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Gray skies dampen Jobbie Nooner party on Lake St. Clair
Lake St. Clair is home to one of the largest lake parties of the year and despite the rain early Friday afternoon, boaters and revelers showed up for the annual Jobbie Nooner on the sandbars around Gull Island.
Clouds and rain on Friday didn’t seem to stop the party as many boaters and revelers gathered to listen to music and consumer alcohol, even with temperatures hovering in the mid-60s. The 49-year-old annual tradition of playing hooky from work to party on the shores of a remote island at the mouth of the St. Clair River has become a well-known event for residents in Southeast Michigan and beyond.
“We’re optimistic and still going to party,” said Brittany Misiak, 29, of St. Clair Shores, while enduring the rain on the water around noon.
Misiak and her friends were hanging out in the afternoon, trying to swim as soon as possible. “We’re still probably going to end up in the water,” she said.
Jason Frame, of Chesterfield, has been to the party fifteen times. On Friday, he was driving a boat for a group of partygoers. He said he’s seen Jobbie Nooner get bigger over the years, but this year just missed the mark.
“It has been growing but this year it’s really small,” Frame said.
While the chance to party on the water was dampened by the rain, some dedicated attendees and newcomers were on the lake by noon anyway. Once the rain let up around 1 p.m., revelers were stepping out from under their boat’s canopies and jumping into the water.
Kelly Vais, 50, and her husband, Alec Vais, traveled from their home in San Antonio, Texas to celebrate Alec’s 50th birthday at Jobbie Nooner. However, the rain spoiled the fun a little bit.
“We flew all the way here from Texas and this sucks,” Kelly Vais said.
The couple, who are originally from Michigan, spent the day with their friends on the lake anyway in an attempt to rekindle the birthday celebration. “We came just for today but we won’t be coming back,” she said.
This year’s weather was a departure from last year, when attendance was much higher because of clear skies and temperatures hitting the low 90s. The Jobbie Nooner in 2021 was a rain-soaked event.
A heavy police presence was still patrolling around Gull Island despite the smaller crowds. “This is about the tenth of what we normally get, so this is a very small crowd,” said St. Clair County Sheriff’s Marine Division Sergeant Gary Reiss.
The U.S Coast Guard, the St. Clair County Sheriff’s office, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, U.S Customs and Border Patrol and other police departments were present by noon. Reiss said about 10 officers from the St. Clair County Sheriff’s patrol the island all day for Jobbie Nooner, while working with other departments.
Raven Simmons, of Detroit, said Friday was her first time at Jobbie Nooner, and despite the weather, she was planning on having a good time with her friends on the lake.
“We’ll be here next year for sure,” Simmons said.
Twitter: @shawntay_lewis
