Lake Monroe Park is a popular park located at the base of the Lake Monroe Bridge. It is known for…read moreits beautiful waterfront views of Lake Monroe which is a lake on the St. John' River. It also has a variety of recreational activities. Lake Monroe is almost 10 acres and a destination for fishing, boating, kayaking, and other water sports. The park reopened to the public in July of 2004 after a $1.2 million renovation and improvement project that included new restrooms, refurbished entrance road, floating fishing docks, picnic pavilions, and improved parking and a trailhead for the south segment of the Lake Monroe-Gemini Springs-DeBary Hall trail. The Spring to Spring Trail is so named because the 6.6 mile trail links a number of state and county parks that contain springs. This segment of the trail is known as the Pat Northey Trail, named for a local resident who advocated for protection of this natural corridor. Additional park amenities include a boat ramp that puts you on to the St. Johns River at the north end of the lake, a sand volleyball court, and a playground, but it was closed during my visit. The trailhead at the back of Lake Monroe Park is a draw for hikers because the bike path leads to a broad boardwalk through a cypress swamp. There is also a 25 site campground, one of the few public campgrounds in Central Florida. Each site has a picnic table, grill, and electric outlet and a bathhouse with hot showers is provided. I loved the lake view and despite the alligator warnings the only one I saw was a huge concrete one that you could take your picture with. I did see a red-shouldered hawk in the parking lot catching his dinner but he didn't feel like stopping and posing for a picture.

This is a nice community park with lake access (boat ramp) that also has camping facilities…read more(trailer and tent). There is a ranger station there for assistance. The park has a small playground, volleyball court, pavilions, restrooms, and ample parking. The restrooms are nice, clean, and for single (private) use. I was impressed. I used the park for the Spring to Spring trail access. This is a nice area to go camping if you don't mind the road noise - probably not bad at night.

A park to…read morerelax The Clifford McKibbin Park is a small park that is tucked away in a residential section of Sanford. There are tennis courts, a sand volleyball pit, a playground, bathrooms and some pavilions. There is also a short walking trail that goes around the park and has exercise stops along the way. Not enough room to really get much of a workout. I've never actually seen anyone use any of the stuff in the park but it does seem a very popular place for folks to have a picnic, eat lunch or just hang out with friends. Just people getting together and having a good time in a park. The park looks like it has been around for quite a while but is clean and most of it is in good condition. A pleasant little place that is well used and appreciated by the local people.

Sam Smith Memorial Park is located in Winter Springs, Florida. A memorial in the park reads "With…read moregrateful appreciation for many years of dedicated service to the City of Winter Springs, this park commemorates Sam Smith July 2 1918-February 3, 1988." A focal point of the 14 acre Sam Smith Park is the playground designed by Landscape Structures and installed in 2017. The playground includes an Eclipse Net Plus which is a climbing net and a fun Rush Slide. Little ones will enjoy the Weevos playsystem for safe climbing, sliding, and bouncing. The SkyWays shade keeps kids cool and protects them from the sun. Other park amenities include a restroom, boardwalk, and Sam's Deck donated by the Tuskawilla Pioneer Gardening Club. There are covered picnic pavilions, tables, and grills for a family fathering or a cookout. There is also a 0.7-mile loop trail that goes to the back of the park and around the lake. The coolest thing about this park for me was that I saw so many red-shouldered hawks. They were everywhere, in the trees and on the ground. In Florida, the red-shouldered hawk is perhaps the most commonly seen and heard raptor species outside of black and turkey vultures. They prey on small rodents and one of them had a squirrel. His mate was screaming at him from the tree to bring it for dinner now! Seeing all of those amazing hawks is a memory I will not soon forget.

Sam Smith Park is a great little park that definitely makes good use of the little space given to…read moreit. There are multiple play areas for children and they have a few nice gazebos and a pavilion, not to mention the deck overlooking a small what appears to be a retention pond. There is a short walkway and this park is relatively well maintained. They also have restrooms and a water fountain on the property. There are plenty of housing developments around this area and I'm sure that they are all very appreciative of this small park. We need these little parks to help define our communities. We need a place to gather in recreation and relaxation. Well this park is by no means large, it is a good place to come and hang out and escape the stress of the modern world for a while. I would definitely recommend here and I give it five stars.

Great experience for Girl Scouts!!! We've been there a few times throughout the years! We love…read moreranger john!! He's so nice and helpful! We loved the yurts and cabins! Also... definitely do the obstacle course! Best time ever!!

