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| State Park Overview: |
 | With miles of white sugar sand, this park has one of the toprated beaches in the United States. Sunbathing, snorkeling, and swimming are popular activities along the Gulf of Mexico and St. Joseph Bay. From offshore, canoeists and kayakers can take in a superb view of the high dunes and sand pine scrub. Outdoor enthusiasts can enjoy camping, fishing, hiking, and bicycling. As a coastal barrier peninsula, St. Joseph provides excellent opportunities for birdwatching; over 240 species have been sighted in the park. A boat ramp is located at Eagle Harbor on the bay side. Campers can stay in a fullfacility campground, a short walk from the beach, or at primitive campsites in the wilderness preserve. Eight cabins on the bay side offer alternative overnight accommodations. |
| Reviews By Park Visitors: |
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Written by mater
21-May-2008
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| Camping: |
| We have 119 campsites with water and electric available. Gulf Breeze sites are more open and can accommodate larger vehicles. The Shady Pines campground is more secluded and shaded. Only registered guide and companion animals are allowed
Primitive Camping
Camping is allowed in the Wilderness Preserve for a maximum of 14 nights at $4.00/person/night. No facilities are available, campers must bring their own supplies. Campers are also responsible to pack-it-in/ pack-it-out and to practice " Leave No Trace" principles where possible" website. Pets are not permitted. Reservations for up to 15 persons may be made up to 11 months in advance by contacting the park at (850) 227-1327. On day of arrival, access may be obtained by phone for boaters wishing to come from outside the park, credit card payment is required. Registered campers must arrive at least 1 hour prior to sunset and must checkout with park personnel.
Youth Camping
This area offers a primitive overnight site to organized groups of up to 30 or a minimum of 6 persons. Chaperones must be provided for youth groups and must remain with the group at all times. Check in and checkout time is at noon, Eastern. Restrooms, cold water outdoor showers, picnic tables and fire rings are available. Reservations for the Youth Camp may be made up to 11 months in advance by contacting the park office at (850) 227-1327. |
| Trails: |
| St. Joseph Peninsula State Park offers 3 different trail experiences: The Maritime Hammock Trail winds through a coastal hammock environment to the shores of St. Joseph Bay. The Bayview Nature Trail curves through a maritime oak community and a salt marsh before running alongside the bay. This trail offers a stepping off point to the Wilderness Preserve trail. The Wilderness Preserve Trail begins at the end of the paved road and continues through 1750 acres of an unspoiled coastal ecosystem. The trail stretches through the center of the peninsula for 7 miles before reaching the tip. There are no bathroom facilities, no water, and limited shade, so please plan your visit accordingly. Hikers are advised to take along the "10 essentials" website. Please check-in/out with the park office. |
| Boating: |
| St. Joseph Peninsula State Park is equipped with a boat ramp and a small marina that can accommodate 15 - 18 small boats at a time. A loading area is adjacent to the accessible outdoor shower and a fish cleaning station. Cost for boat launching is $3.00 plus tax over daily entrance fee. Overnight guests have free use of the boat ramp and may leave their boats moored at the marina, space permitting. Other boaters must remove their boats by sunset.
Canoeing & Boating
Kayaks, canoes, and pontoon boats and other watercraft may be rented at The Entrance located just outside the park gate. Motorized boats are delivered to our boat basin at Eagle Harbor. The Entrance may be contacted at 1-888-455-7529. |
| Swimming: |
| Beaches
Sun lovers flock to the 10 miles of white sand beach during the summer where the water temperature averages around 84 degrees. Swimming, sunbathing, fishing, and kite-flying are some of the activities that take place then. Summer is also the time when Loggerhead sea turtles come up onto the beach to nest. Visitors are reminded to not use flashlights or lanterns on the beach at night unless they are equipped with turtle film, from May to October. Artificial light confuses a sea turtle?s perception of the natural horizon. Sea turtle and shorebird nests are marked so that you can avoid disturbing them, allowing them the best chance for survival and success. St. Joseph Peninsula State Park has some of the oldest and highest sand dunes in the state. These dunes are inhabited by sea oats and endangered St. Andrews beach mouse. Visitors are reminded to not walk, climb or play on the dunes that provide them with food and shelter. Time has proven that these dunes help protect park amenities. |
| Fishing and Hunting: |
| Florida residents may fish from the beach or bayshore without a fishing license. Non-residents and boat anglers must possess a fishing license. Regulations change frequently so pick up a copy whenever you visit. Fish caught in the waters around the park include: Speckled Trout, Red Drum, Flounder, Mullet, Bluefish and Whiting.
