Thinking about booking a site at Colt Creek State Park? We spent three nights camping, biking, and hiking with our two kids in this great park. Here I share our experience and review, so keep reading so you can get the most out of your next family trip!
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About Colt Creek State Park
Located in Central Florida, this 5,000-acre park is home to wetlands, cypress domes, lakes, and longleaf pines. It also homes a variety of Florida native wildlife, including fox squirrels, white-tailed deer, American alligators, red-shouldered hawks, and many species of wading birds.
Location
Colt Creek State Park is located in Polk County, Florida. The address is 16000 State Road 471 Lakeland, Fl 33809.
Colt Creek State Park Camping Guide
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<p><strong>Please include attribution to A Pragmatic Lens with this graphic.</strong><br /><br /><a href='https://apragmaticlens.com/colt-creek-state-park/'><img src='https://ml0cur3zhy5j.i.optimole.com/w:auto/h:auto/q:mauto/ig:avif/f:best/https://apragmaticlens.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Colt-Creek-State-Park-Info.jpg' alt='Colt Creek State Park Infographic with summary of camping information and amenities' width='800px' border='0' /></a></p>RV/Tent Campground
The main campground consists of a single loop with 24 sites suitable for RV or tents. In addition to these larger sites, there are also 6 tent-only sites.
While the park was purchased in 2006, the campground itself finished its construction in early 2018. As expected, the campground and facilities within it feel very new and well-maintained.
The campground loop is just over two miles from the park entrance, but the road is paved and in great condition. Within the loop, the roads are also wide and paved. It made it very easy to pull the camper and maneuver it into our site. The road within the loop is one-way, which is a great feature for safety.
While the campground is relatively small, it did not feel crowded thanks to the wide road and spacious sites.
The bathhouse
There is a single bathhouse in the middle of the campground loop for all the sites. Even so, it was never full because most people bring their RVs and use their own bathrooms. There were three showers with good water pressure and three bathroom stalls. There is also a family room in between the men’s and women’s bathrooms.
The bathhouse, in general, was kept very clean by the park staff and campground hosts. The showers had good water pressure.
There is a washer and drier in the front of the bathhouse and they are in good, working condition. It costs $1.50 for a load in each machine, as long as you use the normal settings. The washer will cost you $1.75 if you want to do a ‘heavy” run. Make sure to pack enough quarters and laundry detergent for your stay.
Around the back of the bathhouse, there is a large sink for washing dishes. I LOVE using these sinks because it is a lot more comfortable and quicker than using my camper’s sink. It remained relatively clean during our stay, but sometimes people forget to remove all solid foods from their plates before washing them in these communal sinks…
The sites
The sites are packed pea gravel, and for that reason leveling the camper was a dream. All sites are angled to make it easier to back in your RV or camper.
While the sites can accommodate RV or Tent, and there are tent-only sites, I am not sure that it would be comfortable to use a tent. My main concern would be the gravel, which is fantastic for RVs, but I think it might be uncomfortable with a tent. If you will be camping with a tent, make sure to have a tarp or some sort of cushioning underneath the tent.
Without a doubt, this campground was designed with the RVer in mind. Not only are the roads wide and paved, but the sites also are very long. Easily accommodating 60ft of vehicle length, our 21-ft camper was the smallest in the whole campground during our stay.
Hookups and Sewer
Electricity is provided in all main campground sites. Water is also provided and has good pressure. There are no sewer hookups, but the dump station has two lanes and a hose to rinse off your sewer equipment.
Funny story, my husband mentioned the dumped station looked so nice he was actually looking forward to it. We decided the park’s slogan could be “Colt Creek: where dumping is a pleasure”. Womp womp…
Related: Three Rivers State Park Campground Review
Privacy
The campground is wide open and there is little vegetation between the sites. For that reason, it is not the most private campground that we have been to.
That being said, the sites themselves are wide and spacious. The angle of the sites also makes it possible to have a decent amount of privacy despite the lack of vegetation between the sites.
What we did is we set up our camper and canopy in such a way that we would hang out in the back of the site. This way, we did not have any issues feeling crowded with the other campers.
Shade
The campground and sites are cleared of most tall vegetation. While it makes it easier for RV and camper maneuvering, this is generally a feature I do not like. Why? Florida is simply too hot and humid to not have any sort of shade.
But this is a relatively normal feature of parks like this one. Colt Creek is comprised of longleaf pines and cypress domes. Pine trees, such as those surrounding the campground, generally offer very little shade.
For this reason, and the fact that there are no places to swim and cool off, I would avoid camping here during the hot and humid summer months. However, it is a wonderful park for the colder, drier months.
Best sites
We picked site #9 and we were very happy with it. It had an open, grassy area in the back that was great for the kids to play in. From our site, we could go straight to the communal fire pit. There is also a little creek that runs by the communal firepit and we saw some people fishing there. For the most part, however, nobody went there.
Having direct access to this communal fire pit area worked out very well for us: It offered a very short trail that my kids enjoyed exploring on their own because we could still see them from our site.
