Heading North - Florida Edition

Our first stop on our trip north was Bull Creek Campground, a county park in Flagler County.  This would be a great campground for anglers - every site (as far as I can see) backs up to an inlet to the neighboring lake, and many campers had their boats pulled up right behind their campsites (there is also an adjacent dock if you prefer).  There is an on-site 'fish camp' restaurant with decent food that is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  The sites are level and decently spaced and the water views are nice.

The only downside to this campground...no potable water anywhere.  There is a water hookup at each site but it is clearly labeled 'non potable water'; the signs for the restrooms say the same.  I didn't see any fresh water fill station so I'm not sure what you're supposed to do about fresh water if you don't know this ahead of time (and the booking site did NOT tell us this).  The website advertises "full RV facilities," which I find to be a bit deceiving given there is no potable water hookup and no potable water fill station.  Fortunately I noticed people commenting on this in the reviews right before we left and Aaron filled our fresh tank about 50% before we left our previous campsite, so we were fine for the two days we stayed.

There were turtles EVERYWHERE in the area.  We saw them poking their heads up in water all around the campground.

Turtle head

We also drove the short distance to Flagler Beach and found a plethora of turtles at Wadsworth Park.

Baby softshell turtle

Adult turtle

Flagler Beach

Our second stop was Cary State Forest.  We stayed here once before when we first came up from Tampa, and returned because we love the campground so much.  The campsites are HUGE, each with a nice level concrete pad, a grill, and a firepit with benches.  There are a few long hiking trails onsite.  Aaron thinks the bugs are a little oppressive...they're a bit obnoxious for sure but I think the pros well outweigh the one con.

Our spacious and private campsite

Panoramic view from our campsite - forest and more forest!

Boardwalk hiking - my favorite!

Maybe not Aaron's favorite...too many bugs?

Our fire ring & benches

This campground certainly allowed us to socially distance ourselves from the world!  It felt quite safe and snug in the midst of the pandemic.  As we continue our travel north, we continue to narrowly avoid coronavirus-related closures.  On our last day at the state forest, they closed the public restrooms (forcibly - with wood!) and marked all the campsites as unavailable both in person and online.

This sign was on all campsites except ours
and the one other camper in the park...I'm sure
it is on both by now.

Take a good look at that restroom door

Unavailable until April 17!

As we departed Cary State Forest we said goodbye to Florida for now.