Category: Seashells

On October 5th we checked into the Kelly Park campground in Apopka. We had never camped here before, but our friends had. Unfortunately, we had a very rainy 2-night stay, but it didn’t keep us from enjoying the water.

This area is known for the Emerald Cut, which is a waterway with beautiful clear water. Paddle-boarders and kayakers can travel up the stream and then back down through Florida nature. King’s Landing is where you launch with options to rent equipment and even pay for guided tours. We didn’t do any of that, but we did paddle the Cut.

The Campground and Campsite

We stayed in campsite #1. The earliest a site can be booked is 45 days from the date of the stay. When we were trying to book our site, hoping to be near our friends, the campground was almost full. We had to take whatever was left.

This is a small campground with only 26 sites. At least one is a Host site. Two of the sites are set up as “double” where it seems like two campers could be together. I’m not sure how that works.

The sites have water and electric hookups.

When we pulled into the campground loop, site #1 was right at the entrance. It was very shady, as were all the sites. Our nearest neighbor was in site #2 you can see in the photo above. We had plenty of private area to ourselves. Our friends were in site #8.

I was wondering why no one had booked site #1, because it’s pretty nice. Maybe because of the standing water when it rains. I looked at other campsites and didn’t see any with standing water at all. Our site had a large puddle just off the side of the camper – right where you walk. We got a drizzly type rain, and nothing really heavy, but I wonder how flooded this site might get with a lot more rain coming down.

Tips and Tricks

Back in so that the RV / camper is right next to the cement slab. This would put the puddle more to the back. It might help.

Also, store things on top of the slab when it rains. Our kayak, paddle board, bikes and tube were covered in sand. This is a suggestion for any of the sites when camping in rain.

The Dump Station

Kelly Park has the worst dump station we’ve used. The campground is a big loop with campsites inside and outside the loop. This is a typical setup. But the dump station is usually set off someplace by itself. This dump station was simply a place to pull over along the loop. (See my photo above.)

We have a 28 foot camper and when we pulled up to dump, I don’t think anyone could have driven past us from behind. If so, it would be a tight squeeze. This basically blocks the campground road!

There is a parking area for a pavilion, just past the dump station, and if this was full, it would be a tight squeeze to pull the RV in and out to dump. My son pointed out that the dump station did not have a sprayer to clean out the tubes either. So the dump station gets only one star – simply for being there.

The Water – Tubing

Our only nice day (half day) was the day we arrived. (You cannot get early check in.) After setting up the campsite, we took a bike ride down to the Spring. We brought our tubes and put in at the Spring-head. From there we floated down to the swimming area and beyond. It was wonderful and relaxing.

The Water – Emerald Cut

It rained all during our first night, and into the next day – Sunday. We had planned to get our paddling early to beat the weekend crowds, but figured the rain would keep people away.

We launched our SUPs and kayak from Camp Joy. Our friends had done it this way, and showed us where to go. It meant lugging our gear quite a way to the edge of the water. From the launch area, we paddled a short way and bumped into the Emerald Cut.

The water was not “emerald” because of the rain. It was brown, but clear.

I paddled up and down the Cut in my inflatable kayak. My friends stood on their paddle boards. This river is flowing, and the current can be quite strong in places. There are sharp turns, overhead branches, roots and stumps. Unless we pulled over, I never really stopped paddling. It wasn’t possible, without getting turned or drifting into the bank / trees.

Even with the rain, we ran into a lot of other people paddling. Sometimes literally ran into them. This was not a relaxing paddle. Once we got to the top and turned around to head back down, the paddling was almost worse. With a lot of beautiful nature to see along the way, I got almost no photos because it was impossible to do so while paddling.

I can’t imagine trying to paddle here on a hot, sunny, weekend where the Cut would be packed with people! Sorry, but I think that would be a nightmare.

Things to Know

Kelly Park campground has some rules. No alcohol is right at the top of the list. Although they say it is not allowed anywhere, no one is going to come into the camper and check. But don’t take it to the Springs and swimming area, because they most likely WILL check.

No pets. Honestly, I liked the fact that there were no dogs here. Everyone who camps has a dog these days. We have never camped near a nuisance dog, but they do bark sometimes. It was nice to not have that. This campground was very quiet, but it was nearly empty by Sunday. Between the rain and an impending hurricane, I think campers cleared out.

The swimming and tubing area is a short bike ride, or long walk, down cement walkways. The area is huge, with many points of entry. If not for the rain, I would have been back down there enjoying the water.

The only wildlife I saw was turkeys. The area has many trails, which my son checked out on his e-bike.

Heading Home to Prepare for a Hurricane

We checked in on a Saturday and headed home on Monday. Because Hurricane Milton was bearing down on the Gulf coast, and heading across the state, gas stations had lines.

We live an hour from Kelly Park, and got home without hitting traffic, but our friends live in Jacksonville and sat in traffic for an extra hour of their travel time. People were evacuating the state.

Hurricane Milton came across the state and went right over us. We hadn’t finished unpacking the camper when we had to get our hurricane shutters up. Then we had yard cleanup for a few days.

