After rescheduling due to two back-to-back storms and having to reconfigure our son's 18th birthday to not be a camping trip, we finally got to experience our final river as just our little trio with pooch in tow; this experience was pretty darn amazing friends!
The Highbanks Marina and Campground was our destination because of the fact it offered so much with restaurant, the Swamp House, featuring live music, boat ramp, boat dockage, and was pet friendly. With the time change, we decided to leave around 2pm and taking the fastest route arrived around 5pm going a steady 65mph, because we were trailering the pontoon and our camper was hooked up into the bed of our truck. The sun was already setting, and the office was closed with our information tacked to a board, highlighted for ease. We offloaded the camping gear from our boat making quick work to park the boat in their storage area near the dog park. Sadly, the boat launch was closed due to the high waters because of Helene and Milton. Luckily, they let us know in advance and we had found another public ramp to use and called Volusia County Parks & Rec to confirm it would be open, so our mission for the final river was still intact.
Seger, our chocolate lab, was excited to walk the property as they guys drove to the storage area and he made several friends along the way; though later we found out pets must be 30 lbs and under, his happy disposition afforded us the opportunity to stay through Sunday if we vowed to leave by 10am. That first night, we settled into our comfy camp chairs and watched the sun set over the wooded area of the St. John's River with cocktails in hand before walking the short distance to the restaurant for dinner. Gator bites, fish tacos, and teriyaki chicken were our choices, and each was delicious. Plus, the music was great, and a full moon adorned the night sky.
It had gotten chilly, we were grateful the restaurant inside had a small store full of apparel and both the guys, son, and spouse, got souvenir long sleeve shirts which they wore immediately. Stayed up late, watched the Mike Tyson fight on Netflix that aired close to midnight so dad's shouts at his phone were not well received yet forgiven when we apologized the next morning after learning all the rules we had accidently broken. Promising to be gone for day, and leaving early Sunday, we were granted permission to continue our stay and set out Saturday around 11am with a packed lunch to conquer our last river.
Many boaters were enjoying the perfect weather and as we headed southwest on the St. John's to enter the Wekiva River, we even got to pass a revitalized steamship that hosted guests for lunch and dinner cruises. Once onto the Wekiva, the winding waterway was quintessential river roaming and multiple gators greeted us in full glory soaking up the sun as the temperature outside dropped dramatically without it. Fall colors adorned the trees and the chill in the air made it extra special. Many downed trees were also on the path and had it have not been for the storms prior to and the flooding that came with it, it is unlikely our boat would have been able to go down the Wekiva let alone the Little Wekiva. How wonderful the divine universe is!
As we entered the Little Wekiva, a small island appeared just in time to allow our dog and us to get out and stretch before having to turn around for the long, slow trek back to the boat ramp before dark. Ran into a local lad who was impressed we had made it as far as we did and exchanged pleasantries before giving him our parking spot at the island.
Once back at the campsite, we went for a nice stroll and took our dog to their park area for a bit before dressing for dinner. It was a bit warmer, and the new musician was pretty good, so we decided to sit outside again and ordered some peel and eat shrimp, a burger, a Cuban, and gator bite tacos. Each meal was tasty and the staff, same as the night before, were friendly plus poured good drinks. After dinner, a nice lady named Tammy came up and introduced herself as our neighbor directly to the north of us. She invited us to play cornhole with her group of friends, most residents at least a few months out of the year. Everyone was nice and exceptional cornhole players! It was a perfect way to end our 4.5-year long journey exploring all the rivers of Florida, meeting nice folks along the way, many sites seen, good food and laughs had. Thank you, river roamin' fans for joining us on this incredible experience. Cheers to the great outdoors and the wonderful state of Florida, keep river roamin'...we will be!
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