Any South Florida Hangers?

[cfisch9]

Welcome to HF. I'm an hour south of you. Definitely come to the Florida hang in January.

I certainly do plan on it so that I can meet some fellow hangers, and enjoy a good trip. I work on Saturdays, so as soon as I get a date on that I will be certain to ask off for that weekend. I'm definitely excited about it.

[Ordin_Aryguy]

Thanks for the suggestion. From what I know about Peanut Island, it sounds like a good idea, however it can be a bit of a hassle. First of all, you need a boat to get there. Besides that, on the weekends it gets taken over by a bunch of party animals, you can practically walk from one boat to the next there are so many people there. Not that there is anything wrong with this, I have partied there many times myself, however it just doesn't seem like a nice relaxing place to camp out at. I also do not know if you can hang there. They have unfortunately torn down much of the vegetation to make way for sand volleyball courts and campsites on the beach, and so there are no trees in there designated campgrounds. I have however been doing a bit more research on locations near me, and I have found that Jonathan Dickinson State park could be a good spot to go (I plan on checking that out soon and taking some photos). I have also found that a portion of the Florida Trail http://www.floridatrail.org/ runs through Jupiter. It is called the "Ocean to Lake" portion of the Florida Trail, and it runs from Jonathan Dickinson State Park on the beach all the way to lake Okeechobee. A portion of it goes through Corbett State Wildlife Management Area just west of Jupiter. I believe they do allow camping there, and I plan on giving them a call and getting out there soon as well.

Corbett aint the place to backpack during hunting season. That WMA gets more hunting pressure than any other in the state. It's a zoo. Wait until the season ends and it's a reasonable place.

Same goes for Dupius WMA, west of Indiantown.

Ocala NF is a huge area, also with some hunting pressure during the season, but incredibly vast. But not exactly in the PB County area.

It's been a few years now since I've lived down there (grew up in WPB), but back in the day a few of us used to stealth camp around the area. One of our old favorites is now Okeheelee Park, and the other a giant tract of townhouses. We even used to camp in what is now Wellington, but that was before there was a single house out there! That's SFL for ya, if you blink when your eyes open again the place is different.

Stealth camping is still probably an option, but I'm sure the pickings are getting slim for places to go.

Good luck!



Ordin

[cfisch9]

Corbett aint the place to backpack during hunting season. That WMA gets more hunting pressure than any other in the state. It's a zoo. Wait until the season ends and it's a reasonable place.

Same goes for Dupius WMA, west of Indiantown.

Ocala NF is a huge area, also with some hunting pressure during the season, but incredibly vast. But not exactly in the PB County area.

It's been a few years now since I've lived down there (grew up in WPB), but back in the day a few of us used to stealth camp around the area. One of our old favorites is now Okeheelee Park, and the other a giant tract of townhouses. We even used to camp in what is now Wellington, but that was before there was a single house out there! That's SFL for ya, if you blink when your eyes open again the place is different.

Stealth camping is still probably an option, but I'm sure the pickings are getting slim for places to go.

Good luck!



Ordin

Thanks a lot for the info. I figured that might just be the case at Corbett. You certainly aren't kidding about SFL either. I have been down here since '96, and it is nothing like what it was when I moved down here. The population of Jupiter alone has probably tripled in size.

[DiezelDorf]

im from jupiter..live in new orleans now

EDIT: haha I just realized that you are from jupiter too. What part of jupiter are you from? I think the best place down in So fla to hang would be Johnathan Dickson state park..As i remember they have like a 7 mile loop trail near the river.

[cfisch9]

im from jupiter..live in new orleans now

EDIT: haha I just realized that you are from jupiter too. What part of jupiter are you from? I think the best place down in So fla to hang would be Johnathan Dickson state park..As i remember they have like a 7 mile loop trail near the river.

I live in Chasewood behind the Publix on Indiantown Road. However, I do love New Orleans, and I visit there every couple of years to see a lot of my family that lives out there, and also usually to see the Gators play LSU. Not very happy about that one this year.

I am definitely going to have to check out Jonathan Dickinson. It seems to be pretty much my only option besides going up to Ocala National Forest. I think I might head to JD this weekend just to check it out. I should be getting my HH in the mail in the next couple of days, so it would be perfect timing to test out my setup.

[Ordin_Aryguy]

I am definitely going to have to check out Jonathan Dickinson. It seems to be pretty much my only option besides going up to Ocala National Forest. I think I might head to JD this weekend just to check it out. I should be getting my HH in the mail in the next couple of days, so it would be perfect timing to test out my setup.

JD State Park should absolutely be on your radar. That place is a real gem, given the rapid loss of real estate in SFL. If there's still the canoe tours from Indiantown Road out to JDSP and you haven't yet done that, do it!

There are other camping options in central and south FL, most of them are on the WMA's, but not all. Big Cypress National Forest, Everglades National Park, etc. are all great places to hang a hammock, but don't expect dry feet.

FWIW, I escaped SFL in '98 and haven't missed it a day yet. Well, ok I miss the Everglades and a few restaurants (Park Avenue BBQ, Don Ramones, Duffy's, Pollo Tropical), but that's it. Camping these days is most in the Adirondacks, 6 million acres of absolutely incredible backpacking, fishing, and getting away from it all.

Ordin

[MAD777]

FWIW, I escaped SFL in '98 and haven't missed it a day yet. Well, ok I miss ... Park Avenue BBQ, Don Ramones ... Camping these days is most in the Adirondacks, 6 million acres ...
Ordin

I hear you! I bought a place adjoining the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire to retire to. Now if this economy will ever straighten out But yeah, Park Ave & Don Ramones ... I wonder how far they deliver?

[cfisch9]

JD State Park should absolutely be on your radar. That place is a real gem, given the rapid loss of real estate in SFL. If there's still the canoe tours from Indiantown Road out to JDSP and you haven't yet done that, do it!

There are other camping options in central and south FL, most of them are on the WMA's, but not all. Big Cypress National Forest, Everglades National Park, etc. are all great places to hang a hammock, but don't expect dry feet.

FWIW, I escaped SFL in '98 and haven't missed it a day yet. Well, ok I miss the Everglades and a few restaurants (Park Avenue BBQ, Don Ramones, Duffy's, Pollo Tropical), but that's it. Camping these days is most in the Adirondacks, 6 million acres of absolutely incredible backpacking, fishing, and getting away from it all.

Ordin

I too am contemplating escaping SFL. I have been looking into moving to Boston to go back to school, also I am 26 years old, and I would like to live in an area with a large young population rather than the retirement community I currently live in. Also, I would of course like to live somewhere near mountains and forests. That would definitely be a plus.

Also, I definitely agree on the restaurants, I hit up Park Avenue every couple of weeks or so.