Since we were only able to score two nights at South St Lucie Campground we packed up and started our westerly trek through Florida. A few hours later after passing around the southern edge of Lake Okeechobee we pulled into the W.P.Franklin Corps of Engineer Campground. We have four nights booked and although we don’t plan to do much while here except enjoy the waterfront views from our campsite, we will surely find a few things to do.
The W.P.Franklin Campground is definitely one of our favorites. The campground is larger that the S St Lucie campground and this one also has boat hook ups where it is always fun to be able to chat with other folks who full time on their boats.I did meet up with one couple who do it a bit differently as they were on their way from Minnesota to the Florida Keys. They tow their boat but wherever they can they put the boat in the water and camp at at the docks with hookups. They do this because they plan to stay on their boat in the Keys instead of a campground. Pretty cool…
The campground has a boat lock on the opposite side of the Caloosahatchee River so it also entertaining to watch the various boats pass through the locks. One place we like to go hiking is the nearby Caloosahatchee River Regional Park where there are several moderate trails where we can hike a couple of miles though the wilds of Florida. We found lots of wild flowers in bloom on our hikes even in late November and we even heard couple of wild hogs as we were observing the damage they do while rooting the soil for food.
Another day we hiked in the park and even saw a couple of the aforementioned hogs we heard on the previous hike. Part of one of the trails took us along the Caloosahatchee River where we saw a few sailboats making their way west to the locks at our campground.
Another thing we like about this campground is we nearly always see a bald eagle here and this trip was no exception as we spotted a solo eagle sitting in the top of a large live oak tree. He sat perched atop the tree for a couple of hours and it was a treat to see.
Also near our site is a lovely little bar on the river called the Boat House. It was a great spot for happy hour and a chance to take in the setting sun as we pondered our next move down to Bonita Springs Florida where we will spend three months hiding out from the worst of winter…
NOTE: We are now near at our winter site for the season at Bonita Springs, Florida…
Whoa! Wild hogs! The males with their tusks are possessive of their territory. Yes, my brother and his hunting club hunt them during the season, and they are mean rascals. A lot of people like to BBQ the boar meat, but the flavor can be described as too strong and wild-tasting to me. Since you will be wintering near the Everglades (I think), there are a few restaurants in the Everglades which serve alligator and which has a nice chicken-like delicate flavor, if you have not tried it.
ReplyDeleteBeach and I will be down in Doral, FL near Miami for about a week after a cruise; will not be towing the camper this time; it's just getting a little too hard to find camping space in south Florida, but we always make time for the Everglades because of the chance to see a large number of birds.
Have fun exploring all the wildlife.
Another nice COE campground, now you can enjoy your winter in Florida.
ReplyDeleteNice campground and great shots of the eagle. Glad to hear you are back in your favorite Florida spot for the winter.
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