An afternoon at the Redneck Yacht Club

On one of my earlier trips to the States, I went to stay for a few days in Yulee, Florida, with my friends Mike and Wanda. The year was 2009. While I was there, Mike took me to visit Reni’s Redneck Yacht Club on US-17. This was a venue where he often played with his band. We set off in his truck to travel the four miles or so from his home to get there.

Just before the road crossed the river, we turned down onto the unpaved parking lot. Ahead, I could see the red wooden building that was set to one side of the highway. In front of it, a dozen or more motorbikes and some trucks were parked up. As we got out of the truck, we could hear the sound of the music from the band that was playing that day. Some people were seated at an assortment of tables outside the club. Others were standing while listening to the music, or chatting among themselves as they drank their beers.

This Riverside Bar

The Redneck Yacht Club a small bar situated on the river front of the Nassau River. This is a meandering river that weaves its way through the Nassau County countryside towards Jacksonville. There were some tables and chairs on the wooden deck in front of the building by the entrance door. A couple of large, straw-covered parasols gave some welcome shade for when the sun was strong.

A notice, fixed to a post alongside the steps leading up to the deck, read, “If you B.Y.O.B, you will be asked to L.E.A.V.E – and don’t come back”. The bar owners obviously weren’t planning on losing any sales of their own beer.

In spite of it’s name, I am not sure how much sailing was done from this place. I never saw any yachts in the vicinity. It was, however, a popular haunt for rednecks and bikers. Mike certainly came under the latter category, being a keen biker. He is also a brilliant musician. However, the day we went there was his day off from playing. I didn’t know the name of the band that was there, though I’m sure Mike did.

The band was set up on an raised outdoor platform, under a car-port-style roof, which passed as a bandstand. This roof gave them some shelter from the sun, or rain, depending on the weather on the day. I’m glad to say, it was a bright sunny day for my visit, though cool enough for me to be wearing my thick red cardigan.

About Fred, the Cockerel ‘Guard Dog’

Weaving his way in and out of the legs of people and tables legs, was a large cockerel, or rooster, named Fred. He was a magnificent looking bird, with shiny russet plumage. He was perfectly content to mingle with the crowd as they drank their beers or other beverages. However, so I was told, he had a character change at night. Woe betide any intruder who tried to enter the premises after closing time as they would find themselves being viciously attacked by a large ball of beak and feathers. Fortunately, I didn’t have to witness this spectacle.

The Band

The band playing that day were a six-piece group: four guitarists, a drummer and a vocalist. They were playing loud, up-beat, rock-style music. I don’t recall being familiar with any of the songs they were singing. Behind the open-backed stage, the reeds alongside the river banks and a large tree could be seen. Unfortunately, because the band were in the shadow of the stage roof, and the sky behind it was so bright, the photo I took of them was very under-exposed … my apologies.

The crowd were evidently happy with the bands offerings, as they listened and chatted among themselves. Mike knew a number of people there, though they were all strangers to me, and he spent some time talking with them.

We had a couple of drinks each while we were there – mine was a non-alcoholic root beer. Later, when we felt we’d been there long enough, we headed back to Mike’s home to have a meal that Wanda had prepared for us.