Our original plan was to camp elsewhere, but when that fell through, we grabbed a nice spot at Gamble Rogers. It is the end of October, so the ungodly heat has passed, but our trip was still quite warm.
Gamble Rogers is a beautiful Florida state park. It is named after a beloved Florida folk singer who died trying to rescue a drowning swimmer. (Read about it here.)
Today, camping is available at two areas – on the ocean, or on the river. This simply means that the campsites are along the ocean (up on the dunes, with ocean access from the sites) and along the river, with access to the river down the road. We can’t see the river from the campsites.
We were here last February and it was pretty cold and windy, as I recall.
This time the weather was bright and sunny, but still very humid. We stayed in the camper during the hottest part of the day. One thing about almost all the campsites in this park is that there is very little shade.
I was able to book campsite #56 the day before we arrived! I lucked out. Our original plan was to stay at the Sebastian Inlet campground. That site turned out to be too small for our camper, so I cancelled, and then found the site at Gamble Rogers.
Whenever a campsite is cancelled, I get most of my money refunded. They do keep some of it to cover the booking fees. I hate to have to cancel, but sometimes it happens.
We arrived right on time – check in is 3:00PM. They have three lanes and ask campers checking in to use the far right 2 lanes. Check in is quick, we get a hang tag for the truck, directions and rules (if you are not a returning camper), and we were on our way.
For those who stay on the ocean, you must turn around (there is a roundabout) and head back out and cross the road. For riverside campers, we follow the road past the boat ramp (and a construction zone, and closed boat ramp, when we camped), to the riverside loop. We knew exactly where to go as we had stayed in campsite #54 last time!
Our campsite had a lot of sun. (Most of them are full sun.) Until late afternoon, we stayed inside the camper, or took a walk or bike ride, because we didn’t want to sit in the sun.
The beach is just across the road and so are the oceanside campsites. It is a quick bike ride, or short walk to access the beach.
The wheelchair ramp to the beach was closed this time. The sand was very soft so not great for bike riding on the beach.
The beach may have been damaged by a recent storm that hit. It spun just off the coast for hours, with wind and rain. We live less than an hour from Gamble Rogers State Park.
Oceanside Camping
After visiting the oceanside camping area, I’m pretty sure I would only book a stay here if certain sites were available. Then again, maybe not. This area is very tight. It has it’s own dump station, and a sandy loop at the end of the road for turning around.
Smaller campers and tent campers would work, but I don’t know how these big rigs did it!
After setting up at our site, we took a bike ride over to the ocean. Above is a photo looking down the row of oceanside campsites. Only a few spots actually have ocean views.
This area is also very sandy unlike the riverside camping, which is paved with gravel campsites.
Honestly, the only good thing about camping oceanside here would be the close access to the ocean. There is one set of stairs from the campers to get down to the beach – I think. Also, be aware that there are no lifeguards at this beach.
There are no views (for most), it is all sand, the main road is right behind you, sites are small and cramped, full sun, and the road is closed with a lock. Each time you want to drive somewhere, you deal with the chain lock (according to reviews). But campers love to camp on the beach. Don’t say you weren’t warned.
If you need help crossing the main road – go get to the ocean from the riverside campsites, and back again – there are orange flags to wave at traffic! The road was not very busy, and crossing was a breeze. But, if you are a slow walker for any reason, know there is help in the form of a bright orange flag!
Making New Friends at the River Sunset
To get a nice view of the sunset, I took an early evening walk to the river. It was here, on the little dock, that I met a couple of gals who have a YouTube channel! Yup, it’s about camping full time. We talked a bit, and I got their online name: Honey I Roam. They recently posted a video about their stay at Gamble Rogers.
We had a great time enjoying the fresh ocean breeze, biking and walking. It was our usual short 2-night stay, but a great getaway.
Our next trip is back to Mike Roess Gold Head Branch campground to meet up with friends.
More stories about camping in Florida….
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