Jetty Park Trip

[Sensei 18]

Reading the thread on the FF's Dream Cruise and Doodle's comment about not knowing Jetty Park existed made me want to try this trip report again. I've tried several other times, but I kept screwing it up. So here we go for another try. I think that if I blow this one, I'll just post pics which are self explanatory.

Since this is my first actual TR post that will live, be kind. TCD I'm not but I'll do my best.

Much like Doodlebug, I wasn't aware of Jetty Park either until the first of this year. Whoulda thunk it? Lived in Fla. all my life, travelled the entire state, and fished extensively on both coasts and still didn't know about this little gem. I only discovered it because the family wanted to try and make the April launch of the shuttle. Wifey and I made a quick trip over to check out the campground for potential sites and to make reservations.

Actually, we were pleasantly surprised. The park is owned and operated jointly by Port Canaveral and Brevard County and I think they've done a good job of keeping it family friendly and offering something for everyone.

Here are some views of the campsites we had to take because all the others were booked. I wasn't too sure about them but it gets better.

The first pic is the site my son and his family were to have with their 25 ft. type C coach. In the background is the office and store where you check in and if needed purchase some camping items and beach goodies. The dump station is also located here. More on that later.

The second is where I am going to try to shoehorn my 35 ft. type A with three slides.:rofl2: Really, it's not as bad as it looks. I can do it. I know I can. Also you can't really see it but one of the comfort stations is just behind the site in an open area. Pretty convenient.

These are some of the other sites :

And this shot is from the office looking back east showing a beautiful shot of the dump station.

Just outside the fence surrounding the campground is a very large picnic area with shelters and a wonderful playground for the kiddies.

The week we were there, this area was used fairly well by locals I'm sure. It seems to be a popular place. I know my grandaughters enjoyed it.:dance:

Since this is my first attempt at this, I will post this segment and if it works, I'll get on to the rest of the trip.

Thanks for looking.

[Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo..Karla 77]

Great TR! We've tried to get into Jetty Park many times but it's always full.

Looking forward to more of your report.

:popcorn:

[Sensei 18]

Well, I managed to screw it up again. I have corrected my errors, however, and will continue this in a bit.

Obviously I didn't graduate from the TCD school of TR posting. Gonna get better though.

[Roller ... aka Ed 351]

:popcorn:

[doodlebug....Cherie 461]

Thanks for doing this TR, Sensei, this looks like a great campground. I can't wait to see more :banana:

[campingpixi 11]

Wow that place looks great! My kids would flip over that playset!!

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

My ears were ringing, so I had to check out this TR!

Stop comparing yourself to TCD.

TCD is overrated.

You are off to a great start!

Somewhere, I have some photos of Jetty Park taken from a cruise ship.

I have often wondered what it would be like to camp there.

From way up on a ship's deck, the park looked kind of open and barren.

But, from your photos, it looks pretty nice.

I'm looking forward to the rest of your report.

And now that you've started, I'm sure you have discovered that this TR thing isn't so hard at all.

TCD

[Sensei 18]

Moving on. BBB, if you like the beach and/or fishing and watching the boats, you'll love this campground.

Up by the office, there is a gate that you can go through to get to the inlet. Interestingly, there are also campsites there also. They are water only though. Wouldn't be a good place to camp for more than a day or two if you don't have a generator. Also, there is absolutely no shade. Don't like that.

Well, between the time we made our reservations and when we were to arrive, the shuttle launch got cancelled. We decided that we still needed a vacation so we went anyway. I was still not too thrilled at the sites we had originally picked so when the wife went in to check in, I asked her to see if there were any cancellations of sites more toward the beach. She did and boy did we get lucky.:banana:

We were able to secure two sites side by side on the last shaded area before going out to the beach. Luck us.

No problem getting my coach in here. The concrete pad was just right to fit my coach on. Whoopee!!!

Since I'm an earlier riser, the next morning I took my camera and went to the beach. I was rewarded with the following:

It was simply breathtaking.

Later in the day, I walked out to the inlet and took these shots.

From where I was, looking west, the inlet is about a mile long. Back in the corner is where the cruise ships dock.

Looking east toward the Atlantic.

As you can see, this is also where the day visitors park to picnic, play, and fish. Pretty busy. Lot of people enjoying themselves.

Here's another shot west down the inlet. If you look real close, you can see one of the cruise ships docked.

The building in the background was my favorite spot. There is a snack bar, a bait shop, and best of all, a deck up top with tables and chairs that affords you the best views of the inlet and the ocean. I guess I'm one of the only ones that appreciated it because I literally had it to myself the whole time we were there.

Jetty Park also has a 1200 ft. fishing pier that runs along the south side of the inlet. It's a great place to watch the ships come and go, see wildlife, and fish. I spent a good deal of time on it while here.

You can see the end of it and the jetty in the following pic.

Well, enough for now.

Next, some critters and boats.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Wow!

I love the sunrise photos!

Living on the west coast of Florida, I get to see great sunsets all the time. But, I love sunrises too.

