Skooma M.

Wesley Chapel, FL

Joined September 2021

OH -> FL -> OH

Organized Group Site 2

It was difficult to find pictures or reviews of the Findlay group sites. It honestly seemed to me that they didn't exist, so I thought I'd do the service of taking some pictures.

The group sites are away from the main campsites, so you should have plenty of space for your group to set up and enough distance between them to not disturb the peace if you have a large group. OGA2 is heavily forested, I'm not sure about OGA1. There are plenty of trees so both hammock and tent campers should be accommodated. The fire pit is large and there are 4 picnic tables.

The campsite is about 75 yards from the parking area, and there is a vault toilet right before the parking area.

The East Tract..

Not very scenic if you're coming in from 471, except for in small bursts, but the Trial Ford campsite itself is quite well kept. There's plenty of space for tents, and a couple of picnic tables, a bench, and a fire ring are offered. The trail from 471 to the campsite feels less like hiking a trail and more like just walking down a service road, but that's sometimes what you get.

There is no water pump on the trial ford site, (at least not that I saw), but there is access to a river not far away from Trial Ford . Signs clearly point the direction.

Nice grounds, way too busy.

This location has great facilities and, if you get lucky, you might have a silent campsite. To put it simply, this campground is going to be WAYYY busier than most people are going to want, and could make for a pretty miserable camping experience depending on what you've set your expectations to be. If you camp here with your family/friends, I recommend reserving at least two sites side-by-side to give yourself the necessary space and to maximize your distance from other campers. Decent facilities, decent office, WAYY too busy.

Perfect

Whether you're staying at the campground itself or on the trail off the parking lot, you really can't get much better than this. Beautiful trails, accessible water from the river, sites on trail are plenty, and far between, to provide plenty of solitude. On the campground, I believe there are only 6 sites, you don't need to worry about over-crowding. They also provide a vault toilet which is always a welcome feature. Even if you're staying on trail, you can cross the street into the campground to use the vault toilet, as it isn't too far(depending how deep into the trail you are).

The campground itself can fill up quite easily, but if you head onto the trail, I see nearly zero possible situation in which you couldn't find a campsite! There is plenty of room. I can't wait to go back.

Gator Hole

This section of the FT is quite a nice walk, and I assume that most individuals looking at a site on the trail, are looking at Gator Hole. As far as backcountry campsites go, you really can't ask for much better than Gator Hole especially as a beginner, or a more leisurely camping group. It is only about 1.5 miles from the trailhead, so you dont need to go far, there is plenty of room for tents, and there is a provided fire ring with two picnic tables(even if one of the legs is held up by a log). The one thing that this ground is missing that could do it much better is a water pump, but I understand that you can install pumps everywhere. You can collect your water a couple hundred feet to the north, and If you're not into filtering your water from the Florida swamp, make sure to pack in some extra. Every time I visit Gator Hole, I am always packing out other people's trash, so please pack it out.

As Expected.

HBR State Park is what it is, as far as camping goes. The car campground is as expected from places like this. Lots of RV campers, sites that are quite close to each other, and rock-hard ground from being packed down by heavy vehicles day after day. If you plan on ground sleeping in the campground, make sure you have a sleeping pad or you will certainly be miserable. They do have very nice bathrooms at this park, which is always appreciated. In general, HBR is a pretty nice park, but I wouldn't camp here if you want a quiet night of solitude In the woods.

There is also a severe limit on Hammock camping - it is only allowed at a few of the sites, so make sure you reserve a site where you are allowed to hang a hammock if that is what you are looking to do.

The trails and the river are beautiful and definitely worth walking along at least once.

The primitive campsite that is off the trail, last I called them , has been closed off for over a year. I'm not sure why this is the case, when it is perfectly accessible, but it would be nice if it could get opened back up.

I will say that several workers seemed to be quite suspicious of me since I don't have a vehicle, and I was asked multiple times if I was hiking out. Not really sure what the big deal was.