A relaxing stop along the Silver River in North-Central Florida
Link to campground here: Silver River State Park
Link to map here: Silver River State Park
- Site Quality = 4.5/5
This is a newer park and the sites are lovely. Very large (huge in fact), perfectly flat, packed dirt pads with tons of separation between campers and a nice “sitting area” with picnic table, fire-pit and grill. All sites are surrounded by forest, have 30 Amp (a few with 50 Amp) and water. There’s a selection of back-in as well as huge pull-throughs. - Facilities = 5/5
Lovely, new facilities here. Bathrooms are huge with large showers, good water pressure and kept nicely clean. Laundry and dump station on-site too. The campground itself also has picnic areas, a museum, and rentable canoes. - Location = 2.5/5
North-Central FL is not really a “destination” location, but given the area the campground is really nicely located. It’s close to the “city” (Ocala and Silver River), but feels very remote and natural. A good selection of hiking trails, biking and even kayaking/canoeing along the river. - Pet Friendliness = 5/5
Good place for pets. Plenty of space in the sites plus lovely hiking trails all around.
Overall Rating = 4.25
BONUS ALERT = Canoe along the pretty Silver River (and maybe spot a gator)!
Summary: This is one of the newer Florida State Parks and I consider it a bit of a hidden gem. The sites are huge (enormous), perfectly flat and with wonderful separation and all the roads are large, paved and with easy access even for the biggest rigs. The park is set alongside the very pretty Silver River which provides canoeing, hiking and biking (no swimming because of the gators however). It’s only a few miles to Ocala and the surrounding towns & shopping yet it feels very remote and peaceful. The only negative is that the area (North-Central FL) doesn’t have alot of attractions so it’s not exactly a destination locaton. The lack of people does, however, mean the campground is pretty empty most of the time. We spent a nice quiet few days here exploring the park, hiking the trails and visiting the on-site museum. A very nice stop and we’d definitely stay here again if we were driving by.
Extra Info: Verizon data and AT&T cellphones both worked here. Sites are reservable, $24/night for electric/water with selection of back-in and pull-through. On-site laundry and dump station.
View of our very spacious site (#22)
View along our loop showing roomy access & lovely site separation
View of pull-through site (#18)
View of facilities...these are nice and new
The very pretty Silver River