I have often wanted to take a trip over to the east coast to watch the sunrise and then head back home to watch the sunset on the same day. I don't know why, but I think that would be cool.

Looking forward to more of your report!

TCD

[stefa70 205]

Nice work Sensei! I have friends that go to Jetty Park all the time, but I have not made it over there.

The sunrise pictures are beautiful. Looks like a nice view to have while enjoying a huge cup of coffee. :)

Looking forward to the rest of your report!

[fladogfan aka Gretchen 259]

:banana: :banana: I love camping at Jetty Park!!! :banana: :banana:

I'm an early riser also and enjoy the sunrises and all the birds eating and flying around on the beach.

Tried to get a site for the Labor Day weekend but it was full. Wanted to go wave bye-bye to you Fiends as the Disney ship went by. Might go over anyway for the afternoon just to wave. I found out about this forum too late to join in the cruise fun, but want to "see" y'all off. The folks on the ships always look like they are already having fun. Sensei you are right about the viewing deck on top of the building. I hardly ever see anyone up there.

Jetty Park was one of the best places to watch shuttle lift offs, still great for other rockets.

A great place to eat is Seafood Atlantic. It's located about a mile from JP in an area with other seafood restaurants. We like all the restaurants we have tried but this is our favorite. Seating is outside and hours are limited but the seafood is very fresh, yummy!

Sensei your photos are doing a good job of showing JP. Looking forward to the rest of the story.

[Sensei 18]

My ears were ringing, so I had to check out this TR!

Stop comparing yourself to TCD.

TCD is overrated.

You are off to a great start!

Somewhere, I have some photos of Jetty Park taken from a cruise ship.

I have often wondered what it would be like to camp there.

From way up on a ship's deck, the park looked kind of open and barren.

But, from your photos, it looks pretty nice.

I'm looking forward to the rest of your report.

And now that you've started, I'm sure you have discovered that this TR thing isn't so hard at all.

TCD

Thanks TCD. You're certainly not "over rated". I enjoy your TR's and you set a fine example of how they can not only be a report, but an interesting story also. That's what I'm attempting to achieve.

The west end of the campground is pretty open, but where were on the east end it's more shaded and private. Personally I like the campground and so do my family. I'm sure this will become one of our regular destinations in the future.

To everyone else, thanks for your comments. This TR thing isn't too bad once you get into it.

Next post, boats and critters as promised.

[Sensei 18]

:banana: :banana: I love camping at Jetty Park!!! :banana: :banana:

I'm an early riser also and enjoy the sunrises and all the birds eating and flying around on the beach.

Tried to get a site for the Labor Day weekend but it was full. Wanted to go wave bye-bye to you Fiends as the Disney ship went by. Might go over anyway for the afternoon just to wave. I found out about this forum too late to join in the cruise fun, but want to "see" y'all off. The folks on the ships always look like they are already having fun. Sensei you are right about the viewing deck on top of the building. I hardly ever see anyone up there.

Jetty Park was one of the best places to watch shuttle lift offs, still great for other rockets.

A great place to eat is Seafood Atlantic. It's located about a mile from JP in an area with other seafood restaurants. We like all the restaurants we have tried but this is our favorite. Seating is outside and hours are limited but the seafood is very fresh, yummy!

Sensei your photos are doing a good job of showing JP. Looking forward to the rest of the story.

You're right about Seafood Atlantic. On our campsite scouting trip, we went there for lunch. Very good and not as expensive as I thought it would be. I also like the outside seating so I can watch the activity in the inlet. Fun stuff.

Maybe one day we can have a FF GG at Jetty. Wouldn't that be cool?

[fladogfan aka Gretchen 259]

TCD said,

"I have often wanted to take a trip over to the east coast to watch the sunrise and then head back home to watch the sunset on the same day. I don't know why, but I think that would be cool."

That's been on my agenda since moving to Florida in the 70's.

[Kazlac4 3]

Great pics!! My DH and I were fortunate enough to stay at Jetty Park about 2 years ago and absolutely loved it. Although our site was VERY unlevel (we actually had to go buy an extra set of levelers) the CG itself was one of our favorites. An extra perk was hearing the Disney cruise ship horn playing the first line of "When you wish upon a star" as it disembarked.

[Sensei 18]

I tried to finish this TR a couple of times a while ago, but good old Photobucket decided to lock up on me. When I tried to close it's window, it closed all my windows. Oh, the fun of the internet.:rofl2:

OK. Critters. (Only a couple).

Since most of the time I was on the pier was for fishing, I didn't normally take my camera. But this time I did.

This fellow definately wasn't intimidated by anyone. People walked within inches of him and he just sat there totally unconcerned. Maybe he was concentrating on how he could get into my bait bucket?

Another bonus was something I didn't expect and most people didn't see.

Yes folks. That is indeed a manatee. What a thrill. This is the first time I've seen one on the east coast. I knew they were in the bayous and Indian River areas but I never expected to see one in this inlet. Goody for me. You'd be surprised at the number of people that walked by and didn't even see it. Shame.

