SP Campground Review – Blackwater River State Park, Holt, FL

The gorgeous white-sand banks of Blackwater River

A really neat beach-forest stop in the “inner” Panhandle.

Link to campground here: Blackwater River SP
Link to map location here: Blackwater River SP

1. Site Quality = 5/5
   The sites here are excellent. They are very large compacted, flat gravel surfaces (disabled sites are concrete) with picnic table, grill, fire-pit and full hookups (50Amp/water/sewer). Good site separation, privacy and access. Big-rig friendly.
2.  Facilities = 4/5
   Nice facilities. Bathrooms are large, fairly new and well-kept. Shower-stalls have bench and good water-pressure. Surrounding area has river access, beach, swimming, picnic areas, trails and playground. On-site dump. No laundry.
3. Location = 4/5
   This is a forest location and feels very relaxed and remote. The nature/hiking and canoeing are excellent, but there’s not a lot else out here which makes it perfect for anyone looking to escape. You are within decent drive of shopping at Milton.
4. Pet Friendliness = 4/5
   The place gets a ding for not allowing dogs on the “official” beach-site just next to the campground. However you can walk just a short distance down the path and enjoy the beach on any one of the many other beach-banks of the river. Good selection of hiking trails, especially if you extend into the next-door State Forest. Poop bags provided.

Overall Rating = 4.25
BONUS ALERT = Pure white-sand beach in the forest and iconic river trails!

Summary: I must say we were very happy with this stop. This is a smallish campground within the State Park which is in turn completely surrounded by the huge Blackwater River State Forest. As such you have miles and miles of nature all around you and the place feels very remote and relaxed. What makes this spot extra special is Blackwater River itself which is a beautiful and iconic canoeing/kayaking trail lined with banks of pure quartz white sand. It’s beach in the forest and very unique! In the campground itself sites are large, perfectly flat, nicely separated and with full-hookups. You can swim on the “official” beach-site a short walk from camp or take doggie to walk and play along the other beach-banks all along the river. We could easily have spent more time here and would definitely come back.

 Extra Info:  Both Verizon aircard and phone worked fine. Sites are reservable $20/night with 50Amp/water/sewer. On-site dump.

View of our site (#5)

View of one of biggest sites in the campground (#11)

View down Titi Circle loop (site #29-27 on left front to back)

View down Magnolia Loop (Site #7 & 8 front to back)

Grill, fire-pit and picnic table at each site

Playground in middle of Magnolia Loop viewed from our RV (site #5)

Beach in the Forest…And Just One More Gator Story

Beach in the Forest. What a combo!

So, we’re almost at the end of our time in Florida. We decided to spend our last few days here in a little State Forest in the “inner Panhandle”. It was a bit of a ”just point at the map” kind of choice and we really had no idea what it would be like, but it seems the winds of luck are with us and it’s turned out to be a really neat stop.

Blackwater River is one of the purest white-sand bottomed rivers in the world. The snow-white quartz sand here is the same stuff that’s on the coast and Blackwater River meanders through the tall pine-trees leaving banks of the stuff draped in sandbars along the curves. What it becomes is beach in the forest and it’s home to one of Florida’s most iconic and beautiful Canoe trails. It’s truly gorgeous and unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.

Gators...this is how they do it in the Panhandle

And then, of course, there’s still the gators. Now, it must be at least 4 or 5 posts since I’ve last mentioned them, but darn it, I just can’t help it. Up here it seems there’s a whole new approach to the beasts which has probably got something to do with the history of the area. The Panhandle was always considered a bit of a Wild West kind of place. Tallahassee is an Apalachee Indian word meaning “old town” or “abandoned fields”. By the 1830′s it had the reputation of being an outlaw frontier which Ralph Waldo Emerson called “a grotesque place…rapidly settled by public officers, land speculators, and desperadoes.”

So, I guess I can’t blame that some of the ‘ol Cowboy attitude still lingers. Up here, you see they don’t tell you not to go in the lakes, but rather give you the more independent advice to “Swim with Caution”. Having read the rules, I can just picture the exchange:

“Honey, do you perchance see any gators” I ask
“Nope” says the Frontier man scanning the horizon
“Okie dokie, then I think I will just go for a quick dip” says the juicy Scandinavian

A few moments elapse while said piece of meat splashes in the water

“Sweetie, would you mind terribly nipping off to the Ranger Station to let them know an Alligator is approaching”

Yes, this is Florida, and yes, I am rather Gator obsessed, but you gotta admit it’s funny stuff. So, with a chuckle and our toes in the sand, we’ll say adieu to our time here and hello to Alabama. It’s been a wonderful ride, gators and all!

Butt in the sand...it's a wonderful feeling

Late afternoon at Blackwater River

Paw Friendly on the Panhandle Coast?

Beach, blue, the pooch and us on St. Joseph beach -> exactly the way we like it!

I’d been duly warned by those in the know that the Panhandle Coast is one of the least dog-friendly spots in the country. For a couple like us, where camping is ALL about the paws, this was a rather depressing piece of info, and unfortunately my preliminary investigations showed it to be true. There are 5 or 6 fairly “well-known” Florida State Parks nestled along the Pandhandle coast (Top Sail, Henderson Beach, Grayton Beach etc.) each of which promise pristine white-sand beach, play in the sand and absolutely no dogs. Don’t get me wrong now…you can take pooch in the campground and around the trails (if there are any), but absolutely not and under no circumstances on the beach, and that goes for most of the surrounding area too.

