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I've never launched out of St Joe. ( Buckda, where are you?) I know there are 2 launch areas on each side of the river. Which one is bettter? Any other places?
Terry, I responded to your e-mail, but figured that it might be nice to have it here for future reference.
The ramp on the north bank of the river is the Michigan DNR facility, and is located in Benton Harbor. The ramp on the shouth bank of the river is operated by the city of St. Joseph.
The state ramp is staffed on weekends, but I'm not sure if it is staffed on week days. It cost $6/day or $24 for a season access to all Michigan DNR ramps. (far better value). The St. Joe ramp costs $7/day for access for non-residents of the City.
The State ramp has a much better configuration in relation to river currents, making launch and retrieval easier - the St. Joe ramp has a wicked cross-current.
The state ramp is often more crowded, but has two more access ramps than the city ramp, however, both are nice, long, concrete ramps with nice accessory docks alongside.
The state ramp has bathrooms and running water (when unlocked) and a very nasty outhouse that is always open. The City ramp only has a port-o-john, but it is usually pretty clean and receives regular service.
The state ramp is in a rougher town, with a lot of transient foot traffic in the parking area, which sometimes makes me uneasy - especially if retrieving late at night; however, I've never had my truck broken into, and there is not much evidence of burglaries (i.e. not a lot of broken auto glass on the pavement, etc)...and that parking lot doesn't see regular cleanup duty, so it's not like they just sweep it up...there'd be evidence if there were a lot of that activity. You do get asked 'for a dollar' now and again though.
The state ramp is also near a convenience store with food/beer, ice, bait, etc. A nice amenity. There is nothing near the City Ramp other than Brian's Marina, which has somewhat limited hours.
I use the State Ramp all the time simply because I have a seasonal DNR permit and because I don't like the cross-currents at the St. Joe Ramp.