Overall Thoughts About Camping at Kelly Park

In closing I would say that we enjoyed our camping experience at Kelly Park. It was the cheapest place we have ever stayed. The campsites were very nice with lots of shade. Swimming looked awesome, in crystal clear water. The Spring was only a manageable bike ride away. We live close enough to enjoy this park again, and I’m sure we will.

Have you ever been camping here? Have you paddled the Emerald Cut?

Our yard is not very large but we had to store our camper next to the house. We also have a drainage ditch along the front of the house, and a drain pipe beneath the driveway. Backing anything into the yard means using the driveway and staying out of the low-lying ditch.

My son lives with me and he is a firefighter. His job is to drive a firetruck, so backing the RV into the side yard is relatively easy for him.

At first the RV was on grass. The grass quickly died from lack of sun and then the Camper was sitting on dirt. Now, we have added a layer of rock – limestone to be exact.

I’m hoping the stones will help keep the bugs out of the camper.

We are fortunate to have shade along that side of the house. The RV is not sitting in direct sun all day long. It gets enough sun to keep the power up by using the solar panel on the roof. I can open the awning to let it dry out between storms.

The tall trees are great for shade, but a little scary whenever we get hurricanes.

I’d love to hear how you store your camper. Many people near us use the big storage places. We have two new ones just up the road and they have filled up fast! In storage, the RV would be covered and be kept safer in a big storm.

Even if I could afford the extra monthly payments, I like having the camper just outside the house.

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Even before we owned a camper, I knew that Gamble Rogers campground was difficult to get into. Some of the campsites are right on the ocean, and lots of people want to camp on the ocean.

My son is a fire fighter and we schedule our short camping trips around his days off. When I searched for a campground in February, the spot at Gamble Rogers showed up. One opening was left and it was for mid-week. I snatched it up. We lucked out because it was a site on the outer part of the loop, and we even had a tiny view of the river.

Gamble Rogers state park campground is located in Flagler on a strip of land between the ICW (Intracoastal Waterway) and the ocean. RV campsites are located on both sides of the road, and include a few “tent only” sites on the river loop. The tent campsites are nicely shaded!

All campers must check in at the Ranger station on the River side (west). There is a turnaround for RVs heading back to the ocean side.

We stayed on the river side and this campground area is newer. The Ranger at the gate confirmed that. This was the first time camping that I had my ID checked, for the senior citizen discount.

According to the park website, the Gamble Rogers campground will be closed indefinitely for road work. This begins in Summer 2024.

The Campsite

We had campsite #54 on the River side. The whole site was gravel, which was nice because in Florida it’s usually lots of sand. The entire river area, except for the tent campsites, is wide open and in the sun. This would make for hot camping in the summer.

Also, there is little privacy. We were not super close to anyone, but there are few trees at all.

The Campground at the River Loop

At Gamble, all campers have access to both the river and ocean. Just take a short hike (walk or bide ride) across the highway to access either. It’s possible to take a morning walk along the beach, and then take a kayak out on the river in the afternoon (bring your own!).

When we checked in, I asked about kayak rentals and they no longer do that! I was disappointed, and they really need to update the info. I had planned on kayaking, and the river was beautiful and calm on our only full day.

Just down the road from the riverside camping loop, we found a bunch of picnic tables and access for kayaks. There is also a boat ramp, and places to fish.

On a windy night we could hear the ocean at our site!

The wind was ridiculous on the day we arrived and set up the campsite. That night we could hear the waves crashing all night long. The second night was calm and we no longer could hear the ocean.

Oceanfront Camping

Everyone wants the beach sites and they are hard to book. About half of them, on the ocean side, backed right up to the road, BUT there is a big berm that seems to block out road traffic. The sites are very close together. The road is sand, but the summer construcion I believe will fix that.

The campers lined up along the ocean did not all have an ocean view, except for a few lucky campers. Most sites have lots of vegetation which blocks any view (see my photos below). At least this is how it looked when my son and I took a walk along the beachside sites.

I took these photos from the beach where I could see some of the tops of the RVs. They obviously could not see the ocean from their campers. There is one set of stairs that leads to the beach from the campground. There is at least one “look out” area that does not have beach access.

The ocean sites are closed in by a gate so only camping patrons can drive in. We walked the length of the sites to the dump station and bathrooms. Apparently both the ocean and river loops have their own dump stations.

I took a walk on the brown beach sand. At this time of year the beach is basically empty. A snowy egret flew down and landed right in front of me – probably looking for food because clueless people feed wildlife!

Walking, Riding, Fishing and Swimming

If you like to walk, there are plenty of places to go at this campground. I did try to navigate a trail in the woods, but it was very muddy and slippery. We’d had a bunch of rain just before this. But the campground loop, river roads and beach are there for walkers. This also applies to bikers, except the beach. This is soft sand and I’m not sure bike riding is a good idea. But the main road has a long sidewalk and my son rode about 5 miles on it.

Fishing can be done on the river or ocean – be sure to buy a license at the Florida Fish and Wildlife site. If you are over 65, fishing is free and no license is required – just a driver’s license. Year long passes or shorter 3 and 7 (I think) day passes can be purchased.

They offer kayak tours, if you happen to be camping during that time. They DO NOT RENT KAYAKS (at the time of this post Feb.2024), even though their information says so.

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