Where paw prints and footsteps align

 Now, this just doesn’t do it for us. No matter how nice the place is, if we can’t take doggie for a romp in the sand, then it just ain’t the spot for us. Walking with pooch is a core part of our daily enjoyment and feeling the sand between our toes is something we all relish. At this point I almost gave up and decided to re-route us through the “inner” Panhandle and leave the popular spots to the crowds. After all, even without the dog restriction, we didn’t want to squeeze in with all those people herding to the same busy spots.

 But then we discovered the Forgotten Coast, and we uncovered an extra little secret that made it just right for both us and the paws.

A play and a run on the Bayside of St. Joseph Peninsula

You see, the State Parks here are not really any different. The 2 “big” ones, St. George and St. Joseph are lovely, isolated spots but still have the annoying “no dogs on the beach” restriction. However, what makes these places unique are the beautiful and accessible public beaches just a short drive away. It’s the same coastline and the same pristine snow-white sand on the same peninsula, but here paws are welcomed and doggie-heaven is absolute. On St. Joseph the access is one of the closest. The public beach is only ~1 mile from the entrance to the state park, many miles long, wide, gorgeous, almost entirely deserted and totally paw-friendly. On St. George public beach they actively advertize themselves as a “dog-friendly” spot, and just between the two, on Carabelle public beach, dogs are allowed off-leash right on the sand. It’s yet another reason this place gets our vote with all 4 thumbs and 12 paws up.

The Forgotten Coast

The view is just spectacular

Imagine if you will, a deserted beach. Miles of pure white sand so fine it squeaks under your feet, dunes undulating over the blue ocean drifting off to the horizon, sea gulls surfing on the wind and not a soul in sight. You might think you were on an Island in the Pacific, or perhaps an exotic undiscovered coastline. You certainly wouldn’t think of Florida. But this is exactly where we are, and the scene is exactly as I’ve described it. We’ve reached the very aptly named Forgotten Coast and what a treat it is!

White sands, blue sky and dunes

The Northwestern end of Florida is called the Panhandle, because it’s shaped a bit like the handle of a saucepan.  It is a thin strip of land roughly 200 miles long and 50 to 100 miles wide (320 km by 80 to 160 km) famed for its long snow-white beach coastline much of which is fairly built-up and popular. Several spots regularly make the top 10 ”Best Beaches of the World” and it’s a hot destination for snowbirders and party-goers alike.

Afternoon reflections

We’re not really keen to be part of the “crowds” so most of this area didn’t appeal to us despite it’s beauty, but there is a spot, hidden deep in the curve of the Gulf which did attract our attention. It’s a short strip of land bounded by Mexico beach in the West and St. Marks Lighthouse on the East and it’s the “Forgotten Coast“. Here lies lonely peninsulas, eclectic little towns, cute state parks and miles of deserted beach. This is where you go to escape the world and play in a fairytale of sand and ocean. It’s totally our kind of place!

My kind of view....

We arrived here on Friday, dropped our jacks at St. Joseph Peninsula State Park at 4PM and walked the 30 secs from our RV to the glorious view of the beach described above. Even Polly gets to enjoy the ride, but that’s another little secret that I’ll talk about in my next post.

In the meantime, just lie back in the soft sand, relax and enjoy the view.

Old Folks At Home – Stephen Foster State Park

One of the buildings in the cute Craft Square

Our little twist in the road landed us for a few days in the small town of White Springs, FL . This turned out to be a blessing in disguise, not only because the weather went south on us again, but because we discovered a really cool area.  It introduced us to Stephen Foster State Park, a brilliant, crazy and rather fascinating little corner of Florida.

This is where the Old Folks live and I’m not just talking about snowbirders, but about the actual Florida State Song “Old Folks at Home“. Stephen Foster is the man who composed it and despite never visiting the place, his memory and ~200 of his other songs are eulogized right here. 

The Stephen Foster Museum

This place is literally a 247-acre wonderland with trails, nature, cultural events, and museum. To top it all off, and throw things right off the charts so to speak, the developers decided to build a 97-bell Carillon Tower (the world’s largest tubular bell instrument no less) which welcomes visitors with a selection of Stephen Foster’s most popular tunes. These were the “church bells” we heard when we entered the park and they’re just brilliant. I mean, how can you not love something that’s just so obviously over-the-top?

The Interpretive Guide explains traditional weaving

Besides the tower, this spot is also a bit of a musical magnet in other ways. The park hosts the annual Florida Folk Festival (on Memorial Day Weekend) and has done so since 1953, and for the hands-on folks, it offers week-end retreats with instruction in banjos and dulcimers.

The other cool attraction is the Craft Square. Here some of the history of Florida is preserved with a traditional blacksmith’s shop, weavers looms, pottery works, gemstone shop and much, much more. The Craft Square hosts a rotation of artists from which you can take classes or enjoy a meet and greet. It was grey, dull day and most of the artists were gone when we went but the very friendly interpretive guide took the time to show us around the shops and crafts.

The grounds at the park

All in all this is definitely a bit of a hidden gem. Thanks to serendipity we made the stop, and thanks to poor weather we got to explore all the inner workings of the place. With bells singing “Oh Susanna” I’ll send you off to the next chapter of our little journey (click the video link):

Paul & Polly Play, With Bells On! from Paul Novell on Vimeo.