Myakka River State Park Myakka River State Park is an extremely popular park during the winter months and it usually best to make your reservations for this time 11 months in advance as soon as the reservation window opens online. The peak season is January to March. According to the park rangers, the park is slowly getting more visitors in the summer months as well. We stayed in the park for three months as campground hosts in one of the older camping areas called Old Prairie. The bathhouse was old but still functions very well with lots of hot water, water pressure not too bad and a new washer/dryer on the side. The fee was $1.50 per load while if we were to go over to the volunteer village and sign up for a time it would only be $1.25 per load. Anyway, even though we haven’t spent any time in any of the other camping areas we have visited them and spoken with some of the campground hosts about them. The campground directly across from Old Prairie is the newest one all with sewers on site, large gravel sites for large RVs and a paved road around and is called Palmetto Ridge. Naturally, the bathhouses in this area are quite large with washers/dryers on the sides. The other campground is located a few miles down the park drive near the concession area called Big Flats. Now, these sites are mostly dirt sites, smaller with a big tenting area. They also have a tendency to flood when there is a lot of rain. The concession area has two stores to get supplies for camping, food, a new gift shop, restaurant, as well as firewood and ice. They also offer boat tours of the Upper Myakka Lake/River area and tram tours in certain areas of the park during the peak season. Finally, they rent out canoes, kayaks and even bicycles while you are there. There is a seven-mile road from the main entrance to the back entrance of the park with lots of places in between to sit by the water, fish, gawk at alligators, take pictures of the various wildlife or just enjoy your ride. Of course, there are lots of trails to explore as well. Myakka has a preserve on the other side main road where, with a permit, you can primitive camp as a single or in the group camping area. Most hikers in this area must get a permit as well and check out with the ranger station before it gets dark. There are thousands of acres out there to explore. While we were workamping one of the perks for newbies was taking around almost the entire park and preserve in an air-conditioned truck by one of the other experienced volunteers. That was a very nice day. My only regret about our time there was that I was unable to take the main trail called the canopy walkway. I have seen pictures but would have liked to go through myself. The park has cabins as well as camping areas. While we were there we didn’t get a chance to check them out but they looked like those old CCC cabins with modern amenities. We were told that they are scheduled to be refurbished so if we are ever able to return I will make sure that we get a tour of them. There are two big picnic and playground areas within the park. One near the main ranger’s station while a huge music stage next to the Myakka River and the other is near the back entrance with a creek of some kind running along one side. The park also has a museum that we were only able to visit briefly during our initial tour of the park. So that is something else we will have to go back to see. All in all, we enjoyed ourselves at Myakka River State Park. The only bad part is that it is approximately 20 miles from the nearest town. Slowly civilization is encroaching on the area with subdivisions getting closer and closer. That is good on the one hand in that grocery stores are getting nearer but bad as well because more and more people are visiting the park all year round. Visitors are good for the economic health of the park but for us oldsters that like more peace and quiet not so much. Myakka River State Park 13208 State Road 72 Sarasota, Florida 34241 (941) 361-6511 https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/Myakka-River Admission Fee: $6.00 per vehicle. Limit 2-8 people per vehicle. $4.00 Single Occupant Vehicle. $2.00 Pedestrians, bicyclists, extra passengers, passengers in vehicle with holder of Annual Individual Entrance Pass. $60.00 Bus Tour Fee (30+ people). $2.00 per person, Bus Tour Fee (less than 30 people). Primitive and Youth Camping: $5.00 per person, primitive camping. $1.00 per youth, youth camping. $5.00 