Didn’t bother with the alarm this morning since we had such a short trip today, got out about noon after using the dump here at Alafia. After stops at the Post Office and Wal-mart on the way, we arrived at Little Manatee River State Park, less than 25 miles away from where we started. The ranger at the entrance seemed rather surprised that we were even aware that they had four extra primitive horse camp sites, apparently they’re brand new and haven’t even been put on their computer yet. Nevertheless, she made a call and managed to make the arrangements after I explained that I had called and spoke to someone who told me they had these spots. Before long we were on our way to the equestrian camp. They have four sites that are reservable through ReserveAmerica, but they were all booked for the weekend, so we opted for the first-come, first-served sites, figuring coming in on a Thursday would improve our chances. We arrived to discover that all four “reserved” campsites were full, but not one of them had a horse. Apparently they use this area for overflow when the regular campground is full. Fair enough, except that the four new spots were really crude and incomplete. They had put big gravel down, and hadn’t really cleared anyplace for the horses to go, although they do have covered stalls behind the reservable sites, not within view of the primitive sites, though. We did find a grassy area between the reservable sites and the trailhead, however, that had tall pines in the right position to highline, and enough room for us to park both vehicles and create a nice little alcove for ourselves. There is also a very convenient spigot right here as well. We were set up, satellite dish and all, well before 4:00, so we had a relaxing evening. Funny, we had stayed here once before years ago at the regular campground, and when we drove in, I saw the sign for horse camping. I actually think that we saw that same sign back then, and that was when we first became aware that people actually camped with their horses, planting a seed that would eventually grow into what we are doing today! Sort of feels like we’ve gone full circle on that one! Looking forward to our first ride tomorrow!
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