FL questions

[kfp673]

Hello All,

We are considering booking a last minute trip to FL in December. With 3 kids < 12 most of our trips to FL in the past have been Disney related but this would just be a warm weather get away. That said, it would be nice to be within a few hours drive of the parks in case we decide to take a 1 day trip. However, what we are really looking for is a suggestion of areas to camp where we could kayak on the spring feed rivers where the manatee's go. I have seen some beautiful pictures but am unsure of the specific areas. I checked Manatee Springs state park and that (and all other state parks) are sold out most of the winter. I can find sites at private parks but looking for suggested areas. Ideally we would be able to kayak from our campground, but with booking this late we can't be too picky, so even if we were within a 30-45 minute drive.

To recap, FL camping with hookups, within a few hours of Orlando, and within 30-45 minutes of good kayaking with manatees. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance!

[mileshuff]

agesilaus wrote:
Lifetime Florida resident and I have never heard of a gator attacking a boat. The very rare gator attacks, maybe one every other year at a guess, occurs mainly when idiots feed a gator and get it used to people and mainly occurs in the evening at dusk and generally on smaller people. You are a thousand times more liking to get hurt by some drunk driver in a car or a BOAT

I've found that where there are manatees there are no gators. Gators don't seem to want to hang around if there is a manatee in the same area. Was in the waters near Kennedy where a frequent huge gator hangs out. Last trip couldn't figure out why the gator was no where to be found until we spotted two manatees.

[Rickyrocket]

North Beach cg in St.Augustine borders the intercoastal on one side and the ocean on the other.

[JoeH]

SpeakEasy wrote:
A couple of thoughts.

First - if you do decide that Ft. DeSoto Park looks good don't be put off by lack of available sites. On Friday mornings (at least this was true before COVID) they release a number of sites for the following week. We were able to get a site that way sort of last minute a couple years back.

Second, there is an RV park in the Bradenton area, Frog Creek, that my cousin spends the winter at. She's really into kayaking, and she loves this park for that. I haven't been there, and I don't know if there are manatees, but apparently it's ideal for kayaking.

Have fun!


-Speak

No manatees around there( Frog Creek) ... at least not congregating. It's always possible to see them in the area as they go out from their warm water spots to feed during the day. . We sometimes get them in the canal behind our house. It is good paddling there in the tidal creeks and Bishop Harbor area.
At the Big Bend Power Plant about 15 miles north in Apollo Beach, there is a Manatee viewing station and education center. In the winter months, there are literally hundreds of manatees there. BUT, due to covid they are closed until November 2021 .

[kfp673]

Guy Roan wrote:

kfp673 wrote:
Hello again all. Brining this thread back to life. We thought this trip was off and then suddenly it came back to life. We are heading south the week of 3/28-4/3. Pretty darn last minute! I am driving myself nuts google searching and looking at RV parks / campgrounds so I am hoping for a few specific suggestions or some more specific area suggestions. Sites are stil available at many RV parks but state parks are totally out. Shame because there are some great looking parks.

So.. Here is what I am thinking. Centralized spot where we can easy take day trips to kayak and possibly see manatees and/or nature in general, go to a great beach ( perfect world our site would be on the beach), possibly a day trip to an Orlando park, possible day trip to Clearwater area to see a spring training game. With that said it looks like areas north west of Orlando have most except beaches. If we go to Atlantic side they have beaches but far away from the rest of my list. Are there any gulf beaches I am missing? Any awesome RV parks you ahve been to? HELP!!! 😉 Spending waaayyy to much time on google maps and the computer so all input is welcome. And yes, I am still considering a lot of what has already been written as well. Thanks again all!

If you are coming from PA; figure two days coming and two days returning you are trying to fit in way too much for the time you'll have.
Pick two of the items you have on your list and then aim for a RV park near them. You and your family will enjoy the trip a lot better than trying to fit it all in.
From One who has experienced all that Florida has to offer over the past fifty five years , and still do now at age 85 !

Guy

Thanks for the reply. To be clear, we will be in Fl for a full week. I am looking at Sunday to Saturday however since it seems to give more availability. We will boondocks somewhere Saturday night.

[ferndaleflyer]

Leaving in the Am for FL. Winter Quarters Pasco for a week then to Smyrna for a week. 1 day down and 1 day back from Baltimore. Also went to West Palm over Christmas/New Years. I am 80 driving a DP with a toad. We just booked last week. You have fun and be safe.

[SpeakEasy]

A couple of thoughts.

