Grayton Beach State Park, Florida (2014)

It didn't take long for us to schedule a second visit to Florida's Grayton Beach State Park. This is a park that has a lot to offer campers.

If you love the Florida/Alabama Gulf Coast, this park has a great beach.

If you love riding bikes, there are many paths and trails for you to explore.

If you love camping in the woods, this park has some nicely wooded sites.

Lets take a look at these elements.

Several publications have named some Florida/Alabama Gulf Coast beaches as in the top 10 beaches in North America. While I haven't seen enough beaches to evaluate the credibility of this claim, the Gulf Coast beaches are very high on my list.

OK, beautiful beaches are not unique to Grayton. It almost comes down to simply picking a state or federal park along the Florida and Alabama Gulf Coast and you have an amazing beach and it is easy to enjoy Grayton's incredible beach.

The beach at Grayton Beach State Park

Make sure you take your bikes to Grayton Beach State Park. The trails inside the park are not the big draw. There are bike trails outside the park that are lots of fun. Turn right as you exit the park and you are heading to Seaside or turn left and and you are in the community of Grayton Beach.

These are mostly up-scale communities and they have some great city parks and trails for riding bikes. They also have restaurants and shopping areas for those wanting a break from the beach.

One of the community parks in Seaside, which is near Grayton Beach State Park

The bottom line is that you will find many things to do both inside and outside this park.

There are two loops in this park. The first has full connections, including sewer, for RVs. The down side is that there isn't a lot of shade in that loop.

The second loop is more rustic and has more shade. It also has sites near one of the lakes. These sites have water and electrical connections, but no sewer. We plan to always bring the sewer tote to this park because we prefer the more rustic and shaded sites closer to the water.

Rosie at Grayton Beach after dark

 
While I am sure that the water in the park is safe to drink, it has an unpleasant taste. The water filter on Rosie, our Airstream trailer, and the additional one on the sink helped make the water easier to deal with while there.

The odd feature in this park is the dump station. There is only one and it is in the loop without sewer connections. What I find peculiar is that the dump station is along the entrance to this loop and not the exit. That means you will probably have to circle the loop twice to use the dump station.

The dump station may have been an afterthought because any trailer using it ends up blocking the road. You will need patience because all traffic in the loop stops when someone is using the dump station.

We didn't have an ant problem at this park, but the misquotes seem to drop by for an afternoon visit. You need to be prepared to deal with these pests.

Some specifics about this park (2014 version):

• AT&T 4G service was strong over the park. We were able use our iPhones for both calls and online services.
• WiFi doesn't exist at this park. You will find yourself driving 10 or more miles to find a WiFi hotspot.
• TV service was up and down this time. The ABC affiliate provided a solid signal over the park. CBS, NBC and Fox were occasional visitors as their signals tended to fade in and out. We were able to see ME-TV on one of the digital channels.
• Both loops had clean and up-to-date restrooms.
• There isn't a camp store, but you will find a Publix in Seaside.

One of my favorite things to do while at Grayton Beach State Park is to ride our bikes to the Seagrove Village Market for a fried shrimp lunch. The bike ride is fun, the lunch is reasonable and the food, which is from the Gulf, is very good.

Our second trip to Grayton Beach confirmed that we love this park.

Here are some additional pictures taken at and around Grayton Beach State Park:

The famous trees near Grayton Beach State Park

Along one of the walking paths in the park

Sand art on the beach

The surf

Annie taking a break inside Rosie

Becky enjoying the beach