We also saw numerous Hawksbill turtles but I didn't get any pics. They were everywhere around the pier. That's another great thing to see.

It was getting a little later and while watching the small boats and fishing rigs in the inlet, something big caught my eye to the west. Don't know why, but this particular boat looked different so I watched it. I had an idea what it was and it was soon confirmed. The Pilot Boat was moving. This could only mean one thing. The cruise ships were getting ready to depart.

Well, here it comes.

Cool. It was the Norwegian Freedom of the Seas. Beautiful ship.

After it got a couple of miles out, the harbor pilot transferred to the pilot boat and returned to port. I thought all the fun was over and then in a bit, here comes another.

This was the Carnival Sensation. You don't realize just how big these puppies are until you stand at sea level and have them go by within 50 yards. I have sailed on the Carnival Celebration and even then the massive size didn't dawn on me.

I thought all the fun was over as it was getting on toward supper time but just as I was getting to go back to camp, I saw a plume of black smoke come up from the docking area. Could it be? No way. But, yep, it was. And here it comes----------------

Continued in next post.:D

[Sensei 18]

The puff of smoke couldn't possibly be eminating from the Mouse could it? Yes it could. So much for the pitiful narrative. Here it is

"When You Wish Upon A Star" suddenly floated through the air. So cool.

That was definitely worth the wait. The crowd went wild. People yelling, both from the banks and from the ship. Happy :dance:

Take some time to check out the detail on this ship. Typical Disney fashion. Beautiful.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Thanks TCD. You're certainly not "over rated". I enjoy your TR's and you set a fine example of how they can not only be a report, but an interesting story also. That's what I'm attempting to achieve.

Well thank you for the compliment.

And I must compliment you as well: You are doing a fine job!

I love your manatee photos!

And the cruise ship photos!

Sorry, but I have one small correction on this statement:

Cool. It was the Norwegian Freedom of the Seas. Beautiful ship.

The Freedom of the Seas is a Royal Caribbean ship (RCCL). When folks say "Norwegian," they are typically referring to Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL).

I think I know what is coming next!

And, I am looking forward to it!

TCD

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

Loving your TR! But sorry, I want to correct one tiny thing. The Freedom of the Seas is a Royal Caribbean ship, not Norwegian. She is one magnificent ship!

[Sensei 18]

:rofl2:

Well thank you for the compliment.

And I must compliment you as well: You are doing a fine job!

I love your manatee photos!

And the cruise ship photos!

Sorry, but I have one small correction on this statement:

The Freedom of the Seas is a Royal Caribbean ship (RCCL). When folks say "Norwegian," they are typically referring to Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL).

I think I know what is coming next!

And, I am looking forward to it!

TCD

See there. I'm still capable of screwing this TR up. Thanks to you and CC for correcting me. Dang you'd have thought I could read wouldn't you.:-[

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I love your Dream photos.

Especially this one.

You can even see folks sliding in the Aqua Duck!

Cool!

I haven't seen photos of the Dream from this perspective before.

It sure looks way bigger than the Magic or Wonder.

TCD

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

OMG!!! That is so cool!!! I saw my cabin!!! I can't WAIT!!!!!! Less than two weeks!!!

[Sensei 18]

Yep, TCD. That ship is HUGE. Probably the largest I've ever seen close up. By the way, I had my binocs with me and actually watched the harbor pilot transfer back to his boat. That was way cool too. Never seen that before.

As for the Norwegian/Royal Caribbean mess up, I did that while we were at the park also. For some reason I kept calling the ship Norwegian. Needless to say, I got corrected there also. It's tough when you get something in your head and it just won't go away.

I didn't take many photos for the rest of the trip except the following which will close out this, my first, trip report. Thanks to all for tuning in and hope those that are going on the cruise have a wonderful, magical, time.

Full moon on the rise with a bonus. Look closely at the small ghost image.

More of the moon rise:

And, one very early in the evening.

Well, that's all for this one. Thanks again for all the comments.

[doodlebug....Cherie 461]

I love this report :banana:

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Sensei-

I found a few photos that I took from the Wonder as we were leaving Port Canaveral on a cruise we took back in 2009.

Here are the folks up on the top deck, I believe you can see Jetty Park there on the right in the back of the photo:

This was neat. These people apparently knew someone on the ship, as some of the folks in the group that I just posted a photo of, were yelling and waving to them. If you ever want to wave to people on this ships, this would be a good place to do so:

The last thing that we came to as we left the channel is Jetty Park. Here we are approaching it:

It looks from your photos that there are campsites back where the trees are in these photos. It also looks like there are sites that are completely out in the open:

You may have spotted the pilot boat above. Here's another shot of it:

You know what would be cool?

If someone would go and take some photos of the Fiends leaving on the Dream! And hold up a Bon Voyage Fiends sign!

Maybe we have a local Fiend who would be willing to do that?

TCD