If you remember watching "The Parent Trap" as a kid and thinking that's the kind of camp you want…read moreto go to, then Mah-Kah-Wee is for you. It is a rustic, outdoorsy camp, no cell phones allowed here! Camp Mah-Kah-Wee is a Girl Scout camp. They offer programs throughout they year for girls and have overnight camps during the summer. I have been to Mah-Kah-Wee many times over the years with my daughters, and I really appreciate that we have a facility like this so close to home. The camp surrounds a lake so there are many water activities like canoeing and kayaking available during the summer. There is also a swimming pool. They offer all of the standard camp activities like archery and crafts and they also have an obstacle course. My kids love this place. During the summer the week-long camps are themed so you can find something to match your child's interests. As for the facilities, the best place to stay is in the cabins. They have air conditioning! In Florida you NEED air conditioning in the summer. I've also chaperoned overnights in the tents, which aren't so bad, and a building they call the Eco Center, which is a bit more like a enclosed porch... no AC there. Overall, it's a great place. I highly recommend it. The prices for overnight camp are very good and the kids have a great time.

Came here today. Beautiful lake in the middle of a…read moreresidential house community. Nice place to bring the dog and walk around the lake lots of ducks and wildlife. They also have a pavilion with picnic tables. And they have a little dock that you can fish from. I saw two men fishing out there today. Another 2 minutes up the road is the big park with a playground and basketball court for the kids. This is located in Sunland.

Great spot for a walk. Nice paved walking path all the way around the lake. There is grassy areas…read morethroughout and shade trees available as well. It's a nice quiet residential area off the beaten path of 17/92. We stopped by to walk our dog while shopping in the area. There were plenty of trash receptacles but no doggie bag stations on site to clean up after your pet, so be sure to bring your own bag. I highly recommend stopping by for a walk if you're in the area.

Sweetwater has a great VIBE, With a quaint feel for my…read moreTRIBE. Etching each inch of this PLACE, Every tree makes this a shaded SPACE. The net playground is a fam FAVE, Walking trail is MOSTLY PAVED... And the wooden decking is CLEAN, Taking you through the forested SCENE, Etching each inch through the WETLANDS, Right now it's closed for working HANDS... Putting back the broken TRACKS, A place where nature reigns & lil' DISTRACTS. Ready for tennis, come to this MARK... Kids playground makes this one of our top 5... OVIEDO PARK

Sweetwater Park is located on a sidestreet (East Magnolia) just off of Central, which is a main…read moreroad through Oviedo. It is basically Alafaya Trail and the name changes as you ride into Oviedo. Sweetwater Park is not a huge park, but it does have a few pavilions, a basketball court, a few tennis courts and a nice wooden walkway that leads you through a nice little oasis of trees and nature. It would have been nice had the wooden walkway just made a loop, however, this wooden walkway just led me to a sidestreet. Not a big deal, I just turned around and walked the way that I came. Despite its small size, Sweetwater Park is a pleasant place to spend a bit of time. I enjoyed my time walking around here on an early Saturday morning. A bit of a pro tip, this park is not far from a Kelly's Homemade Ice Cream location and it woukd be a great place to stop after working up a sweat shooting some hoops or getting in a few games of tennis. Hey, even if you walk that wooden walkway it might be a good enough reason to treat yourself to some Ice cream.

Every neighbourhood park tends to be unique, and this one definitely has its charm. The park's main…read moreappeal for me is the walking trail that basically envelops the square-shaped park ground along four roads, and I like how safe it feels perhaps because of its location in a residential area. Although I've never personally visited, there's more than one parking area, picnic shelter and benches with tables, a fancy children's playground, butterfly garden, and a museum.

this is a little hidden gem in DeLand! the Butterfly Sanctuary is quite small and, unfortunately, i…read moredidn't see any butterflies other than the large sculpture. the park itself take up a good bit of space with its large playground, 4 covered pavilions with picnic tables, and many benches. it's a great place to come to for a little walk, breath of fresh air, or to host a picnic, cookout, gathering, or birthday party. there's plenty of parking all around, nice public bathrooms, and water fountains. it's also home of the DeLand Memorial Hospital and Veterans Museum.

A friend of mine who is new to the RV community contacted me wanting to book a few sites for their…read moreinaugural camping trip, after inviting us to join their first adventure I decided to do a drive through to ensure it was a good place to test out his skills and help him get oriented with their new motorhome before booking sites being it is relatively close to our homes. This is a great location on the river but I felt it would be a little challenging for their first outing and honestly I had no intention of putting my 40' motorhome in this situation with its shallow and tightly spaced sites. The park is filled with lots of permanent residents and long stay RVer's if someone is interested in long term camping it may be okay but since we were only looking for a few days I don't feel this would be the best experience and with his inexperience it could be a little risky with all the trees with long hanging branches, tight turns and narrow sites especially since there weren't any sites close enough together for our two rigs. Unfortunately this didn't work out for us but I do see how many would enjoy this RV / Marina community nestled along the river, it's probably a great place for a tag along to park long term for weekend camping but I'd be hesitant to bring in a big rig...

The beach and 200 camp / Rv sites Total time warp! People…read moreare friendly, perfect spot and you can rent a boat, take down the river and around to lake Monroe. Two floor grill and bar dog friendly downstairs. Cheap & awesome camping/Rving with bungalows to rent.