Bobby McKenzie organized kayak and canoe camping on Saturday July 18, 2020, from Dowling Park Boat Ramp across the Suwannee River and slightly upstream to Dowling Park River Camp and then a bit upstream past Dowling Park Christian Village to a Party beach. Here are some pictures of that much of the expedition.

Stairs, Platform, Beach, Bathrooms: Dowling Park River Camp

Later I’ll post the pictures of the further upstream adventure only three boaters dared to brave.

These pictures concentrate on Dowling Park River Camp, which is the model for the proposed Troupville River Camp just west of Valdosta, Georgia, between the Little and Withlacoochee Rivers.

Banners on the stairs, 2020:07:18 17:21:28, 30.2464159, -83.2460987

There’s also a Google Map showing the approximate locations of these pictures on the WWALS map of the Suwannee River Wilderness Trail. Continue reading →

As an introduction to Kayak and Canoe camping, we will visit the Dowling Park River Camp on the Suwannee River Wilderness Trail.

Photo: John S. Quarterman, Ramp to bathrooms at Dowling Park River Camp, 2019-06-20.

We will do a short paddle across from Dowling Park Boat Ramp in Suwannee County to the River Camp in Lafayette County. We will check in with the camp host, set up camp and continue our paddle upstream for 1 mile.

We will use Dowling Park Rivercamp as a base camp while having an intimate outing on the Suwannee River. You will have the comfort of having the boat ramp right across the river in case you forgot something or its just not working out.

Dowling Park River Camp is the model for the Troupville River Camp WWALS is proposing at the confluence of the Little River with the Withlacoochee River just west of Valdosta. Come see it for yourself!

Plus, there’s even a rope swing! There 5 are screened in platforms with fan, lighting and electrical outlets as well as multiple primitive camping sites. Along with a communal pavilion, there are also hot and cold showers and air conditioned bathrooms. There is a Camp Host that you can get firewood ($6 a bundle) and ice ($2 bag) to help lighten you load.

Platforms are available for families first until 6 July, 2020. After that platforms will be available to everyone on a first come basis. To maintain physical distancing, we recommend only families or already closely-associated groups stay in a platform. Everyone else, please bring a tent: primitive Camping is open to all. Message us with any questions/reservations and we will help you get setup.

Also there is no shuttle for this trip.

Dowling Park River Camp is the model for the Troupville River Camp WWALS is proposing at the confluence of the Little River with the Withlacoochee River just west of Valdosta. Come see it for yourself!

When: Gather 11:30 AM, launch 12 PM, Saturday, July 18, 2020

Put In: Dowling Park Boat Ramp. The boat ramp is on the north side of CR 250 at the Suwannee River, in Suwannee County, Florida.
That’s an hour south of Valdosta, GA, an hour west of Lake City, a little more than an hour east of Tallahassee, and an hour and a half northwest of Gainesville, FL. It’s only about half an hour from Live Oak, Madison, or Mayo.

GPS: 30.244833, -83.249

Take Out: Dowling Park Boat Ramp

Bring: a tent, plus the usual personal flotation device, boat paddles, food, drinking water, warm clothes, and first aid kit. Also trash pickers and trash bags: every WWALS outing is also a cleanup.

Boats: Kayaks and maybe canoes are available to borrow but please let us know at least 2 days prior to the event. Bring your own if you have it.

Free: This outing is free to WWALS members, and $10 (ten dollars) for non-members. We recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!

Event: facebook, meetup

Photo: John S. Quarterman, Elevated sleeping platform at Dowling Park River Camp, 2019-06-20.