Right, we managed to spend the best part of a day with the Island Boat Tours people this week and a truly amazing insight it was, too. It is quite astonishing how we can have been working in this area for SO long and not come across this before, as they have been running for almost 8 years.
We did a 4-part tour with them, starting with a fishing trip at 8.30am with Capt Pete Flaherty on the Banana River (river is actually a bit of a misnomer, as it is part of the intra-coastal waterway, or lagoon), and, while we didn't catch a whole lot (given just 90 mins, it wasn't ideal, as most of his trips go out for 4-6 hours) it was just beautiful being out on the river at that time, with an early mist lifting to reveal the full waterway panorama. The water is so shallow you can see plenty of stingrays and redfish, plus the occasional horseshoe crab, while there is also the spectacle of the occasional brown pelican 'dive-bombing' the water for fish! Pete can usually guarantee to find the fish, given the full tour time (and a slightly earlier start), but we thoroughly enjoyed the time we did have with him, especially seeing the mullet jumping JUST out of reach of our lines!! If we'd been there a day earlier also, we would have lucked into a huge school of redish, but then that's why it's called 'fishing' and not 'catching' (as Susan is fond of saying!)
After the fishing tour (in a 4-person flatboat that just skims across the water - a bit cool first thing in the morning but quite blissful by the time we came in at 10) we embarked on one of their typical 2-hour Eco-Tours on the Thousand Islands on the river-side of Cocoa Beach. Now, we knew a little bit about the islands but we had never paid them much attention as most people tend to focus on the 'beach' part of Cocoa Beach. What a mistake. This gentle putter in their 43-seat (covered) pontoon boat was an absolute revelation as it goes right through the many bird-covered cypress-mangrove islands that sit just off the inland coast side of Cocoa Beach. You also get a close-up view of the river-front homes hereabouts, which are quite eye-catching, to say the least! The 'wildlife' part of the tour certainly lived up to expectations, with multiple sightings of dolphins and manatees, plus all manner of birdlife, from huge blue herons to falcons sitting on the treetops devouring freshly-caught fish! Our captain, John, and wildlife guide, Susan (another one!) were an absolute mine of information on the local waterways and the flora and fauna, as well as offering a variety of fun anecdotes. The 2-hours passed WAY too quickly and we could easily have spent all day just gently cruising through the area and soaking up the rich variety of the sights and tranquil vibe that exists hereabouts. This will
definitely feature prominently in the next edition of the Brit Guide!
Company owner Penny then took us 'back-stage' at the Marina where they operate from to catch a breath-taking view - upwards of 30 manatees just lounging around in the little basin behind the marina
I've never seen anything quite like it anywhere else in Florida and, while the weather was largely responsible (the cool winter has had manatees searching out these little 'warm spots' ), it was heartening to know this endangered creature can exist in large numbers in places (although they also think as many as 200 may have died in Florida waters this winter because of the extreme cold at times
).
Penny then took us for lunch at
Captain Ed's River Roost, another new location to us. Right on the Banana River, on the Merritt Island side, this offers wonderful outdoor dining with great river views, and is obviously popular with locals as it was quite busy, even for a Wednesday. Their Tiki Bar and dockside facility (with Jetskis for hire) is ideal for a casual lunch or sunset drink, and we thoroughly enjoyed adding this to our list of 'must-visit' places on this part of the coast (we also had a great lunch - shrimp tacos for me (delicious!) and grouper sandwich for Susan, equally good).
Then it was time to head over to the Port Canaveral marina (in view of the big Carnival cruise liner tied up in the cruise port) to meet the guys of CB Sport-Fishing, who Island Boat Tours have a marketing arrangement with. While Capt Pete offers the inshore fishing option, CBS are the ocean-fishing alternative, with an immaculate 33ft tournament-rigged boat that is geared for everything from mahi-mahi to sailfish. Capt Bo and his brothers (Brandon and Brett - the Killer B's as they announced themselves!) are hugely impressive and enthusiastic fishing guys and it is hard to believe you wouldn't have a LOT of fun (and great sport) on any of their half or full-day tours. They also carry up to 6 passengers, so it can work out at just $100/person for the half-day rate, and some of the pictures of their various catches were truly eye-opening!
Finally, we left the Port Canaveral area and headed back to Merritt Island and the Cocoa Beach Marina to visit Penny's pride and joy, the
Indian River Queen. This massively restored former riverboat has been her great passion for several years after she bought it at auction (which came as a bit of a surprise for her husband!
) and then spent 2 full years working to refurbish and effectively rebuild it from a near-hulk to the sparkling dinner-cruise tourboat which it now is. Decked out like a traditional paddlesteamer (although the sternwheel paddle is largely for show), it features two open-air decks and an interior saloon which is beautifully decorated (and is also very popular for weddings, for obvious reasons). There are two bars and they offer two weekly sailings in addition to their private charters, a Friday evening dinner-cruise (with full buffet meal) and a Sunday afternoon Jazz Cruise. Both cruise along the Banana River, hence also offer the chance to see dolphins and manatees, and there are also periodic Shuttle Launch cruises, as they can take up position barely 3 miles from the KSC launch platforms. The amount of work that has gone into restoring the
Queen is truly astounding, and it was easy to see why they are so popular for local parties and other corporate events. Just click through their
Photo Gallery for the full effect.
That concluded our Island Boat Tours experience, but we left with a very impressive picture of this family-owned business that we were utterly unaware of beforehand. And it served to underline, yet again, just HOW much amazing natural fare Central Florida has to offer. While the theme parks are still the main reason to visit, and provide genuine thrills and fantasy, it is hard to beat this kind of natural experience for a lasting impression of the REAL Sunshine State.
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Cocoa Beach Boat/Eco Tours
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