per adult/chaperone, youth camping. Cabin Fees: $70.00 per night. Pavilion Rentals: $40.00 per day, Lake and Clay Gully (holds 40 people). $80.00 per day, South (holds 111 people) and Log (holds 60 people). Daily Concession Tours: $12.00 per adult, Airboat & Tram Tours. $6.00 per child, ages 6-12, Airboat & Tram Tours. Daily Concession Rental Fees: $20.00 Canoe & Kayak rental, first hour. $5.00 Canoe & Kayak rental, each additional hour. $15.00 bicycle rental, 1-2 hours. $15.00 bicycle rental, 1-2 hours. $25.00 bicycle rental, 4 hours. $40.00 bicycle rental, 5 hours to close. A deposit of $50.00 cash or a Visa, Master Card or Discover card is required. Other Fees: $10.00 Dump station, per unit, non-registered camper. $7.00 RV water filling station / per unit, non-registered camper. $10.00 electrical adapter fee / refundable deposit: tent campers can pick up the adapter from the ranger station. Camping Fees: $26.00 per night, plus tax. Includes water and electricity. Florida residents who are 65 years of age or older or who hold a social security disability award certificate or a 100 percent disability award certificate from the Federal Government are permitted to receive a 50 percent discount on current base campsite fees. Proof of eligibility CAMPSITES: There are approximately 90 campsites but only 77 are reservable and for RVs. The rest are 5 cabins, tent sites and non-reservable. 15 Back-In 50 Amp 1 20 Back-In 50 Amp 4 25 Back-In 50 Amp 14 30 Back-In 50 Amp 15 35 Back-In 50 Amp 5 40 Back-In 50 Amp 28 (With Sewers on-site) 45 Pull-Through 50 Amp 10 (With Sewers on-site) WHERE TO GET WHAT YOU NEED GROCERIES Publix Super Market at Bee Ridge 8300 Bee Ridge Rd Sarasota, FL 34241 (941) 371-4276 Walmart Super Center 4381 Cattlemen Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 379-3550 OPEN 24HRS Save-A-Lot 4404 Bee Ridge Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 378-9912 Publix Super Market at Palmer Ranch 5100 Clark Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 926-8297 GAS RaceTrac Gas/Convenience Store 6601 Bee Ridge Rd Sarasota, FL 34241 (941) 371-8380 OPEN 24HRS Mobil Gas Station 5754 Clark Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 925-1164 Citgo Gas Station 4235 Clark Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 922-5696 RESTAURANTS Myakka Outpost/Pink Gator Cafe 13208 SR 72 (Inside the park) Sarasota, FL 34241 (941) 923-1120 http://www.myakkaoutpost.com Applebee’s 5490 Clark Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 925-2595 http://applebees.com Pho 99 – Vietnamese Restaurant 5191 Clark Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 922-1888 Mille’s Breakfast and Lunch 3900 Clark Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 923-4054 http://milliessarasota.com Cosimo’s Italian Restaurant 5501 Palmer Crossing Cir Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 922-7999 http://cosimos.net Madfish Grill Bee Ridge Square 4059 Cattlemen Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 377-3474 http://madfishgrill.com Perkins Restaurant and Bakery 5921 Fruitville Rd Sarasota, FL 34232 (941) 342-6655 http://perkinsrestaurants.com DaRuMa Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Lounge 5459 Fruitville Rd Sarasota, FL 34232 (941) 342-6600 http://darumarestaurant-hub.com SUPPLIES Survive Anything 2153 Siesta Dr Sarasota, FL 34239 (941) 981-0182 http://www.surviveanythingfl.com/ Quest Outfitters 4919 Hubner Circle Sarasota, FL 34241 (941) 923-5006 http://www.questoutfitters.com/index.html RV World Inc of Nokomis 2110 N. Tamiami Trail Nokomis, Fl 34275 TOLL FREE: 800-262-2182 http://www.rvworldinc.com/ RV PROPANE U-Haul Moving & Storage of South Sarasota 4861 S Tamiami Trl Sarasota, FL 34231 (941) 921-6605 https://www.uhaul.com/Locations/Propane-near-Sarasota-FL-34231/830063/ RV World Inc of Nokomis 2110 N. Tamiami Trail Nokomis, Fl 34275 TOLL FREE: 800-262-2182 http://www.rvworldinc.com/ LAUNDROMAT Supermatt Coin Laundry 5608 Swift Rd Sarasota, FL 34231 (941) 312-5557 OPEN 24HRS MEDICAL CARE Sarasota Memorial Hospital 1700 S Tamiami Trail Sarasota, FL 34239 (941) 917-9000 http://smh.com SMH Urgent Care Center at Stickney Point Rd 6331 S Tamiami Trail Sarasota, FL 34231 (941) 917-5678 http://smh.com Doctors Hospital of Sarasota 5731 Bee Ridge Rd Sarasota, FL 34233 (941) 342-1100 http://doctorsofsarasota.com MAP OF THE AREA Myakka River State Park and Sarasota Fl area Our YouTube video from the pictures we took while we were there: