5. DeLeon Springs - August 23, 2009

On Sunday, after our camping trip at Blue Springs, Tom and I packed up early in the morning and headed over to a site that doesn't have camping - DeLeon Springs. It is about 25 minutes from Blue Springs, so it is worth the trek. The most unique feature of this park is a "make-your-own" pancake house inside the Old Spanish Sugar Mill -- a great place to have breakfast. Tom and I arrived at the spring at 9:30 a.m., and the wait was already 30 minutes! Once we got seated, there was a griddle built right into the table. We were given two choices of pancake batter - one was a Native American recipe and the other was a whole grain. Both were all-you-can-eat for $4.50. We added chocolate chips, which were enough for both batters, for $1.75.

After breakfast, we took a walk through the trails. There is an old cypress tree that was more than 500 years old! The sign said the tree should have been cut down when the early settlers moved to the area because they used cypress to build things and for firewood, but for some reason this one was spared. There was also a trail that lead to Monkey Island, where monkeys used to live in the 1950's and 1960's (tourist attraction, more on that later). However, about halfway down the trail it was so flooded we couldn't walk past. Too bad!

Next we went swimming in the spring. This was the only part of the park I was not fond of. As I mentioned earlier, the area used to be a tourist attraction -- think roadside billboard before Disney. Same concept as Gatorland. Anyway, so the attractions included a water skiiing elephant, monkey island, and the Fountain of Youth, hence "DeLeon Springs" after Ponce De Leon. Well, the "fountain" was the natural spring water that most people had never experienced before, as most of the springs in the U.S. are in Florida, which was just beginning to experience its population boom (as Walt Disney later capitalized on). So, the spring was enclosed with a concrete wall that did not allow a lot of water to flow through. Therefore, since everyone was kicking up dirt, I could not see the spring even with my goggles. It was basically like a cold swimming pool instead of a spring.

It was a unique experience, but if I was a scuba diver I would have felt a little cheated.

Til next time,

The camping bug

4. Blue Springs - August 22, 2009

Tom and I ventured to one of our favorite spots this weekend - Blue Springs! I love this place because it has the biggest spring area to swim in that I have seen so far, which means the people are all spread out. There are two different entry points, both of which are a little ways from the spring. The second entryway is probably a few hundred yards away. It is more of an adventure because you have to swim from one area to get to the spring. Tom and I also brought our mask and snorkel, so we were able to dive down and look at the spring a few times. There are a lot of big trees underwater, so it is fascinating to look at those. The reason you cannot enter Blue Springs at the spring is because of the cliff area that surrounds it, which is caused by erosion.

We did camp there on Saturday night, which was $22.00. There is a nice restroom facility with showers and all of the campsites are private. What is nice about Blue Springs is even though the spots are private with shrubbery, there is a path cut between each one so that people can easily move from campsite to campsite if they desire.

On site there is also an old Florida home, circa the late 1800's. This house was built at Blue Springs because it feeds directly into the St. John's River, making the area accessible by water. For those of you that remember your history, all the first towns in an area used to develop by the water, because that was the only way to recieve supplies. The house had a lot of items on display and signs. One interesting fact was that up to four steamboats would come to the area every day! This made the owners of the house part tourism, part postman, and part supplier for the rest of the town. The demise of this area came when Henry Flagler built his famous railway in Florida. Then people started travelling that way and only one or two steamboats came through the area, then none at all.

The first time we came to Blue Springs, we also took our kayaks out on the St. John's river. There is a nice put-in spot in the second parking lot. You have to drag the boat a little ways though.

In other news, we found out Tom passed his teaching exam the day we were at Blue Springs!

I love Blue Springs! Until next time,

The camping bug

3. Little Manatee River - August 15, 2009

Last weekend, Tom and I journeyed to Tampa for my friend Devora's 30th birthday party. Obviously, no trip is complete without a state park visit! We decided to camp at Little Manatee River about 45 minutes outside of the University of South Florida in Tampa. It was $22.00 a night to camp and $6.00 a carload to get in if you were not camping.

The campsites were very nice, with plenty of shrubbery between each one. There was an electrical box for RV hookups -- we were able to plug our new radio into it! Also included was a picnic table and a fire ring. What I liked best about this park is it is exactly like what I pictured state parks would look like. All the buildings had a tall, slant roof like a triangle. They were green and brown in color. The women's bathroom (and possibly the men's) had a "book exchange" hanging from the wall as you walked in, which I thought was a very nice touch. There was even a book in it! If I would have known, I would have brought some of the ones I am donating...oh well. There was also laundry facilities next to the bathroom.

