Campground Review: Fort Desoto

I camped with my family Fort Desoto – a Pinellas  County park over memorial day 2019. While I’ve been to the beach at Fort Desoto may times over the years, this was my first time camping at the campground (my family who lives in Florida camps here every year).

I booked the site well in advance of the trip, and must have lucked out with a cancellation because I got a site on the water side in the camping loop over the holiday weekend. When I arrived I learned that some of the water side sites are actually against the mangroves, while others have an open view of the bay and are perfect for watching the sunset form your campground. Unfortunately, our site looked at the mangroves, not the sunset, but It was just a short walk to the open area. We were at site 40. If I were going again, I’d book even further in advance and aim to get a site in the lower 30s for the view. Residents can book further in advance.

All of the sites in the tent area are equipped with a picnic table and grill and an electrical hookup. There is a water point at each site.

When my sister showed up with her camping gear, I was surprised that they’d brought two giant fans to plug in – they are very experienced Florida campers. It kept the site cool, mosquitos away, and most importantly it blocked out the noise from the very large group celebrating at the site next to us.

There are lots of trees in each site, and we were easily able to hang up 3 hammocks. The view of the neighbors on each side was blocked about 80% which is great for a FL campground in my experience.

Fires are permitted, but you have to bring your own firepit if you want to build one. There is a small campstore on site, and a grocery and convenience store in Tierra Verde just a mile or so up the road outside the park (there is a toll bridge that you have to pass going in and out).

The campground is gated and locked after 9pm with a code. There is a limit to 2 cars per campsite. If you park outside of the campsite, there is a 5$ parking fee per car at Fort Desoto. You’ll need your camping pass in your car in order to drive down to the beach to park.

There were bathrooms and showers in the loop as well as a day use “house” with a fireplace and chairs and some books. Trash receptacles were a short walk away and we used them often to keep the trash out of the campground because the campground is notorious for racoons.

We brought out kayaks and fishing poles and spent most of the day in the water near the campsite. This is a no swimming area, however, so if you want to swim you have to head to the beach. There are lots of bike trails here as well if you’re camping with bikes.

Check out is at 11am and check in is at 1pm. This is strictly enforced. The office is at the entrance.

Product Review: The Rovr RollR 60 Quart Cooler

As a Ranger for The Dyrt I sometimes get to test and evaluate quality products from amazing sponsors. On this campgin trip, we put the Rovr Roller 60 cooler to the test. https://rovrproducts.com/product/505229344820/6841244385332

When I read about the Rovr cooler’s claim to keep things cold for up to 11 days, I decided that FL camping in Memorial Day temperatures of 95+ was the perfect place to give this cooler a real test.  Plus my family in Florida runs a brewery, so I had access to an unlimited supply of beverages and ice for the experiment.

Three days before the camping trip I filled up the cooler with 55 cans and ice. The cans were from the warehouse (not cold) and the cooler had been driving around in the 100 degree car – so the cooler had some hard work to do in the beginning. After one day, the ice had melted, but the inside of the cooler and the drinks were cold. I emptied the water and then left in my car for 2 more days until the trip – the drinks were still cold. I added more ice before the camping trip. The cooler won’t keep your ice frozen for 11 days, but I can say for a fact it will keep your drinks cold for at least 5 or 6 (and cool for more beyond that– 7 das was all the time I had to experiment).

PROS:

Capacity: I was able to easily fit 55 cans and 10 pounds of ice in the cooler without even trying to Tetris pack the Rovr.

Racoon Proof: We didn’t have any bears in Fort Desoto to test that it’s bear proof, but we did have raccoons. The cooler my family camped with at Fort Desoto the last time was destroyed by raccoons, but the Rovr wasn’t even bothered.

Durability: The cooler is really incredibly durable, we tested it by standing on it to hang the hammocks as high as possible in the trees.

Smooth: Despite its weight (see cons below), the Rovr is really smooth and easy to roll with it’s big wheels even when it’s full. We rolled it through parking lots, over beach, and through grass down a trail. The double handle is great – but full of cans, it was still easy to roll with just one person.

Responsive: In shipping my box got a bit banged up and the cooler arrived with one of its Velcro straps missing. I sent a quick email to support and they responded immediately with instructions on how to get a replacement through the product warranty. This could have easily been a con for a $400 cooler,  but the customer service was great and fast and conveyed the attitude that they want me to love my Rovr.

Color: the cooler comes in several color choices including orange which is my favorite color. The top bin comes in white or can be upgraded to a printed color I like the way the white looks but it gets dirty pretty quickly)

Keeps things cool:  The Rovr totally  passed my extreme heat test and really did what a cooler is meant to do – keep things really cold.

Cons:

Weight: Because the  Rovr 60 is heavy duty, it’s also HEAVY. Without anything food or drink in it the cooler is heavy -- yet manageable. Full of beer, I could barely get the thing in and out of my car. If you fill it up, the average person will need to have help lifting it up. (Thankfully with the wheels, you don’t have to lift it often – just in and out of the car.)