SPEARING: Prohibited up to 400 feet offshore. Please check current fishing regulations. " Hawaiian slings" cannot be unloaded and are not allowed in the park.
SCALLOPING: Bay Scallops are found in the clear water of St. Joseph Bay and harvested during the season of July 1 - September 10. Fishing licenses and dive flags may be required and may be purchased from local vendors. |
| History of the Area: |
| Prehistoric and Indian Occupations:The Woodland stage is the third major stage of cultural development in eastern North America. This stage, the first evidence of habitation, is marked by population increases along the coast, probably because sea levels stabilized around 400 B.C. More burial mounds were constructed and trade networks increased.
The Weeden Island people (ca.A.D. 500-2000) exploited shellfish, fish, deer and nuts as primary food resources. The Mississippian culture ( A.D. 1200-1700) developed in the Apalachicola River around A.D. 1000. Contacts between the Weeden Island culture and the emerging Mississippian groups brought new ideas, however, coastal groups seem to have continued a subsistence strategy. There is no definitive archaeological or historic evidence about Indian groups at the spit when Europeans arrived.
European Exploration and Settlement:St. Joseph Bay appears to have been reported first by Spaniards from Pensacola in 1699 who reported seeing the prow of a shipwreck. Named San Joseph de Vallardes in honor of Comte de Moctezuma, the bay was occupied by 1701 in order to prevent the French from interrupting the Spanish supply route to Pensacola.
A garrison placed on the mainland at the mouth of the bay supported hunting, farming and a small lookout station on the spit. The British led and instigated Indian raids against Spanish settlements and ranches between 1702-1704. Spanish and Indians captured and enslaved by the British were taken to Charleston. Hispanic troops looking for survivors in 1705 found the area abandoned and decided against establishing another outpost.
The French attempted to build Fort Creve Couer on the mainland in 1718 but the Spanish at Pensacola demanded they leave Spanish territory. Although the French attempted to burn their unfinished fort, it was not destroyed and later was occupied by Spanish troops from San Marcos.
In early 1719 France, England and Austria were pitted against Spain, French troops from Mobile captured Pensacola. Soon after, the Spanish Presidio San Jose, a fortified settlement was built at the tip of this peninsula. By the end of the year more than 1200 soldiers and convicts from Cuba, Veracruz and Mexico city along with their superiors, wives, children and servants were living in and around the fort. Abandoned in 1723, its remaining buildings were dismantled and used to build a presidio at Pensacola.
American Period:Established in 1835, St. Joseph vied with Apalachicola as a shipping port. In 1839 a lighthouse began operating at the tip of the spit and guided local shipping. By 1840, Apalachicola outcompeted St. Joseph as a commercial port and the crippling yellow fever epidemic in 1841 doomed the early settlement. In 1844, buildings not transported to Apalachicola were destroyed by a mighty hurricane. The lighthouse ceased operation in 1847 and was leveled by another hurricane in 1851. An August hurricane of 1851 forced the grounding of the S.S. Florida on the east side of the tip. Only the metal firebox remains in the bay waters.
