I know like us you’re probably always looking for hidden gems… places you love to camp and visit that catch you by surprise. This place, Coleman Landing, on Lake Kissimmee was one of those places for us. Maybe the biggest surprise yet, Coleman Landing in a county park that doesn’t take reservations. You just show up and hopefully find an empty camping spot, which comes with water and electric… all for the great price of $20 per night… paid in cash or by check. After you setup camp the host will come around on a golf cart to welcome you and take your money, leaving you with a receipt and permission to enjoy one of the true gems in central Florida.
Lynn, Maggie and I did just that. We set off quickly to walk around and find out what this park had to offer and man it had a lot to offer. The main attraction of course is Lake Kissimmee and the most popular feature of the park would be the boat ramp. Boats of all types, bass boats, V-Hull boats, canoes, kayaks and lots and lots of air boats used the ramp every day we were here. It was our first time being around air boat and watching the unique way they launch and return was a lot of fun for us. One of the days we actually got our paddle boards down from the roof basket on the van, inflated them and then went out paddling around. To be honest we didn’t feel extremely safe out there. It’s a big lake and the islands have a lot vegetation, which the air boats just fly right over, without brakes I might add. Out in the main channel the bass boats were all seeing who could get to the next spot the fastest, many looking like they were travel at a speed well over 60mph while we were paddling at about half the speed of smell. That combination kept our heads on a swivel as we constantly watched for other boater and alligators. But, we really enjoyed getting out on the water again, doing a little fishing and just paddling around enjoying our time together and out with mother nature.
If you are near this area, we really recommend stopping in to see if you can get one of the first come first serve sites. For $20 a night it might be the best bargain in Florida. It was one of those stops where we thought we were killing time until our next big stop, but it turned out to be one of our favorite places to visit. It was quiet at night, the night air was cool and crisp, the fog on the water in the mornings was awesome to experience and our neighbors were some of the nicest we’ve gotten to know. All in all it was a stop that should have been a planned destination. But, since it was not that made this stop even more special.
VAN TREKKING lifestyle 