Jan/Feb destinations (as in warmer)

[ob1]

Cathie and I are thinking of taking our Oliver (and new addition "Latte") for a 6-8 week adventure to the warmer US South in Jan-Feb. Our vacation experiences in FL or TX have been primarily related to visiting family and we are not familiar with camping in either Fl or TX.

 

Our Oliver experiences have been road trips (2-3 weeks) with a max stay of 3 days in any one location, so this will be a complete new experience. We are not enthusiastic about commercial RV parks and prefer State and National parks, plus, with our new little complication to our lives, we need pet friendly places. We would probably not stay in any one place more than a week - 10 days. It would appear that it would be worth the additional hassle of taking bikes and a canoe, especially in FL?

 

A preliminary review indicates that So FL parks have few vacancies when close to the water and we were wondering if the East coast and West coast have any significant weather differences at the same Latitude?

 

Any recommendations, suggestions or comments for places that have a reasonable probability of being quite a bit warmer than Boulder?

 

Thanks much for your help!

 

Terry & Cathie O'Brien (and Latte)

[DCKiefer]

West coast may be a little cooler in the winter with winds of the cooler Atlantic, but generally about the same everywhere at the same latitude in the state. Far south Florida will be warmer than central and north. We had an unusal winter last year with something like four weeks of constent low in the 30's and highs in the 50's in central Florida. Usually we have a couple of days of this then it returns something more like lows in the 50's with highs in the 70's or low 80's. Rain is usually brief in passing cold fronts, but can get some nasty storms where the hot and cold meet.

 

Anything water related as you found is difficult and we pretty much always make a reservation, especially in the Keys. State parks are rustic, but will have water and electric at site and dump station near by. Many of the parks bathroom facilities have been remodeled in recent years and are usually pretty nice and kept clean.

 

Most place in Florida are not far from a town, except if you go to Everglades National Park. If you do go there pick a sight in the middle away from the tall vegation. The mosquitos are tolerable in Jan/Feb, but it is better to stay in the open, which the campground pretty much is.

 

Here is my list of favorite state parks.

Anstasia, near St. Augstine

Fort Clinch, at Fernandinia Beach

O'Leno, High Springs

St. Jospeh, in the panhandle, great undeveloped beach.

[tumbleweed]

Hi!!

Yes, last winter was cold and hopefully warmer this year. We live part of the year in Apalachicola, FL on the panhandle. Our favorites include Anastasia and St Joseph Peninsula SP. Other favorites are St George Island SP, Blue Springs SP, Manatee Springs SP and Ft DeSoto County Park: Pinellas Co. With an Oliver, you should have no trouble even getting into some tent sites at the Florida State Parks. Reservations are adviseable where ever you can in winter. Private parks we like are: Ho Hum in Carrabelle(panhandle hwy 98 ON THE WATER). When you know you are coming, email us at tumblwede@yahoo.com to find out where we are and maybe we can meet up.

Chuck

[ob1]

Thanks DC & Chuck for your recommendations and favorites. We'll put out an "APB" when we get near FL.

[SeaDawg]

We are often at home in January and February, also. Please let us know your plans via pm. Love to meet you.

Sherry