Best Tent Camping near Brooksville, FL

Part of the Starkey Wilderness Preservethis location is full of multi use trails, has primitive cabin rentals (no electric) and tent camping available. Front country (car camping) and back country camping (hike in only). There are specific equestrian camping sites as well.

Cabins are pretty close to each other. All sites need to be reserved.Tent, cabin, shelter and pavilion reservations: Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park, (727) 834-3247. Picnic tables and fire pits are provided. Pavilions are also available to rent and they take reservations for large groups as well.

We chose car camping for our visit to check the place out. A favorite for hiking and biking. This place has gotten busier as development has been growing steadily over the years. Many of the trails are without shade and the recent fire season hit the back part of the tract pretty hard (Spring 2017) but you would not see any signs of this unless you hiked out the furthest trails from entrance.

Bring your bikes, hiking shoes, horses, or telescopes. Birders bring your binoculars! Over 150 species call Starkey home either full or part time. There is something here for everyone.

As always in Florida bring bug spray, sunblock, hat, and please leave no trace!

Crooked River Campground is located within the Croom Tract of Withlacoochee State Forest (Hernando County), and a short 5-mile drive from I-75. Thankfully the furthest away from the interstate which remains busy 24/7. The complex is on the shore of Silver Lake, which is part of the Withlacoochee River system, this campground is part of the Silver Lake Recreation Complex. The Withlacoochee travels around the different campgrounds here and there is a large day use boat ramp onto the lake away from the campgrounds.

At Crooked River (The Native American name for the Withlacoochee) it seemed like every site was surrounded by dense undergrowth which really added more privacy. You can see from my campground and another random site I took a photo of that you are really nestled into the underbrush. If you want to get to the water there is a staircase which provides access to the Withlacoochee River for small boats. I took my folding kayak out and the water was very nice and refreshing against the unbearable heat of Florida. I think there was only 1 maybe 2 other campers while I was there and saw more people on mountain bikes going around the roads than anyone else.

Local Features and Activities

· Nature trail and boardwalk.

· Fishing

· Canoe trail

· Sorry, no pets allowed

Facilities

• These are tent only primitive campsites with the standard uncovered picnic table and fire ring with a grate and/or a grill.
• Flush restrooms and warm/hot water showers
• The campground also is available for organized youth groups, but requires a reservation. You can’t do this online (at ReserveAmerica) like the normal sites. For reservations call (352) 797-4140.

Directions: Take I-75 Exit 301 onto US98/SR50. You'll then turn east (away from Brooksville) and go about 1 mile until you reach the second stoplight at Croom Rital Road. Turn left and proceed north. Follow the signs to the Withlacoochee State Forest Silver Lake Recreation Area and turn right into the complex and follow the signs to the campground.

This location is utterly beautiful! So many different environments can be seen just walking the trials. The 4 primitive campsites we found were along the river and we did not see bathrooms or picnic tables or fire rings. The trails are marked well but not often maintained - so you really get the feel that you are in the middle of nowhere. No traffic was heard at night and I would not camp out there alone on a weekend due to the "local party crowd". This is a hike in and hike out site. We only stayed 1 night. No amenities. Lots of birds and wildlife in the late day and early morning. Parking is a small fenced in area before turn in road - no security/lighting appx 1.5 miles from camping area that we found

I would have given this location a 5 except for the large amount of trash we found on trails (that we carried out) and the obvious disregard for rules of no swimming and no alcohol.

Sawgrass Island Preserve is a unique piece of property.  I love hiking on the north side of the property it looks so much like Old Florida.  I like to go across the causeway and down the Bog Button Trail and over to the Hammock Trail and along the Cactus Trail and down around the ponds and back out the Bent Pine Trail.  This is around a five mile hike and can be stretched out by doing the North Loop Trail also .  I have seen several whitetail deer, sandhill cranes, lots of other birds, quail, and some turkeys while hiking.  I also saw a black bear up a tree in the marsh.  It is a hidden gem for sure.  The south side is nice but gets super sandy in places due to horseback riders.  And if you have horses the preserve allows riders and even has a spot or two with water for the horses and some picnic areas with hitching post to tie off horse and have some time to eat.  Some trails are narrow and give the feel of actually walking in, in the woods!  I haven't camped there but they have two primitive campsites on the Hammock Trail near the marsh with a fire ring, picnic table, and lantern post.  There is also a horse campsite along the Cactus Trail down near the ponds and there is an open pole barn with two roomy stalls for horses and picnic tables and a fire ring with benches.  Also room to pitch tent under barn too.  There is no water available at any of the campsites.  Could be a fun adventure waiting in Old Florida.  There is a camping application to fill out on line at www.lcwa.org and a  small fee, but if everything checks out ok at the end of the stay after a Ranger has had a chance to check out the site your fee is refunded.

Okay, so I didn’t do a ton of research, but I have driven around here before so I decided to get one of the primitive sites and do a little gear testing.

-$5+ per person/night -Bundles of firewood available for purchase (located at the site) -$5 arm loads -Fire ring, Picnic Table, Bench, and Garbage pail at the site

Walked the long way in (3.25miles), instead of the 1 mile route. The entire hike is through typical open grass “roads” cut and maintained in the Florida brush. The site itself had a nice vibe and is far away from any other sites at the park. A large open clearing could easily allow for a dozen tents, unfortunately, I brought my hammock,.. and this site is not set up for hammock camping.

With a little rigging and placement over a dried up gator hole, I found a spot that I could hang my hammock and shelter for the night.

I thoroughly enjoyed the spot, other than the lack of clearing for a hammock, and the mosquitos were absolutely unbearable... I am aware that it was rainy season in Florida, near a WMA named Green Swamp, but I went home with hundreds and hundreds of bites, despite my preparedness.

I would camp here again, maybe when it’s a little cooler and more dry, and also would hike in with a tent, or potentially take the shorter route and pull a wagon full of gear, to enjoy a bit more “glamped” feel.

Stayed here for a night in November of 2020. We stayed at the Ashley campsite. It is free but had to register at watermatters.org - (Southwest Florida Water Management). They provide you with a code to unlock the gate once registered. At the campsite there were about 15 sites. Most had non-potable water. All had a picnic tables and fire ring. My site had a covered picnic table. A vault toilet was also provided and was pretty clean. The campsite was about half full when I was here and it was pretty quiet even though you can see your neighbors. You are permitted to collect fire wood as long as it has fallen from the tree. For a free campsite, I can’t complain. I would stay here again.