|
Welcome back to the Stegbone's newsletter. We wish everyone a wonderful holiday season and pass along warm greetings.
The more Stegbones changes, the more it seems to also stay the same. While the camp is officially for sale, in today's market, we are in no hurry to pass it along to someone who does not appreciate all the special qualities it has - and without insuring that it will still be here for our guests to enjoy, much as you have always done. Many of our staff you are familiar to you - Jim Stege is still the Owner and is able to help out usually on Saturdays. Terry Hardin lives in the river house that used to be #7 and is now her private home. Terry handles reservations, check-in and check-out, and overall camp operations. Many guests have now met James Crosby, who is our caretaker, dock manager, cleans fish and gives fishing advice, and will generally help with all your needs. His wife Trish, cleans the cabins and make sure everything inside is ready for your arrival. Kyle is a terrific Crescent City HS student and has been helping out with mowing and utilizing his mechanical skills. Terry's grandson Aaron, helps out on our website and a variety of other tasks around the camp. So some of the names are new, some aren't. The team works well together. Whether it's for the fishing, spending time with friends, viewing our abundant wildlife and natural setting, or just looking for some well-deserved downtime. You will soon find out why so many of our customers have been coming back for many of the over 65 years that we have been in operation. We look forward to your visit. Catch ya later, Jim Just a brief update....
Stan left Stegbones in mid-June. His help has been much appreciated over the years. Not to worry, Jim and Terry are both committed to our guests and making their stay as enjoyable as possible. The camp will continue as it always has, no one person can define its essence. We will take our time finding the right person, any suggestions are welcome. The weather was a puzzle this year, the water was late warming up and the fishing was effected. Nevertheless, we had a full season and we want to say how much we appreciate all of you and your continued patronage.... Thank you, Jim and Terry Friends and visitors:
Thanks to all of our guests who returned this past spring!! With the economy the way it is, we were concerned. But you all are the best and we ended up having a busy season. A few news items -Izzie, our former basset hound, has found a good home up the hill. Sadie is aging (12 +/-), but manages to follow us around the camp pretty faithfully. She has been a great camp dog for us. High water and something like 30 inches of rain in a week during April sure made the fishing challenging for a while. For the most part though, our groups did well all through the season. We are working on getting the gas pump fixed - finding somebody who will service it is a challenge. But it should be up and running again soon. We have a new AC unit in #2. In trying to come up with some savings for our customers in this economy,we have re-thought our slip rates . We will be reducing to $6.00 a night. We are sorry we can't do more but cabin costs are higher than ever. Hope this helps. Stan hopes to do some work on the dock this summer to even-up and stabilize the sections in front of the office and the rocking chairs. We have begun asking guests to park boat trailers across the street to make driving through the camp and parking in it easier. Thanks for helping on this. We all appreciate Stan and all of his efforts to make your stay comfortable and keep the camp operating well. Kathy keeps the cabins orderly.Terry has been a great help in Jim's absence - the architecture business is still a bit challenging of late (things appear to be improving slowly!) While the camp is officially listed for sale, realities and our desire to sell it to the right people and for the right purpose probably mean it will still be Stegbone's for quite some time to come. So, all in all, our little old traditional Florida fish camp seems to do pretty well. Not many places where our guests can still do what they do at here - and at a fairly reasonable price too. So, keep us in mind this fall!! We certainly appreciate you continuing to visit us. Catch ya later, Stan, Terry and Jim To all of our great returning customers and to our new friends. Our decision to abandon linen services this summer has not gone over well. As always, we try to listen to our customers. We will be continuing the linen service. That's the good news.
Our costs have really gone up in the last couple of years. We want to continue the tradition of a true fish camp in old Florida . So many are disappearing- we heard this weekend that Bass World closed its doors- so sad. To continue with the same level of services and amenities- we must raise our rates. Please see the rates page. We don't take rate changes lightly and only do so after serious contemplation of our books. We ask that you please understand the need for the rate increase and that it is only based on costs. Operating in the black is a very distant goal for us, we are just attempting to stay afloat! Otherwise, things are going great with our new staff, Stan, Gail and Jennifer. Your positive feedback has been much appreciated. Hopefully, we have turned a new corner and your needs are once again being met. We wish there were more days in April and May so that more of you could be accommodated. Sorry to all the folks that aren't able to get reservations in those monthes. Fall is a great season, the old fisherman around here say it's as good or better than the spring ! We encourage you to give it a try. As always, we wish everyone good fishing and a peaceful life--- Catch ya' later, Terry, Jim , Stan, Gail and Jennifer Welcome back - and hello to our new visitors.
Stegbone's Fish Camp in Welaka remains one of the very few true fish camps on the great St. Johns River, the Bass Capitol of the World. The real estate 'boom' of recent times and the many pressures of life today have caused a number of our local camps to disappear. But Stegbone's remains fully intact today, a true old Florida experience. While the place itself and the experience are nearly the same, some of the personalities aren't. Stan Plaisted, who has tirelessly and faithfully helped us with innumerable repairs over the last 7 years, is now living full-time with his wife Patti across the street in the double-wide. Stan has a great knowledge of the river and of the Welaka area and he continues to take care of the premises and watch out over all of our guests. He is assisted by Gail Jones, who handles check-in/check-out and reservations. Together, they are nearly always available to help you enjoy your stay. Terry and Jim are again closely involved in the camp operation. Jim does his architecture during the week but slips over for a visit as often as possible, and Terry assists with the operations of the camp from St. Augustine and with numerous visits. Both are around most weekends. Our dogs, Sadie (white shepard) and Izzie Lu (bassett), are 10 and 2 1/2 years old. If you believe in reincarnation, you might want to consider coming back as a camp dog - talk about a life! In order to continue to hold down costs, beginning August 1, 2007, we are ending the linen service that we have been providing. This means that you will need to bring your own sheets, pillow cases, towels and wash cloth and make your bed upon arrival. We expect this to make a big difference by reducing labor and the cost of the linen service. Thanks for your understanding. As always, we are doing little things to improve the camp. You will notice these when you get here. All in all, things are going well. No hurricanes last fall, Stan is chumming the dock, the hawks are perching on the martin gourds, and there's plenty of wood for the campfire. Can't complain too much now, can we. Wishing you all the best. Stan, Gail, Terry and Jim |
|
