Best Tent Camping near Gulf Hammock, FL

Great place to boondock! Spent 3 nights here by the pavilion. There are about 5 spots in the “primitive” camping area. Plenty of privacy and a kayak launch area. Spots have fire rings and a couple have picnic tables. Porta potty is clean. The back-country area was recently gated so RVs can no longer camp there. It’s now designated as tent-camping only. It’s a huge open space with entrances to walking trails and beautiful views of the river. The back-country area has an outhouse. It’s easy to get to and very quiet other than other campers and periodic airboats that zoom by.

In the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge, this is a fairly remote campground away from everything. There are about 28 or so sites, with varying degrees of amenities (three sites are tent only with no hook ups, some sites have electric only, and some both electric and water). Cost depends on amenities: the tent only sites are going to be $10 a night in 2020 (it was only $5 a night for me this December), and sites with electric and water are $15. There was a dump station for RVer's as well. Bathhouse was clean if dated, with a fairly new shower stall. 

The sites on the inside of the loop are all on a slope and have the playground, office, and bathhouse as the hub. The outside of the loop sites all back up to woods or marsh.  I was in tent site #9, which was right next to the marsh. It rained overnight and I noticed the site could flood if it had rained a lot. But my other option was next to some well established and loud RVer's next to the playground, and on a slope. I chose the flatter site next to the marsh, but I think that wasn't much better as it put me right in with the mosquitos and no see-ums. Bring your industrial strength bug spray!! 

The campground is next to an arm of the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge and so it's close to a few nice trails and a nice boardwalk and fishing pier. If you need ice or firewood or some basic groceries, head back out the way you came in and stop at tiny little Ms Dot's Grocery. She is super nice, has lots of knowledge of the area, and her ice (BIG cubes) is super cheap.

Ranger Review: Wild Zora Bars and Paleo Meals to Go at Hart Springs, Fl

Not far from the city of Gainesville sits the town of Bell, Fl home of many small springs. The spring we visited was Hart Springs. Hart Springs was just the right temperature on a hot summer day and a perfect location to enjoy Wild Zora Bars.

Camp Ground Review:

The Hart Spring has one of the largest swimming area with year-round 72-degree Fahrenheit water temperatures. The spring has an over bridge and concrete steps that lead down into the springs. Plenty of shade and Pavilions with grills close to the springs, playground, bathrooms and camp store. This park also has a splash pad, volleyball and basketball court. Beautiful ½ a mile-long boardwalk along the springs and the Suwannee River. Rentals of canoes and Kayaks available and cave diving is allowed for certified cave divers. The campground is located about 1 mile away from the spring accessible by a paved walking, bicycle or golf cart trail which is shaded by cypress, oak and pine trees. Campground has 71 sites (one loop), full hookups, and bathhouse with hot shower, washer and dryer. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring (no grill). Our site was #8 this site was deep, shaded and close to the bathrooms. Nice pool with bathrooms and a big pavilion with picnic tables and two grills for cooking at the pool. No alcohol. No pets (except at the RV campground) Reservations thru Reserve America website.

Product Review:

As a ranger for The Dyrt, I get to test various products. At Hart Springs I tested two products from Wild Zora: Wild Zora Bars and Wild Zora Paleo Meals to Go.

What I thought about Wild Zora Bars and Paleo Meals to Go:

1. Convenience- when spending the day at the springs, pool or on a hike it is nice to have a healthy snack with balanced nutrition without having to compromise on flavor.
2. Very tender and easy to eat- Having children it is often difficult to find jerky or nutrition bars that are soft enough to chew, these bars are tender and eaten without difficulty. This is also beneficial for my older father who finds it difficult to chew most Jerky.
3. Good balance of nutrition- it is nice to have a snack for both myself and my children that contains some vegetables. Unfortunately, we do not always get enough.
4. The Paleo meals are easy to transport, requiring no refrigeration and very simple preparation. When you are ready to eat you simply add water, stir and allow the food to cook. Prep for camping and hiking can be very time consuming. Having meals that are ready to go when you are is not only a time saver but, in some cases, can make the difference between a hot meal and a cold sandwich.
5. The texture of the Paleo Meals to Go was a bit softer than I would have anticipated, possibly I let it sit to long when preparing, but the flavor was very good, and the meal was filling.

I would recommend Wild Zora bars to anyone that is looking for a snack for camping, hiking, or just an all-around healthy snack. I would recommend to anyone who likes camping, especially where space is limited, to try the Paleo Meals to go.

I will try to make a general review much details is possible . Small campground, around 26 spaces.

1- You can arrive at any time, having a vacant spot, you can set up your campsite and pay when the office opens in the morning around 7:30, no reservations, first come first serve, there it stays open 24hrs without a gate. Check-out at 12:00.

