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Destination: Space Coast

AS SEEN IN THE FALL 2003 ISSUE

In this issue’s featured destination we’ve pushed the envelope of our South Florida region all the way up to our Space Coast were my family and I explored the tourist attractions and fishing opportunities of the area. We lodged at the Kennedy Space Center Holiday Inn Riverfront in Titusville—commonly known as the redfish capital of the world. Titusville is not a typical “tourist town” as it was developed to accommodate the personnel and supporting companies of NASA.

It has a population of 42,000 and hasn’t changed much since the 1960’s. Titusville is becoming an “eco-tourist” town because it is centrally located between Cocoa Beach and several wildlife refuges. It has a unique variety of angling activities from flats fishing in the saltwater rivers and lagoons to deep sea fishing in the Atlantic.

At first we were like a fish out of water in this region, and being without our ‘71 Hewes Bonefisher that was being refurbished didn’t help. We had only been in this part of Florida to watch space shuttles blast off. Fortunately Debbie Page- Wright, Director of Sales at our host Holiday Inn, was a long time resident of Titusville and she was able to steer us in the right direction for family and fishing fun. Debbie has come to know many of the areas top fishing guides through the various tournaments making this Inn their headquarters including the Hunt for Reds in October (10/3/03 – 10/4/03) which is the largest inshore tournament in America with nearly 1500 anglers in 2002 and the Professional Redfish Tour in January. Tournament facilities include two banquet rooms, ample trailer parking, adjacent public boat ramps, pool and onsite restaurant and lounge. An additional angler amenity is the electrical outlets conveniently located in the parking area that facilitate battery charging and other boating maintenance.

We arrived at our destination Wednesday night in the wake of the wave that became Tropical Storm Erika. We hoped the unstable atmospheric conditions would settle down and not interfere with our vacation activities. We awoke Thursday to a foggy morning with low laying clouds creating poor visibility. We gazed out at what was the Indian River Lagoon and contemplated our choices of activities for this kind of weather. The heat of the morning sun began to burn off the haze and we could now see the horizon and make out pelicans diving for food. “Do you see that?” my son said excitedly as he pointed to the emerging skyline. It was an enormous monolithic block eclipsing the rising sun directly across the river. It was the VAB (Vehicle Assembly Building), the tallest one story building in the world used to assemble both Apollo and Space Shuttle vehicles. We could also see the two NASA launch pads right from our hotel balcony. This unveiling of the closeness of Kennedy Space Center prompted us to risk the rain and take the tour of our nation’s strategic space port. We chose to upgrade our tour with the “up close” option that included a tour guide on the bus and special access to the launch pad and VAB areas. One of the most impressive parts of the tour, though, is the Apollo/Saturn V Center built in 1996 that is included with general admission.

The awesome sight of an actual Saturn V rocket displayed horizontally and running the length of the building is impressive. The Apollo spacecraft is positioned with its huge exhaust rings facing visitors as they enter the building. It was truly amazing.

Friday we visited the Astronaut Hall of Fame and braved a few of the astronaut training simulation “rides”. Then we headed south to the Cocoa Beach Pier and simply watched the surfers enjoy the huge waves created by the passing storm since pier fishing that day was not a viable option.

In the late afternoon we drove north to Canaveral National Seashore, the last undeveloped beach on the Florida east coast. Here the wide and long (24 miles) stretch of beach surfers and surf anglers have plenty of space to share their sports. Staked along the inside perimeter of the protective sand dunes there was a multitude of sea turtle nest markers noting important conservation data.

(Since 1984, the number of sea turtle nests on this beach has almost doubled from approximately 2100 to over 4000). Of course the surf fishing is also good in this pristine area, especially pompano, whiting and bluefish. Saturday morning my husband, Pasta, and my youngest son went fishing with guide Captain Kelly Wiggins. Capt. Wiggins specializes in light tackle fishing and has guided in the area for over six years. The weather improved but the recent storm churned up the grassy bottom and combined with the full moon made for poor fishing conditions. However, Capt. Wiggins made sure fish were caught including a nice jack crevalle that Andy got to reel in. Pasta also jumped a tarpon but the area’s famous large redfish proved elusive during the half-day trip. Saturday afternoon we headed to Port Canaveral to check out the offshore fishing action of the day.

Dockside we had a great lunch at Rusty’s, one of the many fabulous seafood restaurants in the port, and watched the charter boats return with the day’s catch. Kingfish, and cobia were the most popular fish brought in that day but other species abound in the waters. In addition to the variety of fishing opportunities, other activities in the area include ecotours and beach horseback riding (restrictions apply).

Fall is an excellent time to visit the Space Coast because migrating birds and fish are heading through and to the area and the climate is wonderful. The return of our country’s manned exploration of space is also on the horizon and I look forward to returning to the Riverfront Kennedy Space Center Holiday Inn for a front row view of the blastoff. By then I know our boat will be ready and next time we will not leave home without it!

About the Author:

Debby Pantaleo was born and raised in Miami, FL. As a school girl in the early 1970’s she spent many summer days aboard the “Monde Kane,” a 56’ sport fishing charter boat based out of the “Castaways” dock in Sunny Isles. In high school (N.M.B.) she met her husband, marine artist Pasta Pantaleo and this year they will be celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary. They are raising two sons, ages 8 and 15, and they all enjoy boating, fishing, and vacationing in south Florida. In addition to working part-time in their family business, “Reel Life Art”, Debby enjoys writing and photography. Look for Debby’s other articles in past and future issues of The South Florida Sport fishing Magazine.

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