Well with one weekend left in July the CurbCrusher’s headed for beach. Not far from home, just a little bit north of Daytona Beach near Flagler Beach is the Gamble Rogers Memorial State Recreation Area. This is a beach park because that’s about all there is to the park. The campground is located on the East side of A1A and the check-in and administrative offices are located on the west side of A1A. So when you arrive, you turn west, go to the ranger station and check in. There is a small road that leads to a circle where you turn around and head back out of the park. When you reach A1A, you look both ways and hurry across the road to the campground area and small day use parking area. There is a locked gate that you then go through, and find yourself in a fairly simply laid out campground. There is one road down the middle, and sites located on either side of the road.

The campground has 34 campsites, one bath house and a dump station. About half the sites are on the beach side of the campground road, and the other half back up to A1A. There are dunes and vegetation between the sites and the beach, and a good bit of vegetation between sites and the road. Some of the dune side sites have a decent view, and there is enough room on the road and the sites to pull in forward in a motorhome so that you could fill the windshield with beach. One note of warning though, they are fairly strict about not showing any lights toward the ocean after dark because of the sea turtles. As far as amenities, it is fairly basic, there is electricity and water. Behind the bathhouse is a boardwalk over to the beach, and an outside shower to remove the salt and sand. Not a lot more to say about this park. If you like the beach, and your goal is to be on the beach, this is probably one of the best state parks where you can accomplish that. Pictures of Gamble Rogers are here.

We spent a good bit of time at the beach, but also went wandering around the area. A few miles north of Flagler Beach there is another state park, the Washington Oaks Gardens State Park. There is no camping at this park, but it has a very nice garden on the river that was established back when this is was a private residence, and a coquina rock beach on the Atlantic. While it was ok to do in the July heat, I have a feeling that the gardens would be a fantastic place to visit during the spring when it is cooler and things are blooming. Pictures of Washington Oaks are here.