Thursday, August 7, 2014

EG Simmons Regional Park, Ruskin, Florida

Thursday, August 7, 2014

After leaving beautiful Fort DeSoto Park and Campground, we headed to Clearwater for an appointment to have our crazy microwave looked at by a Venture RV dealer.  Yes indeed, the service technician agreed, our microwave was malfunctioning.  It came on by itself a couple of times and the key pad could not shut it off.  Since it was still under warranty, all we had to do was make arrangements with Venture RV to have a replacement shipped to our home.

With that task out of the way, we headed to Ruskin, Florida.  E.G. Simmons Regional Park is located just a couple of miles north of Ruskin, on the southern shore of Tampa Bay.  The park was developed from 250 acres of native mangrove and open land areas surrounded with waterways.  It's an ideal place for bird watching and kayaking, and offers a small beach on the Bay for sun bathing and swimming.

The friendly gate attendant allowed us to drive through the campground and pick out our site.  E.G. Simmons Park does not accept camping reservations and only accepts cash payment.  The majority of the campsites were on one of the many waterways, but shade was our priority with temperatures in the low 90's.  The camping area has several trees, but they weren't positioned to offer much afternoon shade.

We finally settled on site #17.


This waterway ran through our back yard and we had access for kayaking.


Kitty, Kallie, and me with the Bay behind us.


That is St. Petersburg across the Bay.


Here's some of the many waterways that intertwined the Park.



There were several small piers like this one that are great for bird watching, fishing, or just relaxing.

We spent two nights here hoping the temperatures would ease a bit so we could do a little kayaking.  But, we had no such luck.  So, we drove into Sun City Senior Center and enjoyed a great German meal.  Sun City Senior Center is a large retirement community with golf courses, restaurants, and a gazillion golf carts buzzing all over the area. After dinner,we drove around and checked out a couple small marinas and some of the beautiful water front homes.

Tomorrow, we pack up and head home ending a nine day trip enjoying a small spec of Florida's wonderful coastal areas.

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