. After 45 minutes of tough playing, we had a tied game and decided to continue it the following day.

The boys decided to get in one more trail ride at dusk, so Jennifer and I started the preparations for the evening's meal. Jennifer surprised us with a menu of Chicken Tacos or Chicken Burritos along with sides of homemade guacamole and pico. I dug out the camp stove and served cheese quesadillas as a starter. We all enjoyed our fill. Now it was time for everyone's favorite camping treat, smores. Nothing better than hot marshmellow over chocolate on a graham cracker. After a few hands of cards it was time to hit the sack.

The next morning I made some pancakes, scrambled eggs and bacon that we finished off before our camping neighbors could invite themselves over. We then mounted our bikes and hit the trails - Switchback, Grunt, Z-trail and others burned the breakfast calories off in no time. We then made our way over to the beach for a cool down ride on the the white sandy beach watching the pelicans dive for baitfish in the blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Time to return to camp and start breaking down the tents and packing up the equipment. Once packed we decided to stop in a field beside Hanna Lake and get in one more half of touch football before heading home.

Kathryn Abbey Hanna is a city park located in Jacksonville, FL. It is a oceanfront park that includes a wooded campground, fishing lake, biking and hiking trails, camp store, picnic pavilions and more. Almost all campsites are wooded - some more private than others. We like sites in rows C and P for their size, quietness and location close to the restrooms and showers.


A short list of the items we take tent camping are:

tents / tarps
sleeping bags
cots / air mattresses
pillows / blankets
stove / grill
lanterns
coleman fuel
flash lights
string of old Christmas lights
rope
bungee cords
hatchet
entry rugs
firewood / starter
power cords
bug spray
first aid kit
camp / beach chairs
coolers
water
camp box - which include cooking utensils


My wife, Jennifer, prepares a couple of great camp recipes that can feed 2-20.


Low Country Boil

1/2 bag Louisiana Crawfish, Crab, and Shrimp Boil (about 8 oz.)
2 lbs. deheaded, unpeeled shrimp
2 lbs. of your favorite sausage, we like chorizo
8 ears of corn broken in half
4-6 cups of whole mushrooms
20 garlic cloves, peeled
4 onions cut into quarters, we like vidalia
3 lbs small potatoes, either red bliss or yukon gold
4 lemons, halved

Using a large stock pot (we use a turkey fry pot over propane) fill 2/3s with water. Add Shrimp boil. Bring to a boil. Add Chorizo, potatoes, onions, corn, and garlic. When potatoes are soft add mushrooms and shrimp. These will cook in 2-3 minutes. Drain water. Pour into large open container, a tin foil turkey pan works well. Enjoy.


Chicken Tacos

1 1/2 lbs frozen chicken tenderloins
1 packet Old El Paso Low Salt Taco Seasoning
1 beer
1 large onion, diced
16 oz. mushrooms, diced
hard and soft taco shells
tortillas
grated cheese
diced tomato
lettuce
guacamole
salsa

We use a crockpot for this one. Cook chicken using the beer for the liquid on low heat for 2-4 hours. Drain off half of the liquid. Shred chicken in pot. Add taco seasoning, diced mushrooms, and half of the diced onion. Let simmer until dinner. Assemble tacos/burritos to your taste.

Fall Redfish tactics for Northeast Florida

As the water cools, both trout and redfish action heats up in the creeks and flats of northeast Florida. One can expect cool mornings with very active fish attacking surface lures and suspending mullet imitation baits. The inshore redfish in this area average about 23" up to 30" plus.

One special natural occurrence in the fall is the extremely high tide associated with the full moon and northeast winds. As the water rises above its normal levels the grass flats flood allowing the redfish to enter in search of one of its favorite meals, fiddler crabs. Both conventional and fly fisherman leave their boats to wade the grass flats to sightfish the tailing redfish. The redfish will be nose down pushing around the bottoms of the grass stalks sometimes allowing their tails to be exposed above the surface of the water. A shrimp fly or crab imitation or a soft plastic can be gently cast to the fish which will result in bonefish-like runs and heartstopping action. Warning - don't spend to much time on the grass flat as the falling tide could leave your boat high and dry with a long wait till the next high tide.

Another method to catch redfish is to concentrate on the creek mouths during the outgoing tide. Redfish, trout and flounder stage at the creek mouths during the falling tide to ambush baitfish as it exits the creek. Use jigs, spoons, live mullet or shrimp under popping corks to entice vicious hookups. Be sure to hold your rod tip high to avoid cutoffs as numerous oyster bars can be found near these creek mouths.

Numerous capable guides are available for redfishing in Northeast Florida including kayak fishing guides. Give it a try. And give the recipe below a try also.

REDFISH ON THE HALF SHELL

Ingredients:

2 fillets of redfish with skin left on

Zesty Italian salad dressing

salt and pepper

Your favorite spices

1 halved lemon

Sprinkle each fillet with a little dressing. Add salt and pepper and any seasoning you prefer, I like Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning. Place the fillets skin side down on a medium heat grill. Cook without turning for approximately 10-12 minutes or until meat is white and flaky. Remove fillets and place on plate, sprinkle with lemon juice and serve with your favorite sides - I like grits.