We were up early again Sunday morning to go back to the Oak Hill Flea Market to see the vendor who sells the dip nets for shrimping. I was told it was a woman, but as we pulled up I saw a man with an assortment of nets and figured I had gotten some misinformation. But we had to drive to the back of the place to find a parking spot, and as it turned out we were near another vendor selling the big nets. And this was a woman.
But not just any woman, this was Captain Lee Noga, who is a legend in this part of Florida when it comes to shrimping, crabbing, scalloping, and just about any other way of bringing dinner up from beneath the water. Two minutes after meeting her, Terry and I both knew that we had found a new friend. Lee is an amazing woman who says what she thinks and isn’t afraid of stepping on toes. That has riled some of the good old boys around here over the years, but that’s okay. I’ve been known to step on a toe or two myself, don’t you know?
We told Lee we were brand-new to shrimping and had only been out once, but that we really enjoyed it and we wanted to buy a couple of her nets. But she wouldn’t sell them to us! Huh? What’s that all about?
Lee said that if we really wanted to catch shrimp there was a bit of homework to do before we started spending money on equipment. It turns out she runs a Facebook page called the Florida Shrimping Academy, which is free to join, and she also has a series of free How To Shrimp videos on YouTube. Lee gave us a multipage guide to shrimping she had written, and told us to read that and then spend an hour or two watching her videos, and to come back next week.
She said by then we would be better prepared to know what we needed and how to get the most out of the equipment she sells. Imagine that, a business person who doesn’t just want to take your money and be done with you, but somebody who wants you to succeed at what you doing and wants to help you make it happen! So we came away with a goal to learn as much as we can before we go back next Sunday to see Lee again.
The Sunday flea market is bigger than what it was on Saturday, and we saw all kinds of stuff for sale from trash to treasures. This little guy wasn’t for sale, but he sure got a lot of attention as he walked on a leash.
When we left the flea market we checked out at a couple of used boats nearby that had been advertised on Craigslist. One of them looked real possible, and the other was a scow that would have probably drowned us the first time we put it in the water.
I had seen a sign up for a historic site called Seminole Rest several times when we were in the area, so we decided to see what it was all about. It is one of those hidden gems that are all over this country, just waiting to be discovered.
For thousands of years Timucuan Indians lived along this stretch of the coast and left behind massive mounds of oyster and clam shells. Most of those shells wound up being used to make the early roads when this part of the country was “civilized.” But thanks to the foresight of Mr. and Mrs. Wesley H. Snyder, who owned several acres of land on the Indian River in Oak Hill, the mounds on their property were preserved and today tell us a lot about these earliest inhabitants of the region.
It was a cold, windy day, but Terry and I took the half mile loop walk through the historic site. There are two beautiful old houses there, one of which was the Snyder family home and the other a “cottage” where caretakers and visitors lived. We stopped in the family home and met a wonderful lady named Rikki who was an absolute delight.
Rikki may have seen a lot of years come and go, but she is still one of the youngest people I’ve ever met. She’s an adventurer who has done everything from jumping out of airplanes to zip lining, parasailing, and anything else that gets the adrenaline going. Yeah, we made another friend. I’ll have a feature story on Seminole Rest in an upcoming edition of the Gypsy Journal.
By then it was well past noon, and we had not eaten all day. So we stopped for a late lunch/early dinner (linner) at Goodrich Seafood, a favorite place for locals and visitors alike. This was our second time to eat there, and it was as good as the first. I had fried alligator, while Terry had a two item seafood combo.
We came home and had to keep busy to stay awake. Terry put together her new chair, I tried to write, but could not concentrate, so answered a backlog of e-mail instead. I also did some research on the one boat we saw, but about the time I was ready to tell Terry we needed to go back and take another look at it and take it out on the water, I popped back into Craigslist and it was gone. I suspect it sold already, which doesn’t surprise me because it was a pretty good deal. So, back to looking and dreaming.
Congratulations Greg Bahnmiller, winner of our drawing for a set of three books by Master Certified RV service technician Dale Lee Sumner that explains RV 12 volt electrical systems, 120 volt RV electrical systems, and RV appliances. We had 266 entries this time around. Stay tuned, a new contest starts soon.
Thought For The Day – Teach your daughter how to shoot, because a restraining order is just a piece of paper.
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Nick Russell
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Sometimes I think that there are more used boats for sale in Florida than there are fish in the sea. Have no fear, you’ll find one, or two, or three….. 😉
Congratulations she’s been there and done that theres a woman that sounds like she’d give you good advice on selecting a proper Florida boat to fit your needs