2- There are three primitive spaces, which daily costs $10 per 2 people (9,19,22) 3- There are options with only electricity $20 (spaces 3-18) or with water and electricity $25 daily, all the other spots I haven't mentioned. 4- No card are accepted there. Cash only. (military's 50% off) 5- Spot 9 (primitive) has sun all day, grass with holes, no trees to provide shade, we stayed in it, very hot and uneven! 6- Pet-friendly Camp 7- Bathrooms with shower, clean. Safe place, "neighbors" were super friendly. 8- If you like fishing, you will find a lot of catfish's there. It has a ramp for the boats (lots of noise throughout the day and night, so bring earplugs to sleep). 9- BUGS! The place is full of bugs and mosquitoes especially in the afternoon, night and dawn, so don't forget to bring your repellent, make a fire to scare away insects, bring firewood, citronella candles or mosquitos coil, fan etc ... 10- Next to the boat ramp, there is a sink with fresh water that everyone can use. And on the left side of the sink, there is a small path that leads to a good fishing spot. (2 minutes walk) 11- The receptionist Gale is very nice!!! 12- No Wi-Fi. T-mobile's network worked well throughout Cedar Key. 13- Nearest gas station and market store is on Cedar Key downtown, 14 minutes by car. (Ice, firewood, drinks, bait) 14- In downtown Cedar Key parking is difficult to get, get there early. Golf cart for rent for $100. It has Kayak for rent and boat charter as well. 15- The small beach of Cedar Key, is extremely nice, has a park in front of it with restrooms, shower, drinking fountain, picnic tables and toys for children's everything public. 16- In the center of Cedar Key there is a great fishing pier that is really cool, many people fish there, in this pier also has public restrooms that stay open until 11pm. 17- Just in case, that there is an Auto Parts store next to the small Market in Cedar Key.

I hope I helped you all. :)

We stayed here in the winter and the weather was very pleasant. The sites are all RV friendly with hookups but there are some sites that are designated as tent sites with a softer spot to stake in. Each site also comes with a standard fire ring and picnic table. The sites are large and spacious with shady trees surrounding each site. It is very quiet and peaceful. Note that pets are allowed in the campground area but not in any other areas.

The bathrooms and showers are close by and are very well kept and clean. It was never crowded. There are also laundry machines and vending machines there as well.

Near the campsites there are cabins for rent and a small museum. There is also a playground for children. Our favorite feature was that we were able to visit Silver Springs park free of charge if you brought your parking permit from the campsite. There are quite a few hiking trails near and one of them takes you directly to the park. Once in the park, you are able to rent kayaks or take the boat tour. The spring water is so clear you can see all of the fish swimming below!

Silver Springs is definitely a great place to visit for a relaxing Florida getaway.

Well, if your looking to do some “camping” this is not place. We came into Florida on a Friday looking for a campsite for us and our rooftop tent and was not having any luck on finding a campground that had any vacancy. We didn’t want to stay at a Rv park because we don’t have a Rv and we like nature and privacy. So we were running out of options and called CODYS and they said they didn’t have any spots but ended up telling us since we just had a suv he would us stay a night for $45, which was a very high price for one night in a tent. When we arrived the man was very nice and we thanked him for making room for us. In my option the only thing this place has, is old RV’s that have been parked there for years, full time residents. Bathrooms did not lock, 10min max time in the restrooms, and frogs in the bathroom also. Very crowded and interesting corky place. We made the best of it for being parked in a little grass area which included a picnic table and fire ring. People were nice just not for tent camping or short term stays!

Can accommodate any size RV, even a big rig pulling a boat or toys. The campground is on a loop and we had no problem driving the one-way road with our 22-ft travel trailer which is 11'6" to the top of the AC.  But it is narrow with over-hanging trees.  If you have a huge big rig go in the "Exit" on the right when you get to the "Y". The campground is just inside this part of the loop, the road is wide, and there aren't any low branches. We witnessed a few locals go this way to get to the trailhead. 

Camping is on huge grassy areas with a good mix of sun and shade trees. You can pull in anywhere you wish on your site. There is a bolted-down picnic table, a bare patch on the ground for fires, and a trash can at each site. A vault toilet is located a good walk away at the trailhead/picnic site. There is also a horse corral at each site (a horse is not required). One of our neighbors used their corral for their kids. 

We had a bad first night with someone pulling into the trailhead at 00:45am and blasting their speakers for about 3 hours. We called FWC but don't think anyone responded. This repeated again the second night.  And on that night, some tent campers arrived to find someone squatting in their site.  They set up camp a short distance away and the squatter disappeared the next morning.  I saw a Sheriff car drive through the third day, and he gave me his card with a phone number in case it happened again. 

The trash cans were overflowing when we arrived and were finally emptied on the third day. The vault toilet could use some attention. There was a bit of trash strewn about at our site, which we picked up. 

On the good side, the camping is close to lots of rivers and springs, and there are several hiking and biking trails in the area.  The sites are huge and fairly level.  If this area were patrolled to keep out the partiers it would be an awesome place to spend a few days exploring everything the area has to offer.