During the day we took a nice canoe ride up the river. My friends from college, Josh and Amanda, went with us. It was Josh's first time canoeing! What I liked most about the river was all the shade, it was a cool and peaceful ride. All four of us piled into Tom's canoe -- there are three really nice ones on site that you can rent for only $5.00 a hour (what a deal!), but it was raining so the park ranger wouldn't let us have one. We went upstream first for about an hour, so going back took us about a half hour. There were a lot of very large spider webs -- if you don't like spiders, don't look up! Oh, and I had to take a picture of the turtle crossing at the crosswalk -- this turtle knows how to cross the road!

All in all, I enjoyed the serenity of this trip. There were probably only about 10 other campsites reserved, normally when I go other places it seems like they are all full. It would be nice to go back and go on a longer canoe ride, I think we could have gone farther!

Til next time,

The camping bug

Chankanaab National Park - Cozumel, Mexico

A special treat for our cruise was a visit to a national park in another country, the gorgeous Chankanaab National Park in Cozumel, Mexico. If you happen to go to Cozumel on a cruise, this has to be the most bang for your buck -- especially if you want to go snorkeling. Once you get off the cruise ship, walk through the shopping area set up for Americans (though I have to say it was very nice). Then ask for a cab to Chankanaab. We paid $15 there and $15 back, but with four or less people it will only be $10 each way. It is only about a 10 minute cab ride, so not a big deal. Everyone we interacted with spoke English very well and we had no problems. Much better than Nassau, Bahamas.


Once we arrived, it was quite simple to purchase tickets. It was $14 each because of a $2 off per person coupon we found on the Internet here: http://www.cozumelparks.com/eng/cupon.htm. If you are interested in doing this, do not go through the cruise line. They were charging double that price! There are packages available if you are interested in snorkeling, I am not sure of the prices but once you are in the park it is only $10 to rent the gear. We already have our own. They also have a dolphin encounter, which I know many people are interested in. I am not sure of the price, but I am sure it is cheaper than whatever the cruise ship is selling.


I have heard Cozumel is some of the most beautiful snorkeling in the world. I don't have much to compare it to, but it was very nice. As soon as we got into the water, fish of all colors and sizes swam right up to us! I wanted to reach out and touch them, but thought that might be damaging to them in some way, so I decided against it. Once we swam a little deeper, there was an array of coral directly off shore. There were purples, blues, pinks, the most beautiful and colorful coral I have ever seen. We were able to dive down and look at some, which were up to probably 15 feet high. Certainly taller than me!

Also available, free of charge, were hammocks, big shades made of straw, and wooden lounge chairs. There is something for all ages. Food can be purchased, as well as souviners.

A recommended trip if you are going to Cozumel.

Until next time,

The camping bug

2. Fort Taylor - Key West

This past week, Tom and I ventured to Key West and Cozumel on a Carnival cruise. Naturally, we did our best to fit in a state park along the way. This one is quite the hidden secret. We went to Fort Taylor, which is about a five minute walk from the cruise ship, right next to the Navy Pier. It is only a 15 minute walk to the end of U.S. 1, the southernmost point in the U.S., etc. For pedestrians (which we were since we came from the ship) entry was only $2.50 each. I believe it was about $6.00 a carload. There is no camping there, which is always a little bit of a disappointment to Tom and I (not that we could have camped anyway). Above is a picture with us, the cruise ship and the fort. That is how close we were!

For the first leg of our adventure we visited the fort itself. I have previously visited another state park (before I created the blog), Fort Clinch, and it was in much better shape. Fort Taylor has certainly fallen into disrepair. However, on the flip side, it gave a more accurate picture of what a fort would look like if it had not been restored, which is valuable in its own right. There was a cook's kitchen, some original cannons and cannonballs throughout the fort. What I thought was most interesting is the fort used to be out in the water, on a island that had a bridge connecting it to Key West. However, in the earl 20th century, it was decided to make the fort land locked, which is how it is today.

The hidden treasure to the park was the beautiful beach that literally about 10 other people were on at the same time as us. The water is crystal clear and the sand is the white powdery kind that gently sticks to your feet. Certainly not like the gritty sand in Cocoa Beach. It did get deep rather quickly, so we were not able to walk very far out. I wish we would have had our bathing suits, but then I guess we wouldn't have made it to all our other fun spots.

All in all, this is highly recommended, even if only for the beach, if you are venturing to Key West.

Until next time,

The camping bug