We were also very close to the bathhouse. The holding tanks in our RV are small, so we still use the bathhouses for showers (and other things…). Having it so close was a great bonus. It did, however, result in somewhat less privacy. It was not a big deal though, because we normally retreated to the back of our site which faced the woods.
Indeed, our site and other sites on the same road (sites 4 through 8) are great because they face the woods. Also, they are angled in a way that the camper or RV will shield the afternoon sun and provide more shade during the hottest hours of the day. The angles on sites 12 and 21 would also allow more shade (from the RV) in the afternoon. This is something I pay attention to because, well, we are pretty good at reducing the heat as much as we can.
Sites to avoid
This is one of the rare instances where we did not see that any sites were much better than others. However, I generally prefer to face the woods instead of the road. So if you can, avoid sites 27-32. They are nice, ample sites, but you just won’t get the same view.
Things to do at Colt Creek State Park
Hiking and Biking
There are over 15 miles of trails at Colt Creek State Park. This combines trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding. The trails go through pine woods, cypress domes, as well as open trails that surround the lakes. Some trails featured shady oak trees as well.
The trails are easy hikes for kids, which tends to be a feature of most Florida hikes because, well, they are flat. There were not many benches on the trails, though. It is not a big deal, but we tend to use those for snack breaks with the kids.
While bikes are allowed in most trails, the trails are not paved. They are hard-packed and in good condition, so this should not be an issue if you have a good mountain bike.
In our case, I had my daughter on the bike with me and I was towing my son on his trailer bike. While I was able to do this on open trails for a bit, we mostly stayed on the 3-mile paved park road. We essentially went on bike rides around the park road, and stopped at trailheads and hiked from there.
I am not sure whether the trails flood during the rainy season though, so keep this in mind.
Related: Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park Campground Review
Other activities
The park features three large lakes. Fishing is permitted in all of them, but only Mac Lake has a large fishing dock. You can also paddle on this lake. If you do not have your own equipment, you can rent canoes and kayaks from the ranger’s office and launch them at Mac Lake.
This park also seems to be a popular destination for horseback riding. Horseback riding is allowed on most trails in the park. We left the park right before the weekend was about to start, and we saw multiple horse trailers pulling in.
The park also offers multiple events and programs, such as sunset hikes, birding, and gopher tortoise, and Junior Ranger programs.
Kids Activities
One thing that is missing in this park is a playground. We are biased because we have little kids, so having a playground is always a nice feature.
The nice thing is that the road within the campground loop is relatively safe. They are one-way and most people were conscious of their speeds when driving. For this reason, the campground loop road was a great place for the kids to ride their bikes and scooters.
The large, grassy spaces available on our site and around the campground also allowed for hours of play. We saw multiple kids and families taking advantage of these areas for outdoor activities and games.
A Quick Word about Primitive and Equestrian Campgrounds
I do not dedicate more time to these topics because, truthfully, I do not know much about primitive and horse camping. I do want to quickly summarize what this park offers.
There are two primitive campgrounds that are accessible by bike, horse, or back-packing. There are also primitive campsites that accommodate horse trailers. These were towards the end of the paved road and were quite popular during our stay.
The equestrian sites were in a wooded area amongst pine trees. A few trails were easily accessible near these sites.
Other Considerations
Nearby Towns
The nearest large town is Lakeland, which is about 35min away. The smaller town of Zephyrhills is about 20 minutes away. There are also nearby grocery stores and gas stations within 15 minutes of the park.
Nearby Attractions
Colt Creek State Park is conveniently located right in between Tampa and Orlando, which makes it easy to reach some of the main attractions those cities offer. These options are great to have if you plan on spending many nights camping in this wonderful park, especially if you have little ones in tow.
For example, you can make a day trip to Legoland in Winter Haven, to Busch Gardens in Tampa, or to Disney in Orlando. All of these attractions are roughly a one-hour drive away from the camp! If you have a little paleontologist-in-training, Dinosaur World is only 45 minutes away!
Reservations, Costs, and Cancellations
Each site costs $24 per night, in addition to a $6.5 reservation fee. They charge a $17.75 cancellation fee if canceled prior to the arrival date. If you cancel on the day of arrival, you will be charged for the first night’s stay.
If you are just visiting for the day, the cost is $4 per vehicle.
You can reserve your site up to 11 months in advance. This is what we do to ensure we have a steady year of camping trips. For more on that, check out my post on How to Plan a Year of Family Adventures.
Pets
We brought our beagle, Lagun, with us. Many other campers had their furry family members with them as well. Indeed, dogs are generally allowed in State Parks, as long as you follow the State Parks general Pet Policy.
For the most part, leashed pets are allowed in the main campground and trails. Do keep in mind that they must be kept on a 6-ft leash at all times. Also, they are usually not allowed on primitive campgrounds, pavilions, lakes, and restrooms.
Additional Resources
Official Colt Creek State Park Site
Friends of Colt Creek State Park
RV and Camping Resources
RV Trip Planning
Have you been to Colt Creek State Park? What information am I missing? If you are planning a trip there, are there other questions you have about it? Let me know in the comments below!
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