RV Florida this Spring

Story and photos
by Kathleen Walls

Florida's state parks are the perfect base for a spring road trip. Florida has 52 Parks with RV camping. They earn high-rankings from camping experts.  Popularity has downsides. It's hard to book a site. Florida isn't the cheapest, but there're some discounts. Rates vary from $16 to $42. All Florida State Parks have a nonrefundable $6.70 reservation fee and a $7 nightly utility fee for RVs. Whether you own an RV or want to get started RVing, GoRVing offers rental and other facts for RVing.

Florida Keys

Bahia Honda State Park  is one of Florida's most popular parks. It's at mile markers 36-38 of the Florida Keys, the closest park with camping to Key West. It's close to Big Pine Key with its adorable Key Deer. The Keys are a high-priority RVing area and the private parks' rates average over $100 a night, so Bahia Honda is a bargain with a $36 base rate.

There are two other two state parks in the Keys with camping. Curry Hammock, near the middle of the Keys, offers more secluded sites but is about 20 miles farther from Key West. Nearby Big Pine Key is where you may see a Key Deer.

 John Pennekamp Coral Reef in Key Largo is the country's first undersea park, but about 100 miles from Key West. Sites are small and lack privacy. One of the most amazinfg things to do at KeyLargo is take a ride on the actual African Queen used in the movie.

Pro tip: There are some tricks to book at Keys parks and any of the busy Florida parks. Registration opens 11 months in advance at 8 a.m. eastern-time for Florida residents, 12 moinths for others. Be on your computer and ready to book precisely at 8. Within a few minutes, they'll all be booked. Another trick is to keep checking often and occasionally someone cancels. Grab that spot fast. It won't last long. There are websites like Wandering Labs that monitor campgrounds for cancelations. There's a free version that searches three parks and emails you when sites open. The paid option monitors more often and notifies with texts.

South Florida

Hillsborough River State Park is minutes from Tampa and a delightful refuge from traffic and crowds. Fort Foster State Historic Site, a reconstructed Seminole Wars fort, is part of the park and offers guided tours occasionally.

Jonathan Dickinson State Park is the perfect base to visit Palm Beach. It's about 15 miles away. You can see from Hobe Sound to the Atlantic from its observation deck. The park offers a trip on the Loxahatchee Queen II to visit the preserved homesite of Trapper Nelson, the self-styled "Wild Man of the Loxahatchee." It's a wonderful place to spot wildlife. Two mama sandhill cranes and their babies were wandering around the park and seemed to not mnd people stopping to take their pictures.

Pro tip: Florida residents over 65, or having a current Social Security disability award, or a 100 percent federal disability award, get a 50 percent discount on the base camping fee.

Central Florida

Central Florida is filled with natural springs. What better place to camp? If the springs, the wildlife, the museum, and proximity to Ocala and the Ocala National Forest weren't enough to make Silver Springs State Park a must, the glass-bottomed boat tours cinch it as one of my favorite parks.

Blue Spring State Park, near DeLand, is a year-round home to some manatees and in winter, they're here in droves. I saw over 50 one day. The boat tour is fantastic. The captain identified countless wild birds and told me things I never knew, like a blue heron is white its first year. It's a good base for visiting Daytona or DeLand.

Wekiwa Springs State Park surprised me with many slots open since it's just about 16 miles from Orlando. It offers swimming, kayaking, canoeing, wildlife viewing, like the eagles I spotted near the campground. Don't write off neighboring Seminole County's fun attractions like the Sanford Ghost Tour and the many breweries. It's German restaurant, Hollerbach's Willow Tree Café, is the best ever.

Manatee Springs lives up to its name with the winter influx of manatees. It's 800-foot boardwalk engulfs you with cypress trees and opens on its first-magnitude springs. It's about a half-hour drive to the gulf beaches. Sites are often available and it's only $20 a night.

Rainbow Springs State Park was once a theme park. Its springs are crystal-clear and popular for swimming or kayaking. Its natural beauty and waterfalls draw the artists you see in the park painting.

When visiting Daytona Beach, Tomoka State Park is nearby. It's great for wildlife viewing. There've been Florida panther sightings in the area and one confirmed in the park in 2008. Of course don't miss the beach.

Northeast Florida

Anastasia State Park is the closest park to popular Saint Augustine. You can see the historic lighthouse from the park. It's a beautiful park with a beach on Salt Run. You can rent kayaks or canoes and watch for wildlife, including dolphins and water birds.

If you want to visit St. Augustine, but if Anastasia is booked for your days, try  Faver Dykes State Park. It's just about a half-hour drive from the Historic District. You pay only $18 per night at Faver Dykes compared to $28 at Anastasia. You lose out on the beach with swimming and surfing, but Faver Dykes is quieter with more trees and larger sites.

Sometimes lesser-known parks are real treasures. Mike Roess Gold Head State Park in Keystone Heights is about an hour's drive to Jacksonville. It's one of Florida's oldest state parks. The bathhouse facing Lake Johnson was built by the CCC.

Pro Tip: There's a hiking trail to an old mill site and Florida National Scenic Trail passes through the park. It's on the Great Florida Birding & Wildlife Trail. I've seen rare Sherman Fox Squirrels there often.

History and nature combine at Fort Clinch State Park a short distance from Jacksonville. They do reenactments at the well-preserved Civil War fort. The wildlife and nature are fantastic.

Panhandle

One of the most popular parks at the eastern edge of the Florida Panhandle is Florida Caverns State Park near Marianna. Base camping fee is $20 per night and the cave tour is spectacular.

If you can't book Florida Caverns,  Falling Waters State Park is a quieter park with more private sites plus a beautiful waterfall and sinkhole. It's about 25 miles away, so you can still book the cave tour.

Three Rivers sits near the Florida/Georgia border where Chattahoochee and Flint rivers converge to form Lake Seminole with some of the best freshwater fishing. While in the Panhandle, visit Seacrest Wolf Preserve. You'll get up close and personal with wolves.

Torreya is another good choice nearby. It's named for the Torreya tree, a rare species, which grows only on the bluffs along Apalachicola River. This park is a big bird watcher site and has a small boat launch. The park has historic Gregory House you can visit.

Towards the western end of the panhandle, Grayton Beach State Park is popular for its coastal dune lake, found in only a few locations worldwide and just two states in the U.S. Because it's closer to the beach, it's hard to book.

Blackwater River State Park is another good choice for visiting the western panhandle. It's about an hour's drive from Pensacola or Fort Walton. It's one of the most beautiful Florida State Parks thanks to the Blackwater River. It's wonderful for kayaking or canoeing.

O'Leno State Park is another oldie-but-goodie a few miles from Lake City. It has a museum dedicated to the CCC workers who built the park and some of the original CCC buildings. The Nature Center has a small pen for turtles and lots of information inside. Check out the suspension bridge and paddle the Sante Fe River from their launch.

Pro Tip: It's just a few miles from Ichetucknee Springs State Park for tubing fun. 

Dr. Julian G. Bruce St. George Island State Park is on a barrier island on "The Forgotten Coast.” Your swimming choices are gulf waves or bay calm. Don't miss the amazing driftwood along the beach.

Pro Tip: While on the island, visit the historic Cape St George Lighthouse.

Ruth B. Kirby Gilchrist Blue Springs State Park, Florida's newest state park, has several springs. Swimming and snorkeling are popular in the crystal clear water. Try paddling the fourth-of-a-mile spring run to Santa Fe River. The park is near Lake City and Gainesville.

When visiting Gainesville, Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park is the place to stay. It's one of the few places you can see wild horses and bison.

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