Nestled right in the middle of the Forgotten Coast is an RV resort with a public beach. Just six minutes from the quaint fishing village or Carrabelle, FL. This is one of my favorite areas of Florida. Low population, Just right tourist population and just enough activities to fill your vacation or spare time. If you love white sand beaches, seafood, fishing, kayaking, hiking and wildlife. The Forgotten Coast is for you.
People who know about The Forgotten Coast tend to not tell anyone. People who live there don’t want it to become a bigger tourist area. So do us all a favor and don’t tell anyone. I used to come here for summer vacation. Rent a house on St. George Island and enjoy campfires on the beach, biking to get around the island. The beaches are like Destin without the crowds. As a reference the nearest Walmart is over 30 miles away. This is truly heaven.
As I moved into the RV life I’ve discovered that there are some great camping options in the area also. From Carrabelle west to St. Joe’s. This was my second winter to come through the area with my RV. Last year was a two week stay at Coastline RV Resort. This year I stayed a month at Carrabelle Beach RV Resort. Both are great places to stay and have sites with views of the bay. Just across the street from the resort is Carrabelle Beach. It’s a sandy beach on the bay with plenty of parking and concrete picnic tables with 60’s style covers.
I ran the beach at sunrise and sunset several times, Always towards the point in the direction of Carrabelle and the Carrabelle River. Several residents mentioned that down around the point there was a bear and her cubs but I was never fortunate enough to see them. On my sunset runs I was treated to light from the Crooked River Lighthouse which sits less than a mile from the resort. Later I started running on the sidewalk and backroads around the resort and lighthouse.
I did not kayak as much as I planned although I did spend a day on Cash Creek and Cash Bayou. The Bayou is a bald eagle and osprey habitat but I was not fortunate enough to see any on this day. I put in at Tate’s Hell Campground. From there you have two choices. toward the Bayou or up creek where it splits and you have the choice two smaller creeks. According to the information wildlife watching is good in that direction.
Similar to kayaking I did not hike as much as planned. With Tate’s Hell Wildlife Management Area and the Apalachicola Forest practically in my backyard and just minutes away. I had intended to spend more time in nature but a month goes by faster than you think. What does the song say….Don’t Blink. I did take one hike at the High Bluff Coastal Loop Trial. Don’t let the the name fool you. There’s no bluffs here. It’s flat. One again I had hoped to see bears and even gators but saw neither. I had to cut this short so I did 4.23 miles instead of the full 8 mile loop.
Carrabelle Beach RV Resort is located 6 mins west of Carrabelle and approx 16 minutes East of Eastpoint. This gives you easy access to Carrabelle, Eastpoint, St. George Island & Apalachicola. You will find an appropriate level of food and fun in these villages. Paddy’s on the Island is great for beer and football games. Oyster City Brewing in Apalach is always a good stop. I enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner at Owl Cafe. The Owl is a must stop for great food. I enjoy the views at Eastpoint Brewing on the bay. The beer is average but the view and atmosphere is great. I actually won a raffle. A basket with over $200 of beer and swag.
This time I did hit up some new places. Morning Bite, in Carrabelle, was not just new to me but new to the area. I had breakfast and dinner here an both were excellent. The prices are on the upper end for the area but so is the food. Probably the best quality food I had other than the Owl. I spent several nights at Fathom which is now one of my favorite holes in the wall. With mostly outside, covered seating and live music, Fathom turned out to be one of my favorite spots and a great place to meet and hang out with locals. Oysters, scallops and the grouper sandwich should not be missed. I also spent more than one night at the Red Pirate. This also turned out to be a great spot to make friends with locals and I should give them kudos. They serve a free Thanksgiving Day dinner to anyone who shows up, including take out. Decent and traditional.
Before getting to the resort. I want to mention that it’s an easy drive of just over an hour to Tallahassee in the event you need things you can only find in a bigger city. I actually drove over to tailgate with friends for the FSU/Miami game.
Carrabelle Beach RV Resort is well located on Hwy 98. The sites are all concrete with landscaping and palm trees between each site. If you can ask for one of the front sites on the beach end. You will be closer to Hwy noise but will have a view of the beach. The Bayfront sites at Coastline are much better with better views but these are not bad. Sites are nice but small in my opinion. The resort slopes toward the road so most of the sites slope from back to front and are mostly pull through sites. My rig is a 35 foot 5th wheel pulled with an F-350 short bed. By far not the largest rig in the park. I found the roads a little narrow and while I managed without difficulty. The sites and roads are on the small side. My pull through was downhill so I had to put quite a few boards under my front jacks.
The resort has a small clubhouse with a pool table and TV area. Laundry was nice, clean, well maintained and charged $2.00 per wash and $2.00 per dry. One cycle was enough in each even with towels. I failed to check out the showers and bathroom….don’t blink. However, if they are like the rest of the resort I expect they were well maintained and clean. There is a small office/camp store where you can get essentials, beer, a cup of coffee and beach stuff. The staff is friendly and helpful. There’s a pool and a large deck for gatherings There are a good number of tiny homes available. Some are privately owned.
The staff is constantly seen cleaning and maintaining the resort. The resort stays fuller this time of year than Coastline appears to and I had many more interactions with other campers. Some of the people I conversed with have been coming for years and a few told me there was going to be price increase next year. It was approximately $300 cheaper for the month than Coastline and evidently that gap will close next year.
If you are looking for a place to stay in the area I can recommend Carrabelle Beach Resort.