Florida State Parks

Since we have forsworn tent camping, I am pursuing staying at cabins in all the Florida state parks that offer them and visiting all the parks I’ve never seen, especially the new ones. First up: 2 nights at Lafayette Blue Springs State Park (became a state park June 1, 2005) near Mayo. (I did have to cancel our original first night so we could stay home and see UM’s heartbreaking loss to University of Indiana of the national football championship, 21-27, on an interception in the final seconds. Just like my Ga Tech did in the PopTart Bowl. Ah, well.)

We were the only people in the campground for the 2 nights we were there. Nobody else in the other 4 cabins, no one in the 10 walk-in tent sites, not even the campground host around. Eerie, but nice. The second morning, back from our walk, we did see a park employee working on cabin stairs and said hi. There was also a car parked which I think belonged to the kayakers we saw off in the distance on the Swanee. We drove to the north entrance and back to the sandpit water hole. No people, but I was pleasantly impressed with myself when I identified the greater yellow legs, killdeers, and belted kingfish there. 

On the way up, we stopped at Troy Springs State Park (June 12, 1995) near Bradford. Only people there were another couple visiting from Tampa, and a diving instructor giving a private lesson in the spring. 

Since the activities in the area are cavernous diving, swimming, and boating, these are summertime parks. In the cold weather, we enjoyed them to ourselves.

The second morning, we drove to Perry for doughnuts from Johnson Bakery (me an apple fritter, Grant 2 chocolate glazed), then a tour of the Forest Capital Museum State Park (January 11, 1967, but new to me). We wandered the cracker homestead (I saw bluebirds) and the little museum all by ourselves. The rangers had driven away after telling us to enjoy ourselves, I guess off for coffee. I especially liked the mosaic state map which each country cut a different species of local wood. The bronze plaque told everything but who had made it.

Heading home, we stopped at Wes Skiles Peacock Springs SP (June 11, 1986) and watched 2 middle-aged women begin their cave dive. Even the thought gives me the willies. I saw the crest on a ruby-crowned kinglet, heard but did not see cedar waxwings, and spotted another kingfisher flying down the slough.

After having to return to Lafayette to retrieve Grant’s left-behind-in-the-cabin jacket, (both of us would have sworn we carefully checked the cabin when we left), we stopped at the west end of River Rise Preserve SP (September 4, 1974), a staging area for horse trails with camping. I didn’t know the Santa Fe River goes under ground in O’Leno SP, then rises 3 miles later, hence the name.

Last park on this tour was Ruth B Kirby Gilcrest Blue Springs SP (October 30, 2017) which was closed for remodeling. We’d visited here years ago with Clara and Sally. I’m not impressed with the new campground which will be for big RVs.