Juniper Springs Campground

I checked in on Thursday, and the bathroom was clean. When I checked out on Monday, the staff hadn't cleaned the bathroom. It was terrible – dirty and smelling intensely. Four days they were passed without any cleaning. The campsite was great in the spring, and the tent spots were excellent, but the problem is that they don't seem to care about maintaining the bathroom for the campers. To many ticks, wildlife is abundant there, I recommend spraying some pesticides before setting up your tent.

Juniper Springs rec area and campground is all kept very natural. The spring swimming area is beautiful and refreshing. Be aware that if you are camping, there is no electricity at any of the campsites. Even the pull throughs for RVs. Some tent sites are very remote and primitive, but they do have several water spigots to share throughout the campground and bear proof food lockers. It will be extremely dark at night as there are no lamps. The most unfortunate about this park is that the trails and boardwalks are not kept up and repaired so they are just closed off and has been for a long time. There are just a few short trails available to walk. Old shelters are just closed off as well. It must have been very nice at one time when the boardwalks were open. Bathrooms are good, the showers at our loop had timer buttons to push and the water will come out pre- mixed of hot / cold so it can't be adjusted. Firewood and ice for sale at ranger station which is a plus.

This is a lovely campground - great spot to test out your Dry camping (no electric or water hook ups). The sites are well spread apart and plenty of vegetation between for privacy. The spring itself is pretty neat, it was crowded but still fun. There is a kayak run, but it was closed when I was there. I am going to come back this summer, so will update later. :) https://youtu.be/HZCbNYW2N6w

This place is not worth the $45 nightly price especially given there are no hookups. Though there are some water spigots you could fill from if you needed to. Usually at a USFS campground you pay less than $25. Roads are old worn asphalt as are parking pads. They are narrow with trees very close to edge making it difficult to maneuver. Especially in the dump station for my 30ft trailer. There is one tent loop and two RV loops. Plus a hookup loop for volunteers/hosts. We were in the 'Tropical' loop toward the back. If you are in the front of this loop or over in the 'Sandpine' loop you will get more road noise. No place is safe from the noise of the air force jets. Parking pads are narrow, so you step off into the dirt. Ours had a large space behind us with a fire pit and a worn wooden table. Good privacy between sites with vegetation. CG is wooded but we were able to get about 50amps of charging per day so our batteries lasted the entire trip even with the microwave and some tv. Bathrooms are dirty, no one cleans about 6ft high level. Overhead windows and ceilings are filthy. Ceiling fan in the men's didn't work. Showers are plunger type. One does not stay on. Another runs 24/7. Showers have doors but curtains are long gone. Half of an inch of water on floor under the bench, don't let anything touch the floor. Divider doors are falling off their hinges, mirrors are worn through. Walls covered in hard water deposits and soap scum, mold on ceiling. Built in stainless steel trash cans have long since broken or been stolen, replaced with Walmart Rubbermaid kitchen waste basket. Some of the lights don't work. The only 'trail' that is open is from the CG to the day use. All the other trails and boardwalks are closed, as are picnic pavilions in the day use. All have been closed over a year due to storm damage. And the concession/store was closed when we were here. The spring/pool is nice, water too cold to go in. Park was built by the CCC. The interpretive center has some display boards with history about the CCC but any exhibits that were in there are gone. Even in the off season there are lots of people coming in with tour groups to take kayak rides down the river. Heard monkeys at night and saw an owl in the tree above our site. Most of the staff appear to be volunteer. Park is very unsafe, no police presence or enforcement rangers. Especially troublesome given the neighborhoods around here.

Nice shaded camping space with clean bathrooms. Swimming area is nice but too crowded for our taste. Nearby to other parks if you want to explore more! *CHECK FOR TICKS*