First - if you do decide that Ft. DeSoto Park looks good don't be put off by lack of available sites. On Friday mornings (at least this was true before COVID) they release a number of sites for the following week. We were able to get a site that way sort of last minute a couple years back.

Second, there is an RV park in the Bradenton area, Frog Creek, that my cousin spends the winter at. She's really into kayaking, and she loves this park for that. I haven't been there, and I don't know if there are manatees, but apparently it's ideal for kayaking.

Have fun!

-Speak

[Guy_Roan]

kfp673 wrote:
Hello again all. Brining this thread back to life. We thought this trip was off and then suddenly it came back to life. We are heading south the week of 3/28-4/3. Pretty darn last minute! I am driving myself nuts google searching and looking at RV parks / campgrounds so I am hoping for a few specific suggestions or some more specific area suggestions. Sites are stil available at many RV parks but state parks are totally out. Shame because there are some great looking parks.

So.. Here is what I am thinking. Centralized spot where we can easy take day trips to kayak and possibly see manatees and/or nature in general, go to a great beach ( perfect world our site would be on the beach), possibly a day trip to an Orlando park, possible day trip to Clearwater area to see a spring training game. With that said it looks like areas north west of Orlando have most except beaches. If we go to Atlantic side they have beaches but far away from the rest of my list. Are there any gulf beaches I am missing? Any awesome RV parks you ahve been to? HELP!!! 😉 Spending waaayyy to much time on google maps and the computer so all input is welcome. And yes, I am still considering a lot of what has already been written as well. Thanks again all!

If you are coming from PA; figure two days coming and two days returning you are trying to fit in way too much for the time you'll have.
Pick two of the items you have on your list and then aim for a RV park near them. You and your family will enjoy the trip a lot better than trying to fit it all in.
From One who has experienced all that Florida has to offer over the past fifty five years , and still do now at age 85 !

Guy

[JoeH]

You might want to check Mary's Fish Camp. Close to Weeki Wachee Springs and Crystal River. Short drive to the beaches at Clearwater.

[magicbus]

You can have it all at Ft De Soto County Park. You’ll have to see if they have room.

Dave

[wowens79]

We stayed at Lake Rousseau RV park, it is about half way between Rainbow Springs and Crystal River. Decent campground and friendly people, we misted used it for a base camp, and didn’t spent much time there.
Rainbow and Crystal Rivers are amazing. Rainbow has tons of wildlife, but no manatees.

[agesilaus]

There are a few gulf beaches but they are generally off the main roads and maybe not so easy to find. I can think of three. And these are not the wide sand beaches you will find from Tampa/St Pete south or on the Atlantic. St Pete beach has excellent beaches that may not be so far for you.
Rock Crusher Canyon is one I often hear mentions as an RV resort near Crystal River. For swimming do not ignore the springs and rivers.

[kfp673]

Hello again all. Brining this thread back to life. We thought this trip was off and then suddenly it came back to life. We are heading south the week of 3/28-4/3. Pretty darn last minute! I am driving myself nuts google searching and looking at RV parks / campgrounds so I am hoping for a few specific suggestions or some more specific area suggestions. Sites are stil available at many RV parks but state parks are totally out. Shame because there are some great looking parks.

So.. Here is what I am thinking. Centralized spot where we can easy take day trips to kayak and possibly see manatees and/or nature in general, go to a great beach ( perfect world our site would be on the beach), possibly a day trip to an Orlando park, possible day trip to Clearwater area to see a spring training game. With that said it looks like areas north west of Orlando have most except beaches. If we go to Atlantic side they have beaches but far away from the rest of my list. Are there any gulf beaches I am missing? Any awesome RV parks you ahve been to? HELP!!! 😉 Spending waaayyy to much time on google maps and the computer so all input is welcome. And yes, I am still considering a lot of what has already been written as well. Thanks again all!

[agesilaus]

CFerguson wrote:

dodge guy wrote:
LOL! Am I the only “Karen” (Kevin) worried about alligators if you go kayaking!...

No, you certainly are not! Anything that thinks its higher in the food chain than i am gets my complete respect.

Lifetime Florida resident and I have never heard of a gator attacking a boat. The very rare gator attacks, maybe one every other year at a guess, occurs mainly when idiots feed a gator and get it used to people and mainly occurs in the evening at dusk and generally on smaller people. You are a thousand times more liking to get hurt by some drunk driver in a car or a BOAT

[kfp673]

Thanks again everyone! This is all great info! Traveling & towing roughly 20 hours with 3 kids can be a challenge as many of you know so it's important to do our best to be in the right spot where everyone will have fun. I'll continue researching all of these suggested areas.