Until you get used to the size and capacity it’s easy to overstuff – for me, this meant that the ice kept overflowing into the dry area where there is no drainage. This is more operator error than a negative about the product. If you don't need the capacity of the larger cooler, the 45 would be a good choice.

Extra Cost of Accessories: I love that this cooler has a lot of extra accessories that you can add on, but I didn’t opt to get any of them for the test since they’re all around 20-40$ a piece and I wasn’t sure how much I’d like the cooler. If you want the accessories, you can easily add another $100 on top of the $400 the cooler price.  After testing the cooler I think that the cutting board or the bike pull accessories would be fun to have, but with the weight of the cooler already, I think I’ll skip adding anything to it for the future.

Overall, the Rovr is a really impressive cooler. It’s perfect for car camping, a short hike in camping trip, and day trips when you’re on the go – and it looks really fun as a bonus! The Rovr definitely passed the test. The next test for my Rovr is going to be flying back to Oregon with me (although my family in Florida is begging me to leave it here with them—at least until after their next camping trip).

I loved** Fort De Soto State Park**, Florida! My favorite for this trip as far as location and atmosphere . But this may be because I seldom visit the beach type campgrounds and it’s something unique to me. If you don’t like sand in everything you may not pick this as your favorite;)

In the campground there are two loops. Most of the outer sites in each area had access to the water, some had direct access where people parked their watercraft for their visit.

In the first loop all the middle sites were long and pull through with a screen of foliage between each site. Suited for the bigger rigs. The second loop had smaller sites and the road was a little “skinnier” more for pop ups and tents. It was a little more crowded in the middle sites and less of a foliage screen between sites.

Overall both areas were very Gilligan’s Island homey if you were on a cruise ship that ran aground and everyone made their “homes” in the same area ;) It is a well maintained area with centrally located facilities. There is an inlet for fishing and short trail within easy walking distance or you can strike out on the long paved trail.

Recreationally speaking aside from the water sports there was a hike/ bike trail the entire length of the park with access to several beach areas and fishing piers. Then there is the Fort to explore if you like your history and a ferry service within the park. Another thing was a triathlon going on while we visited at the far end of the park, the swim portion would have been a definite challenge, the bike was on flat roads and I didn’t see the run portion but if it was on the sand that would be a workout!

I saved the best for last (in my opinion) there is a TOTALLY AWESOME DOG BEACH which was definitely the main reason I picked the park to visit. A nice stretch of beach where my dogs had an excellent time playing in the water, weeds and sand. There are two fenced dog parks with seats, shade and dog wash areas to rinse off the sand before heading back out. All of this is very close to a touristy area with coffee shops, fuel and other necessities. But you would never know it if you just stay in the park, it just feels very .....detached from the city.

A thumb and three paws up for this park!

This is a fun campground lots to do. There are biking/hiking trails nearby. Also a Fort that was built during the Spanish American Era, this has some unique history behind how it was used in different time periods.This campground also offers miles of white sugar sand beaches with beautiful views! You can bring your fur babies over to the dog beach for a day of fun. There’s also the option to kayak or canoe out into the ocean on the bayside, check the weather ahead of time, also know when tides going out or in this makes a huge difference in trying to get back. There is also a playground area for the kids at the front of the park. At the campground they offer electric and rv sites, some even on the beach. There’s a small shop in the office to buy your last minute items, the staff was very helpful and friendly. You do want to make reservations ahead of time, as they fill up quite fast. There are clean showers and restrooms to wash up after a day in the sand. Overall this is nice clean campground with plenty for everyone to enjoy.

close to the breweries in art district of St Pete Florida, Fort Desoto Campground has everything you could want for a long weekend or quick getaway. There's a general store if you want to stock up on snacks, fishing tackle, pool floats, or ice cream, or just catch a little air conditioning and Wi-Fi. The General Store also has a nice balcony overlooking the water and some oyster beds.

The campsites are suitable for car camping, hammock camping, tent camping, or RVs. Be sure to bring your rain gear and rain flies, as Florida thunderstorms are brief but no joke. You can rent bicycles down closer to the actual Old Fort where there's also a huge fishing pier and plenty of old military installations to explore. However don't rely on using the bikes to get back to the campground as there's no drop-off on the other side.

It can be a bit of a long walk from the campground itself to the Old Fort, which shouldn't be a problem unless you didn't pack the right clothes or shoes. If, like me, you find yourself a little under-prepared, there is Lyft and Uber in the area and in a pinch you can use that to get back and forth between the campground and the fort.

Our neighbors at the next campsite over we're, unfortunately, a bit of a party crowd, which made for a loud night and very little sleep. That said the restrooms were nice and easy to reach and all of the amenities or what you would expect at a bigger busy or campground.