Community Forums

BuffaloBarb · 08-03-2011, 12:11 PM

Hi everyone. We are in the middle if getting a larger trailer

and I wanted to plan a big trip for my family. I have been looking at Long Key as the destination.
My questions are: Has anyone camped their in Dec?, If so what was the bad and good about the location? Are there any local attractions that you would suggest? Are water shoes needed? I heard that there are many Man Of Wars in that area is it safe for young children and dogs?

Thank you in advance and I look forward to your feedback

we3peas · 08-03-2011, 01:22 PM

Here's my review from RVReviews.com from 9/2009:

60 sites 3 bathhouses, canoe and kayak rentals, 2 trails observation tower and beachfront camping. Sites were long enough for most RV's. All are cordoned off with pickets and a good amount of vegetation between them. Water and electric boxes are shared between campsites so be sure to bring extra lines and cords. Some campsites are shadier than others, mostly those in the 22-35 range. Friendly rangers, very clean bathhouses but no AC in them, firewood for $3.00 donation. Some sites stayed wet with puddles at entrance after rain showers. No TV available from park, bring your SAT dish. Bugs were bad-lots of no-see-ums and sand fleas. Beach was the most littered we have ever come across, we picked up 2 kitchen sized bags a night on our walks. Most litter comes from the ocean and boats because of the Gulf stream. It really put me off from beach walking in this park. Park road at entrance is smooth and repaved but when entering the locked campground area the road turns bad which made bike riding on it uncomfortable. No waves on beach pretty much just good for floating or bring your boat or jet ski. Boogie boards or surfboards would be useless here. Beach is not big enough to set anything up on it basically is wide enough to walk between campsites and water. All paraphernalia must be kept on your own site. No playground in park or any large areas to play. Park borders US 1 where people can run, bike, and walk to the next bridge south. Lots of road noise as it is only 50 yards away from campsites. The 2 newer bathhouses were large and showers had a separate dressing area. Older one was very small and outdated. No laundry even though there is space for it at the newer bathhouses. We walked the Golden Orb trail which was partly underwater in several places. Come prepared to wade through it if it has rained recently. Lots of birds in park, we also saw crabs and many interesting insects. Park has a nice boardwalk that leads up to an observation tower, hard to see anything from it though as it is too low. If you like quiet, book only during week as lots of people come to party all weekend and sometimes ignore the quiet hours posted. Pets are allowed in park but not on beaches, but most people ignored that rule as well. I think that we would stay at Curry Hammock SP next time which is about 12 miles south. It has a nicer beach and quieter neighbors.

Someone posted this in Jan of 2011:

This is one of the older parks that is due to be shut down for repair later this year.

BuffaloBarb · 08-03-2011, 01:46 PM

Wow that was quick! Thank you for the review. I will have to call and find out about the closure. I hope it is open when we want to go. I haven't found many other places similar.

lostagain · 08-04-2011, 05:27 AM

The park is closed for renovations. For winter reservations it is hard to get a site at the state parks in the Keys. Right now they are all already booked up for next winter.

rrountree · 11-03-2011, 07:39 AM

Long Key State Park is my favorite in the Keys but, as mentioned, the campground is closed until at least January 2012 while they pave the access road. They say it will only take a month or two, but my experience with Keys construction is that it takes forever. Meantime, they are taking no reservations this winter.

But don't give up! As soon as they have a firm completion date, they will open reservations. It's also worth checking ReserveAmerica frequently for sites at Pennekamp, Curry Hammock SP and Bahia Honda SP because there are often cancellations as snowbirds fine-tune their itineraries.
[moderator edit]

rrountree · 12-10-2011, 06:25 AM

Just learned construction at Long Key State Park has been delayed until January, and they are accepting campers on a first-come, first-serve basis through the end of December. No reservations, though.

Estimated completion of the road-paving project is now May 2012.

HD4Mark · 12-10-2011, 06:44 AM

Long Key, Curry Hammock and Bahia Honda if you want to camp in Dec you should have made reservations last Jan. They are usually booked solid. There are cancellations though so if you are close enough you might get a few nights or longer if you don't mind changing sites.

A couple camped next to us said they were going to try calling Long Key to get in for a few nights but it did not work out. When we drove by two weeks ago there were just a few campers there and no signs of any paving going on. How those people got in I do not know.

We are at John Pennecamp right now and made our reservations last March. It doesn't fill up as fast as the other Keys SPs but the sites are not on or very near the Ocean and look out for the no seeums. Even with a screen tent they find their way in. The Park is beautiful though and well worth the mosquito fight. We took the snorkel trip Wed and it was great but did have to dodge some moon jellyfish. They are slow, easy to get around and we are told their sting is not very painful.

Good luck with your trip to the Keys. The fight for a campsite is worth the trouble to be here.