In our quest to hit up all 175 Florida State Parks, we just completed a camping trip this weekend at Lake Kissimme State Park and Allen David Broussard Catfish Creek Preserve State Park. They are parks 82 and 83, respectively.
We parsed down our gear some as we just did a one night camping trip and decided to forgo our normal glamping gear. We brought the tent, air mattresses, pillows and sleeping bags, chairs for the campfire, and campfire stuff. That was about it. We cooked hot dogs on the bonfire and brought donuts for breakfast.
The most interesting thing for our family was Cow Camp. We didn’t even know this was here, but a short drive up a dirt road to a grass parking lot, followed by a short hike…will bring you to Cow Camp. It just so happened there was even a historical actor there during our visit, which apparently happens on Saturdays. The guy told us some facts and even snapped a whip for us. My kids loved the lovable cows and a horse was there too.
There were hiking trails, a playground, and an observation tower that we climbed up at night to take in the thousands of stars on the beautiful, clear night. There was also a boat ramp giving access to Lake Kissimmee. Lots of people were there for that purpose. If you were inclined you could take out a canoe or kayak. There were also some hiking trails available.
The campsites were nice. Ours had plenty of room for the kids to play in and had a couple trees for our hammocks.
A big storm was supposed to roll in during the morning. So we packed up early and were gone by the time the first few drops of rain began to fall. We drove the 35 minutes to Allen David Broussard Catfish Creek Preserve State Park. We met a couple primitive campers there. The site wasn’t far at all from the parking lot. We did some hiking on the sandy trails at the park with our rain gear on. We turned back when the winds picked up and the rain started to fall harder.
Another successful trip and two more stamps in the book!
