Lake Waldena Resort and Juniper Springs State Park Camping Trip Ocala, FL

9/5/15 - 9/7/15, Labor Day Weekend

We booked this trip over Labor Day weekend a few months ago. We were determined to not wait til the last minute to book a place for the long weekend.  This time of year it's great to visit and swim in the cold natural springs in Florida to cool off from the sweltering heat so we decided to visit Juniper Springs SP in Ocala.

On Saturday morning we got Airhed hooked up to hit the road and she failed our light check. The back taillights wouldn't work.  We re-plugged the towing socket in and then the right tail lights worked. After taking off the lens on the left light we could see that the bulb had blown and that water is getting into the light housing and the base holder is rusted out and touching the back plate.  We had planned to replace all the tail lights eventually so we've put in an order on vintagetrailersupply.com.  Even though it was clear the left light itself had an issue we are beginning to wonder if we also have an issue with the truck plug in connection because we always seem to have an issue with the left side on the boat and now the camper.

On our way to Ocala we saw a billboard sign for Whispering Oaks Winery so we stopped to check it out. We have been to many wineries in Washington State and Napa Valley but this was our first one in Florida.  We weren't sure what to expect.  We were pleasantly surprised that it was just like all the other wineries we've been to.  Nice spot on beautiful property, big tasting room and a cheese plate. They had a wonderful selection of blueberry wines.  There was also live music out in the back patio area.

 Whispering Oaks Winery

 

Airhed at Whispering Oaks Winery

After the winery it was about a 30 minute drive to our destination Lake Waldena Resort.  Check in was easy and we got spot# 6 on the waterfront.  I set up the decorations and Wade dealt with a broken black/greywater hose.

Lake Waldena Resort, Spot #6

Loving the new decorations!

The original black/gray water hose broke in two!

With the broken hose we were unable to reach the in ground dump out near the front of the camper, Wade set up the greywater Tote which worked out fine.  He just had to dump it after a days worth of dishes and we used the resorts shower facilities. Our blackwater went into our holding tank.

We ate a late lunch of BLT Ranch Chicken Wraps and potato salad that I had made ahead and I got the Crock Pot Taco Casserole underway for dinner.  We enjoyed a bottle of the blueberry wine we picked up at the winery earlier in the day and called it an early night so we could get to Juniper Springs in time to rent a canoe.

On Sunday after a nice breakfast of strawberry cheesecake stuffed french toast , Wade did the dishes and I grilled our pimiento sandwiches, packed our lunch and put dinner in the crock pot. After that we drove the 11 miles to Juniper Springs State Park

Best breakfast ever!  Strawberry cheesecake stuffed french toast

Juniper Springs State Park Canoe Trip

And we're off!

We got to the Canoe Rental Place inside the park just in time. If we had been five minutes later we might have missed it.  They only rent canoes up until 11:30AM because it is a one way 7 mile trip and they estimate it takes 4-5 hours.  After listening to the safety class and the strict rules of no bringing in food or beverage items in disposable containers I was so glad I didn't wrap our lunch in sandwich bags and instead had them in plastic containers. They checked our cooler at the launch area like they said they would. I also realized we didn't have enough water for a trip that long so went into the store and bought a big re-usable water container.  They had an ice/water dispenser you could fill up for free so that was great.

We launched and were in awe at the quietness and experiencing Florida in it's natural glory! After a while we got hungry and stopped for lunch tree side. The grilled cheese pimiento sandwiches and Quinoa with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette that I pre-made at home before the trip and brought with were just what we needed.  Most of the trip is in  treecanopy so the whole trail is mostly shaded thankfully!  We forgot our dry bag that we picked up at John Pennekamp State Park so we put our phones in the truck and used our water camera which doesn't take as sharp and colorful pictures ad I'd like. The whole run ended up taking us 3.5 hours going at a leisurely pace with the stop for lunch.   Included in the canoe rental is a shuttle ride back to the SP. The canoe trip was well worth the $38 dollars it cost to do. The shuttle ride back was easy, short and quick.  I was worried we wouldn't get on the first truck with all the other people pulling out at the same time but somehow we managed.  You could bring two vehicles with your own canoe/kayak and do the same run. They allow non renters to launch at the same place in the park.  

Lunch in the canoe; Quinoa with Lemon Basil Viniagrette & Pimiento Cheese Sandwiches

Some Pics and Video of the Canoe Trip

Purple Hyacinths

 

After the canoe trip and shuttle back to the state park we thought we'd check out the swimming area and trails.  Wade had remembered that when he went almost 20 years ago that there were some springs in the ground with white sand all around them so we had to find them.  After a walk the boardwalk trail we finally found them.  They were as beautiful as he said they were.

Swimming Hole at Juniper Springs, it was crowded

Old Mill House

Boardwalk

Wade on Juniper Springs SP Trail

Juniper Springs

Fireweed on the spring bank

Beautiful wild mushrooms on the trail

Juniper Springs with Trail Bridge in the background

After the springs we headed back to the campsite.  It was a bummer that the camp store closes at 4:00PM on both Sat and Sunday as we missed out on getting wood for a campfire.  Even though it's still very hot at night I just thought it would be fun since we haven't done one  yet. After we both took nice hot showers I made mashed potatoes and steamed brocolli to go with our Crock Pot Pork Chops. I also thickened the juice into a nice thick gravy. This turned out to be a perfect dinner as we were so hungry.  The Whispering Oaks Blueberry wine we picked up the day before paired well with the dinner. 

Crock Pot Pork Chops

After dinner we went up to the recreation hall that is open 24/7 and borrowed a couple of DVD's.  We ended up watching The Bucket List with Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson.  Great movie!  After that we headed off to bed with sore shoulders.

On Monday we kicked around some ideas of what we wanted to do for the day.  Upon check in we asked when check out was and they said it's at 11am but if no one is coming in after you; you can stay a while longer.  After mulling about whether or not to go to Alexander Springs and back we decided to do some well needed organizing of the camper.  We had a couple of boxes of parts and odds and ends from all the projects.  We got started on that after I made the strawberry cream cheese stuffed french toast again.  

After we got the organizing done, Wade installed a new lens for our exterior light.  He also put silver tape on an exterior puncture hole and we both installed faux stainless steel film that I got from the internet to give our refrigerator a makeover. 

After working on the projects on the camper we packed up, took showers and headed home around 3.  We made it home by 7 or so.  All in all it was a very successful and enjoyable trip.  Will definitely be going back there. 

Trip Menu's

You might be wondering why I am cooking so much in the camper.  I would love to use an outdoor grill but it's too hot in this Florida heat and humidity this time of year.  So I'd rather make use of my Airstream kitchen with the a/c blasting :-)