Fort Desoto Park // the best COUNTY park and campground
As we headed north in Florida we had a long stay at what might be the best county park anywhere, Fort Desoto Park Campground. It is quite simply... a jewel. With fishing, biking, more than one beach and lots of history both on the island and accessible from ferry services. With 3 campground loops there are lots of waterfront sites but you need to book early or be fast at finding cancellations because this is also one of the most difficult campgrounds to book anywhere too.
We drove here from Myakka River and while traveling Owen just about had an accident due to our faulty blindspot detection on our Ekko. We didn't but it was a close call for sure. Then it was on to the park near St Petersburg where we take you with us doing our first few days there. Lots of wildlife, kayaking and we even cook up a cast iron skillet dinner.
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Lynn that was so sweet seeing you tear up with Maggie. I tear up when you do slow motions of her on the beach. She looks so joyful and carefree, it's precious. Thanks for another great video. Glad ya'll are safe.🚐
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
That dog has so much of my heart… it’s hard to believe.
This channel is so enjoyable to watch. Love the adventure and the blue sky , the water hitting the shore . The wildlife is so beautiful!! As always just amazing to watch !! BS & BK & BC !!!
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Thank you Larry for watching and commenting.
Fort Desoto - another park to add to our bucket list. Van Trekking is at the bottom of our alphabetical KZread subscription list. We call it saving the best for last. We look so forward to your videos and they are always the best way to wrap up our week. I hope we get to meet you some day. In the meantime, we think of you two as good friends.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
Ай бұрын
Thank you so much for your kind comment.
You did an excellent job of capturing the essence of relaxation on this video! I felt like I was right there with you having a wonderful relaxing time! Thank you for taking us along! Maggie is such a patient girl waiting for her bite of those nachos :o)
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
We appreciate you watching and for your comment.
No harm in faulting a company for defective equipment. You’re not sponsored so have at it. High priced unit should operate properly. Love your videos ❤️
Maggie is so sweet and so loved ❤. We just took our new ( 2year old ) dog camping for the first time and he is leashed reactive to dogs so this is hard 😢😢. We loved having him along ! But he didn’t make a good impression on other dog owners 😢
Stumbled on you via your cassette toilet demo and liking what I’m seeing !👍
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
Ай бұрын
Thanks, we appreciate you watching.
Enjoyed running into you guys… again! Wonderful campground… Hope we see you down the road sometime!
I love my Starlink! I love being connected as well. That is a nice park.
Another great trip. Thanks for sharing the adventure.
Loved seeing you at one of my favorite parks and areas.
I've listened to Owen's 3 albums available to me on Spotify & ate fantastic. Consider ending videos with a verse. Keep up the good work
Indulge that little darling pup. Shes soooo sweet. I worried about the other dogs getting aggressive toward her but she did so well. Beautiful campground.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
It does worry us when we go to dog parks whit how other dogs will react but Sometimes Maggie is not as nice as she should be either,
When you're upset by something going wrong I just feel appreciative of your honesty, and then you always find a way to make me laugh.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Sometimes I feel Owen is a little too honest. Your comment helps me look at it another way. Thank you!
Another great video. What a nice campground- I’ve added that one to my to-do list.
Beans AND corn on nachos?Yuuuum!! I’m so going to copy this recipe!! That part with Maggie and Lynn was so sweet thank you for sharing your lives with us.
Hi Owen and Lynn I can see why you like thus park. It’s a nice park. Maggie looks like she loves it too! She’s so cute. Not sure if she’s a mommas girl or daddy’s girl. lol! My dog does that to too Lyn lays in my lap. Wants lovings and rubbings. lol! Enjoy your stay there at the park. The machines looked good! Love you all! Tell Maggie I love her too! She’s great dog! We sure do love our fur babies! Have a great week and see you soon! ❤❤❤🐕🐾🤗🤗🤗😘😘😘
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Maggie is a momma and a daddy’s girl. She really good at splitting up her love between us both. She is the sweetest! Thanks so much for your comment.
