Mitchell Landing Campground Experience

Picking a Campground

When we were first looking for campground we found a couple of different locations that met our criteria. We needed somewhere that was:

• Dog Friendly (this would be Ben’s first trip)
• Close to our home so we could arrive in time to set up camp on Friday

Originally we hoped to stay at a different campground list but they didn’t have any online availability for Tents until July of 2023. We learned a valuable lesson here. If you want to go camping book your trips way ahead of time, at least for the winter and springs months in South Florida. We’re talking about specifically the Big Cypress National Preserve areas.

A part of me feels like you might have a shot at reserving a spot by calling directly. Freddy and I have lucked out with snagging cancellations for national parks in the past. However we’ve never tried to snag a cancellation for a camping trip. I can’t say I have that much experience but we’ll let you guys know if it ever works.

We found a couple of different sites but Freddy ended up booking a spot at Mitchell Landing Campground. Right inside of Big Cypress National Preserve and basically in the heart of the everglades.

We made our reservation online through this link but we still aren’t sure if they are mandatory. We have conflicting information. I read somewhere that if the site isn’t reserved you could take it first come first serve. Freddy saw something different online stating all campers had to have an online reservation. Not sure if this is a rule change that happened recently. However we would like point out that the campground was full by Saturday afternoon. So I highly recommend reserving ahead of time.

Campground Amenities

This was basically our first time camping in this part of the state and our first time “dry camping”. Basically this meant that there was no running water on site, any water you wanted you had to bring.

Seeing as how we’re starting to get to the good parts let’s briefly go over the campsite’s amenities:

• Vaulted Bathroom ( a glorified port-a-potty)
• Picnic tables on concrete slabs
• Fire Pit with Grill Rack (Firewood not included, BYOW)
• A Pole to hold Garbage
• Garbage and Recycling Bins

The rules for the campground were pretty basic:

• No Noise after 10 PM (basicalyl no loud noises, party, music, basically be respectful of your neighbors)
• Dogs are allowed but must be on a leash at all times. You obviously must pick up after them
• Trash must be collected and lifted up away from bears
• Food kept in bear proof containers or cars, they DID spot bears the weekend we went camping
• Bring Your Own Firewood (BYOW), they ask on the site that you not sue wood around the campground for fires. Freddy learns why when his hand breaks out in chiggers (again)
• Check out times seem to vary. On the site it said 10 AM but when we arrived the caretakers told us 12:00 PM. We recommend you ask on arrival and Check in.

Overall Experience

As far as our first dry camping trip we had a lot of fun. We technically were doing an entire first run with our dog and a lot of our equipment as well. We weren’t sure what to expect and I was honestly nervous.

It was cold temps, and our dog’s first camping trip. We hadn’t gone primitive camping since college an I was feeling rusty. Thankfully we went mostly prepared. We took more than enough water and we took a decent amount of food. In hindsight we had a ton of clothes and not enough food. For instance I forgot to plan for a side when we made the steaks for dinner. So for dinner we had Steak and “snacks”, or what ever we had to munch on.

We slept with the roof off on the tent and it was pretty magical. The sound of no cars, and just the night sounds of the everglades. I really couldn’t have asked for a more peaceful lullaby. The moon ended up being pretty bright, but there was a full moon that weekend so it made sense. I should have known better, a full moon is like a tiny sun at 3 AM. However I didn’t hate waking up to enjoy a glimpse of the night before nodding off to sleep again.

The night was very cold though. Very, very cold for this Florida girl. Thankfully for our wedding we were gifted a double sleeping bag which I’m so grateful we took with us. The grill/Fire pit on site was so useful. It was a great size and at a close proximity to the table which was convenient. Freddy and I had our folding chairs so we sat right up against the fire basically.

We got lucky during the day, our camp site happen to have these giant trees that gave us plenty of shade and protection from the sun. We were at site 12 if you’re interested, it was really comfortable and in between the bathrooms and some of the other amenities.

Bathroom Confessions

The only thing about this campsite that was not the greatest experience was the bathrooms. I’m going to be honest with you. I knew I was walking into a vaulted bathroom siruation. I’ve been to quite a few natinal parks at this point and they almost all use vaulted toilets. It’s basically a port-a-potty brought into the 20th century. I’m not going to tell you it’s glorious or it’s a good time. A majority of the time these bathrooms have a creepy crawly running around.

I’m used to the bathrooms having a bee hive on side, a spider living in a corner. It’s an outdoor bathroom I don’t expect it to look like the one I use at home. However this one was a curve ball for me.

When you first walk up to the stalls (because there are two) you will see one door is covered in bullet holes. If you must know I used the stall without the bullet holes. Now, Ironically when you enter the bathroom you’re hit with a fresh smell of cleaning supplies. However your eyes will quickly forget this as they struggle to take in the flies all over the walls. I want to say the walls remind me of a dalmation but it’s worse than that. It remind me of a stipple drawing, one where the shadows are created by a number of dots. That’s what that bathroom looks like.

If you were to use this bathroom right now, today, you’d find that there’s a laminated sign behind the toilet. It’s been taped to the back wall for some time now. The sun has faded the once bright colors and bold words so they sort of whisper at you. “Close Toilet” and “Keep Flies Out”. I assure you that when I entered the toilet seat was in fact closed. This didn’t change anything.

The same way the walls are totally covered in flies, the toilet was flies all the way down. Down to the soppy brown slop that sits at the bottom of every vault toilet.

Bathroom Verdict

Did this ruin the weekend for me? No not really. I was skeptical of using the bathroom and honestly used to watch to make sure no one tried anything funny while I went, but overall it was fine. I knew what I was signing up for when we decided on a dry camping trip. I’d do it again if I had to but I’m really interested in looking at a portable toilet. It would come in handy in more primitive settings so maybe the next step is a portable port-a-potty.

Not going to lie, our neighbors had one and I was jealous.

Would We Return?

Yes. Overall the Mitchell Landing Campground was quiet and small. It’s off the beaten path enough that you feel like you’re getting away while still being pretty close to civilization. There are 11 campsites total and they are pretty close together but everyone was pretty chill. I think we all waned to jsut get away from the hustle and bustle for a while. RVs and tents are both allowed on the campsite although for RV’s there are no hookups of any kind so bring a generator.

The campground is right inside of the Big cypress Preserve making it an ideal place to see the stars on nights that there is little to no moon. We will definitely be looking here the next time we want to take pictures of the milk way and want to just spend the night out in the glades.