Camping for Real – Blue Spring State Park, Orange City, Florida
Blue Spring State Park – Where Gentle Giants Roam
The colder, the better! At least to view manatees in the crystal clear, 72-degree waters of Blue Spring State Park. Manatees do not tolerate water temperatures below 68-degrees, and if exposed, can suffer cold stress syndrome. This would be like hypothermia in humans. When the cold winter arrives, they move on to warmer temperatures. The consistently warm waters of Blue Spring State Park along the St. Johns River in Florida provide the perfect refuge. The colder the weather gets, the more manatees you will see at the spring during the winter months.
Sometimes called sea cows, and nicknamed “gentle giants”, manatees have no natural predators and they are not predatory. Manatees are herbivorous marine mammals and are big fans of dining on sea grass. An adult usually weighs 900 – 1200 lb. and averages about 9 ft in length, so it takes about seven hours a day of grazing to satisfy their appetite!
We had never seen manatees and honestly, didn’t know much about them. But all that was about to change.
Entering the Park
Blue Spring State Park is a beautiful park. In the summer months, the spring is open for swimming, snorkeling, tubing, and kayaking, but in the winter, between mid-November and March, the entrance to the St. Johns River is roped off and, for their safety, only the manatees are permitted entry to the spring and spring run. We have only visited in January, so I can’t attest as to how crowded it is in the summer, but a word of caution for winter. It can be very popular during high manatee season, so be prepared for a wait to enter the park. Arrive early. Only so many vehicles are permitted to enter at a time, so there may be a line for a long distance on French St. just to enter the park.
And that’s where we found ourselves on January 24, 2022.
The line crawled at a snail’s pace, but finally the park entrance was in view! Then we realized that the traffic was being redirected to pass the entrance, loop around and come in from the other direction! Fortunately for us, we had our camp reservations, so the ranger waved us into the park, and we didn’t have to wait in the second line. Since we had arrived well before the 3:00 check-in time, we were permitted to park in the day-use parking lot, which was perfect.
A parrot named Rock-Star
Our first time experiencing a Florida State Park did not disappoint – it was absolutely gorgeous! Trees dripping with Spanish moss, giant ferns, palm trees, teal-colored water, and the weather was perfectly blue-skied and sunny. We marveled once again, that a week ago we were digging our way out of the snow.
Something we have learned in our year of travel, and I believe is one of my favorite things, is that you meet the most interesting and friendly people. It seems that most campers are like-minded, and genuinely eager to share their stories and hear about yours.
Our first day at Blue Springs was about to initiate us to this experience. Just past the parking lot, we encountered a woman with a beautiful parrot on her arm. She introduced him as Rock Star, and she was just visiting the park and brought him along. We were allowed to be groupies and be photographed with him!
Once again, we couldn’t believe that here we were, in such a beautiful place, in the middle of winter, randomly taking pictures with a parrot! We were starting to fall in love with RV life.
Meeting the Manatees
An accessible wooden boardwalk stretches through a lush hammock along the spring run from the St. Johns River to the spring. It provides an awesome opportunity to see the manatees up close and personal. The weather had been especially cold prior to our trip, so we were treated to a record-breaking manatee sighting day of over 700! It was amazing to see so many, and especially mamas with their calves. The boardwalk is well-shaded, and there are multiple platforms that get you closer to water level for even better viewing. It’s a very easy self-guided walk, or stroll, and you may stop at any time to take in the view. We were fortunate to have met a park ranger who was observing the manatees, and she was very informative and friendly.
Besides manatees, there are also a multitude of fish that can be seen through the clear water. We even saw an alligator basking in the sun on a log! The manatees and gators don’t seem to be bothered by each other and apparently co-exist quite well. There are a lot of birds, and we spotted an owl perched high in a tree. There is so much nature, and the walk is truly beautiful as you meander through the native Florida forest.
Along the way, there is a snack-bar and gift shop area as well as restrooms. There is a playground and plenty of space for picnicking at a pavilion or tables throughout the park. Although we didn’t hike, there are multiple trails available.
You can spend as much or as little time as you’d like, but we were there for several hours and enjoyed every minute! But we were also anxious to see our camping spot for the night.
Camping at Blue Spring
The campground is a short drive – you could walk it if ambitious – almost back to the ranger station at the entry. It has 51 campsites, so make your reservations early as it fills up quickly. We felt lucky to have at least scored one night here.
We were assigned to Site #4, and the view from the window was everything we’d hoped it would be! The sites were private, with a lot a vegetation between neighbors. Each had a picnic table, electric, and water, and a dump station was available.
It was our first time hooking up, and turned out to be a very easy process to provide ourselves with power and water. We made our first official dinner in the RV and tacos never tasted so good!
We paid a total of $ 41.58 to stay the night – our first real camping experience, priceless!
Blue Spring Revisited 2023
We loved Blue Spring State Park so much, we returned this year, almost to the day.
Since we were familiar with the campground, we felt confident in selecting Site #2 this year. The fee was the same, $ 41.58. Another super spot!
On the day we arrived, Thursday, January 26th, there was no line at all to enter the park. The weather had been warmer, so there were only 60 manatees in the spring that day. Quite different from last year, but still enjoyable to see so many!
On Friday, we had family driving up from Clermont to spend the day with us. They arrived at 10:00 am, but experienced a long line on French St. to get into the park, and had to do the wrap-around second line that we had seen on our last visit. It was well worth the wait though, and was a wonderful experience to share the beauty of this park with family. The manatee count for our Friday visit was 160, so it had more than doubled since the previous day.
When we’ve revisited our favorite places, there’s always been something new to experience. This time was no different – we were able to tour the Thursby House.
Visiting the Thursby House
Louis Thursby, a European settler, came to this area in 1857, and the home you see on the property was built in 1872. The home is preserved much as it was at the turn of the 19th century, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. You can’t miss it, as it’s visible from the parking lot. Last year when we visited Blue Spring State Park, you could walk around the outside of the Thursby House, but the interior was closed because of COVID. We were happy this year to find it open for self-guided tours. It was quite the experience to not only get a glimpse inside of the home, but also inside the lives of the family who lived there.
Because steamboats were the prominent means of transportation back in that day, Louis Thursby’s decision to build a steamboat landing on his property proved to be a very profitable decision. He and his wife welcomed passengers to their home, and their children helped by taking guests on fishing and boating expeditions. Mrs. Thursby even became the first postmistress of the area.
The home is not furnished, but each room has a story-board and other interesting items and artifacts to share the history of the Thursby family.
Although the Thursby’s were one of the first European settlers of the Blue Spring area, they were not the first inhabitants of this land. Archaeological research has found that Native Americans had inhabited this area for over 6,000 years. It was found that the Thursby House was built on a shell midden, which is a pile of debris left behind by prehistoric societies. It is truly a fascinating story!
If you like walking in the footsteps of history, visiting the Thursby House will be an added bonus to your Blue Spring State Park adventure.
Blue Spring State Park – Something for Everyone
Blue Spring State Park is a place that I’m sure we will return to again and again. The campground is excellent. Who knows what new things we’ll see next time? There is a guided boat tour that we haven’t taken yet, and maybe we’ll hike one of those trails. If you’re ever in the area, put this park on your list!