@sherriweber7105
2 ай бұрын
@@VANTREKKINGlifestyle No problem! I love you all and I agree Maggie is spreading her wealth around and she is great dog! And I think she’s cute. She looks at you like she understands you!
Hey, we were at Fort DeSoto a few weeks ago on site 103 with our Ekko and 15-year-old Boston Terrier. Funny, the ranger did not ask for our rabies information, but it is listed in the reservation confirmation info I received. Also, when I fill our water tank, I use an inline water meter for my hose filler attachment I made so I can know how much I am putting in the water tank. We do love the park and always try to get waterfront. From there, we went to Homossassa to the MacRae Fishing Resort as we have friends who own the park who let us hook up and had a great time fishing for a couple of days. And then off to the panhandle where we stayed at St. Andrews, Big Lagoon (visited Flora Bama), Rocky Bayou, Topsail, and St. Georges Island State Parks. Home now planning our next adventure! By the way, y'all were one of the folks with youtube sites and Ekkos we followed to learn about them. We have the 24E/23T, so it appears alot of the bugs have been taken care of (fingers crossed of course). Luv y'all!
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Sounds like you had an awesome trip… thanks for sharing. You mentioned several places we need to check out. Glad to hear the issues are being addressed.
You are absolutely right Owen. And in the spirit of "helping" my wife to become self-sufficient, I offered to teach her how to dump the black tank. She graciously declined my generous offer and stated that she was perfectly happy with being dependent upon me for such things. I tried.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
I understand your wife because I don’t empty the cassette as much as I should either, just enough so I don’t forget how.
they have a really nice dog beach
The masked bandits are everywhere. Be careful… very bold ones…. Enjoy
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Thank you. Actually we never saw one the whole time we were there and we ended up staying 10 nights there. But we were warned from rangers too.
We visited Fort Desoto for the day a couple of weeks ago. In the winter, we hang our hats in Dunedin, Florida, and wander all over Pinellas County, visiting parks and preserves and enjoying the sights and sounds of nature. Fort Desoto is definitely one of the best County Parks.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
We love the Dunedin area, it is beautiful there.
Hey Owen and Lynn , next time you should try a restaurant called Mullets Fish Camp in St Pete. About 15 minutes from the campground. EXCELLENT!!
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Thanks for the recommendation we will put it on our list.
That's one of my favorite campgrounds. I hope you go to Egmont key island and visit the fort.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
We’ve been there many times, it is awesome and we should have mentioned that in the video.
We love our Rider as much as you love Maggie. Please tell me about Maggie’s bike basket.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Maggie’s basket is a Basil Weave WP Synthetic Woven Rear Bicycle Basket we purchased from Amazon. Maggie weights around 35lbs and she fits nicel, we did put some black foam wire wraps on the top of it because Maggie always want to put one of her legs out. . We have it in our Amazon store if you want to check it out. Here’s our link www.amazon.com/shop/VanTrekkingLifestyle.
You are a wise man Mr. Owen. You are 100% right about sunsets and enjoying the now. Tomoka was great, it is old Florida and we will go back when it's cooler. Heading to Amish country in PA. next. Come go with us. Happy tails and safe travels.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Have a safe trip. Wish we could go with you.
I got tickled, seeing daddy and Maggie riding on the bike together❤
Beautiful! My favorite place, miss the days of driving in on Friday and getting a weekend. I’ve learned a lot hubby brought me a truck camper so I can go alone!
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
That’s awesome, sounds like you have a great husband.
Such a beautiful Park, and all those waterfront sites look super nice. Any place that has a dog beach is great in my book because there aren't too many beaches in FL where you can take your dog. Hope you're all doing well & safe travels!
Perfect park....I get making sure the pups are happy too. We travel with our 9 year old lab Remi....we couldn't ask for a better dog to travel with. Happy Trails 🐕
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
We feel the same way about Maggie.
