Lafayette to key west

[Whitn37140]

Taking as middle of January from Lafayette la to key west any suggestion for parks


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[n2916s]

Well, it is unlikely you will find any sites at the four State Parks in the Keys so be prepared to pay top dollar for a private park. Of those, Fiesta Key should have room and is pretty nice. Boyd's in Key West is pretty much a place to park, period. There are others but I am not personally familiar with them.

Don't try to boondocks in the Keys. The Monroe County Sheriff's have no sense of humor about it. Even with a landowner's permission, you may not park overnight anywhere but an actual campground.

Flamingo in Everglades National Park usually has sites but will be well out of your way. Electric only, water and dump station on site. Nice views, boat tours, small store but no beach, no swimming.

Start looking now on Reserve America for state park campgrounds along your planned route as you may get lucky! Especially in the northern part of the state.

Enjoy the journey,

Mike

[polarlyse]

I got lucky today and booked 2 nights at a State Park between Ft. Meyers and Naples in mid-Feb. Those opportunities are out there so don't give up. I also booked one night in Ft. Lauderdale on the way down at a private CG.

[Pat Conway]

Your first night you could make it easily to Biloxi, Ms. In the winter time we like to boondock at the Imperial Palace Casino parking lot (get your players card first and then register with the Bell desk). Or near there in Ocean Springs, Ms there is the Gulf. Islands National Seashore Camp Ground (book through Reserve America.com) Your next night you can make it to East Bank Georgia, this is actually a mile North of CHattahooche,Fl, a Corps of Engineer campground you can reserve on Recreation.Gov. If you wanted to stay in the Florida Panhandle you could stay at St. George Island State Park near Appalachicola (great oysters), book through Reserve America.com. Koresham State Park in Estero, Fl between Ft. Myers and Naples is good (book on Reserve America.com). Hope this helps, Pat

[B00merang]

Like Mr. Conway says...unless you want to cross Mobile Bay, get past Pensacola and turn south onto US 98, and drive along the beaches for 150 miles before getting onto U.S. 27 and head south. For great camping you have St. Andrews Park in Panama City, and for world class beaches you stay a couple of nights in St. Joe Peninsula State Park before you reach Appalachicola and St. George Island (not a s nice as St. Joe, but at least crossing the bridge is free now). Keep heading east on U.S. 98 all along the Gulf, past St. Marks NWR (no camping, unfortunately), and pick up U.S. 27 in Perry. These are excellent back roads, in great shape with relatively little traffic, and you see old Florida...even when crossing the highly developed central Florida area. We used to pull our boats to the keys on U.S. 27...leaving Gainesville at midnite to avoid all traffic, and getting to Key Largo and the upper keys mid-morning.
All of this sure beats what you'll see along the faster I-10/I-75 alternate. Stay safe. jon

[Ed Brownfield]

In late September we did the reverse trip. We drove south from Virginia to FL and then west to AZ. We loved Fort Pickens National Park in Florida here's a link to the park:

Fort Pickens - Gulf Islands National Seashore (U.S. National Park Service)

Beautiful beaches close to Pensacola.

Safe Travels,
Ed

[SuzyHomemakr]

I've been working on a set of Google Maps that have recommendations for good places to eat and drink craft beer all over Florida. If you send me your email, I'd be happy to share them with you.

[SuzyHomemakr]

Oh, and be careful when towing through Miami. Turn signals are seen as a sign of weakness and an affront to the other driver's manhood!

And don't try to tow your trailer on Key West. The streets are way too narrow, in fact, you should fold in the street-side mirror of your TV if you park on the street.

I would suggest staying around Big Pine or Bahia Honda, and day-tripping down to KW. Those key deer on Big Pine are very cute, and will eat out of your hand.

Be sure to have good surge/diip protection, as the trailer parks in the Keys have sketchy power.

[Pat Conway]

Originally Posted by SuzyHomemakr

I've been working on a set of Google Maps that have recommendations for good places to eat and drink craft beer all over Florida. If you send me your email, I'd be happy to share them with you.

I'd love to have a copy of your listings, really love a good strong beer and great, reasonably priced meal too. E- Mail is wpconway2217@yahoo.com