You just never know…

Florida is the land of snowbirds. We normally don’t like big, crowded campgrounds. It seemed we were going to have a hard time finding the kind of campgrounds we normally like to stay at. I knew we wouldn’t have a hard time finding those little out of the way places in the pandhandle but as we moved further south, I saw that I was going to work at finding the kind of places we liked.

Ocala National Forest ended up being one of the best places to find a little out of the way campgrounds with very few people. We paid anywhere from $4 a night to $20 a night for nice private campsites. Probably our favorite places in cluded the northern part of the NF. There were plenty of lakes for fishing and trails for hiking or biking. The downside of staying there was no communication with the outside world unless you took a drive to a nearby town. Cell towers were just too far away.

We saw lots of wildlife. We were treated to a pair of Sandhill Cranes on Delancey Lake. Every evening they would land near our trailer and walk around calling to each other. They did not seem to mind me getting close enough to get some great pictures.

Sam and Dave had no trouble finding places to fish. I had no trouble finding places to hike. It seemed there was so many trails that weren’t on the map – all for me to explore. I enjoyed walking along on sections of the Florida Trail. Juniper Creek provided us with a fun paddle. We ended up doing it 3 times.

Our stay in Everglades National Park was enjoyable with Long Pine Key Campground being our favorite. Again we were out of communication range but there was plenty of wildlife, paddling, hiking and biking to keep us busy.

When we decided to head north because the days were beginning to get hot and the bugs were multiplying. I began my search for a place to stay around a wildlife conservation area where the endangered Snail Kite was known to be reliably sighted. I found a little out of the way place on Blue Cypress Lake called Mel’s Fish Camp. I was surprised to find out that they offered free camping on a “pretty little lake”. It took some searching via the internet to find this place and it was worth it!

You can’t expect much for free and that is true about this place. I talked to the manager of the county park the day before. We arrived to find the camping area was a narrow grass slit along a ditch and a gravel road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What was so fantastic about this place was the wildlife! Daily we sat under our awning and watched the show. The ditch was filled with alligators, fish, all kinds of wading birds, raccoons, snakes, owls, hawks, osprey – you name it! We never knew what we were going to see next. Osprey with fish in their talons flew over nonstop.

We caught sight of a snail kite in the nearby conservation area but Sam and Dave didn’t get to fish because of the high winds that plagued us the whole time we were there. The lake being only 8 feet deep kicked up some pretty high waves from the gale force winds.

Besides a bait and tackle shop, the park rents out overnight cabins and manages a boat ramp. I recommend this place for anyone who wants a little, out of the way place to see a part of old Florida.

Oh, I spied this sign on the road into the park. You don’t think it’s the same Yanni I think it is, do you?

You just never know…?