Wish I was there. Loved it. Maggie hugs, please. We were camping last weekend and someone had what looked like a motorized unicycle. I immediately thought of you and how much you would enjoy it❤
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
I’m not sure either one of us could ride a unicycle but I bet that was fun to watch.
Thanks!
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
Ай бұрын
Thank you!
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
21 күн бұрын
Just saw the Super Thanks on this one... we really appreciate your support. Wow! Thank You! Glad you enjoyed the video and our channel. Owen and Lynn
Maggie social skills are really working.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
The more she is around other dogs the better she gets.
My better half said to use a propane torch to melt the cheese.
@loumadonna2262
2 ай бұрын
Love your videos.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Thanks for the idea, we may need to start taking one with us.
Not sure if this will get to you guys or not. We were sure surprised to see you were at our Walmart in Bradenton Florida. We’re workcamping at a KOA IN Ohio. We love watching your videos. Thank you for making them. Hopefully we will see you some time soon. God Bless you and your travels.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
You are so welcome and thank you for watching and taking the time to comment.
No point in me learning that stuff, 'cause I hate driving! If something happens to my hubby, my traveling days are over. We love traveling together in our 25 ft. LTV, but I am almost positive I'll never do it alone. Sad to think about not having my traveling/camping buddy. 😢
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
Ай бұрын
It is sad to think about not having our traveling buddies. I’m not sure if i would keep traveling either but it’s important for Owen to know that I can if I want to.
@AnnMaynard-fu9qd
Ай бұрын
We couldn’t get a site at Fort Desoto but we did spend an afternoon exploring. We drove around the campground and wished we could have stayed there. Thanks for the great video!
Love Fort DeSoto but found getting reservations was difficult.
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Yes, it is hard to get a site there, but we played the cancellation game and ended up with 7 nights, or course we had to move several times.
👍😎🇨🇦
Hello from Italy 🇮🇹 We've been traveling with you three since your Alaska trip. Your content is usually very good, so where the heck are the subscribers? Dumb a$$'s is all I can say.
Owen When you had your Revel sometimes you pulled a trailer. What size was it? Was it any problem to pull the weight? Thanks Marco
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
It was a 5x8 Mini Go aluminum trailer. Think it only weighed 800 lbs so no issue to pull. Is seeing it to back up was an issue but rolling down the road we didn't even notice it back there.
@geezercam9070
2 ай бұрын
Thanks
It’s nitpicking but something that would be helpful for those of us that follow you and then go to same places. Please mention procedure required to change sites for extending stay at the park. We just got back from St George Island State park and fortunately the people in the f so it’s we moved to left the night before and early for 2nd move. The host must inspect site then you can move and drive 4 miles to gate to get new sticker for the site you moved too. The procedure may vary depending on park. We saw a new Ekko last week but it was not you
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
Great suggestion. We actually talk about the procedure in upcoming episode for this park. We had same issue at St George too. I even rode bike up to change sites one time. Some parks are more strict about inspections and cleaning than others. Even other Fl state parks. Some you can check in early... some you can't. Some you can move if you call... some actually want you to exit the park and reenter. Wish it was consistent but on the hot side strict side.
What brand inflatable kayak do you have?
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
We have Bote Zeppelin Tandem.
Ha ha white lines do not mean nothing to you? First 20 seconds...
Fort Desoto is full of raccoons so that might be the reason for vaccination
@Richard2003
2 ай бұрын
yep
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
2 ай бұрын
That's what we heard when we changed sites... but we never saw one the whole time. Glad we didn't.
Maggie is so sweet and so loved ❤. We just took our new ( 2year old ) dog camping for the first time and he is leashed reactive to dogs so this is hard 😢😢. We loved having him along ! But he didn’t make a good impression on other dog owners 😢
@VANTREKKINGlifestyle
Ай бұрын
I’m sure your dog did fine. Most people who travel with dogs understand.