In the early 20th Century a bathhouse was constructed at Eagle Harbor by T. H. Stone so that tourists from the mainland could change clothes for swimming and sailing. Fish camps arose on the east side of the peninsula and a house for local bar pilots was built near the tip. The peninsula was used for gunnery and bombing practice during WWII. After the Korean War, the U. S. Army Reserve took over the remaining military lands for training exercises in 1962 and 1963.
A large camp area and bulldozed roads are still evident within the Wilderness Preserve. In 1967, as a result of local citizen and political interest, the site was dedicated as the T. H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park.
Please remember that all sites are protected and may not be disturbed. |
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| | Note to Park related businesses:
List your vacation cabin, weekend getaway, log cabin rental, romantic cottage, vacation home, resort, hotel, motel, bed and breakfast, country inn, campground, RV park, horseback riding stable, canoe livery, river rafting, outfitting, sporting goods store, guide service, RV rental or any other park related activity, park related attraction or park related service on Google or StateParks.com. (more).... |
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| Related Links: |
| Sierra Sentry - ... possible. A ferry may be available to the island. Overnight camping in Saint Joseph Peninsula State Park. Indoor toilets, hot showers, and grills but no electricity. Please note, the weather may ... | | Suncoast Sierra - Outings - ... a sea kayak a rental for the day may be possible. Overnight camping in Saint Joseph Peninsula State Park. Indoor toilets, hot showers, and grills but no electricity. The weather may be cold. Space ... | | Sherpa Guides | Southeast | Aquatic Fauna In Peril | - About 100 species of mammals are endemic to the southeastern United States, an area of diverse habitat types and high biodiversity. Many of these species are either formally considered aquatic or semi ... | | Clyde Butcher Black and White Landscape Photography Big Cypress Gallery Everglades Florida - Clyde Butcher has been a fine art photographer for over thirty years and has photographed many ... Gulf of Mexico, south of Saint Joseph Peninsula State Park on Cape San Blas. Photographed - Summer ... | | Outings - ... need a sea kayak a rental for the day may be possible. Overnight camping in Saint Joseph Peninsula State Park. Indoor toilets, hot showers, and grills but no electricity. The weather may be cold ... | | Our Ocean World - ... The winner is Poipu (poy pooh) Beach in Hawaii. Coming in a close second is Saint Joseph Peninsula State Park in Florida. Doctor Beach knows, however, that people visit the shore for a variety of ... | | May Newsletter of the Buckeye United Fly Fishers - ... trip with Captain Allen Duke of Presnell?s RV and Marine Resort. The resort is near Saint Joseph Peninsula State Park. This was my second trip with Allen and I must say he knows where the fish are ... |
| Area Attractions: |
| Birding
Late September throughout October, thousands of migrating hawks and falcons fly over or rest at St. Joseph Peninsula State Park. These raptors travel south from Canada and the northern United States until reaching the Gulf of Mexico, where they turn to the west following the Gulf coast until reaching Mexico and South America. Following the passage of cold fronts, large numbers of sharp-shinned hawks (with a few Cooper?s hawks mixed in) and broad-winged hawks are seen daily. American kestrels, merlins, the endangered peregrine falcon, Mississippi kites, marsh hawks, opsreys, red-tailed hawks, and red-shouldered hawks can also be seen in small numbers. Download our bird list that includes 247 species that have been observed at our park, just one site on the Great Florida Birding Trail, www.floridabirdingtrail.com. Please be sure to visit us each October as we participate in the Florida Panhandle Birding and Wildflower Festival. See www.birdfestival.org for more information.
Snorkeling
Snorkelers are drawn to the clear water of St. Joseph Bay in search of sea horses, brittle stars and horseshoe crabs. Dive flags are required and may be purchased from local vendors. |
| Directions: |
| Driving Directions
St. Joseph Peninsula State Park is located near Port St. Joe. On US 98 (heading East) turn onto SR30A, travel to SR30E, turn and travel to the park.From Apalachicola, take US 98 West, turn left on C-30A, then turn left on C-30E and travel to park. |
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