Sand Pond Recreation Area

Date of Visit: Jan/Feb 2021

Gate code will be at the bottom of your confirmation email; don't rely on the host(ess) who was rarely onsite, but did keep the restrooms/showers clean and stocked. Camp road in was fine, even though we arrived after a lot of rain. Some areas inside the park were flooded -- both piers underwater -- but the roadways were perfectly fine. The camp road is very tight, but also fine if you go slow and pay attention. We LOVED our end site! All sites are well-spaced, but being on the end, we had no one on our patio side, no one in front of us, and were far enough away from those on our driver's side for it not to matter. Our 50A wasn't working on arrival (30A was), but we called the number on the sign. Whoever answered said they couldn't help us, but while we were out walking, someone had shown up and it was working again in short order. Fun trails, nice boardwalk in Pond Cypress swamp. The shower was what I consider the perfect combo -- plenty of VERY hot water and a hand-held shower head. There was some faint road noise, but otherwise very quiet and dark at night. Lots of birds to watch, and we even saw an otter crossing the road one day while we were walking!

A little difficult to find as it is not clearly marked from Hwy 79, but once you get in the site is really nice and peaceful! The road off 79 is red dirt/ clay and if raining or wet would be a slick and messy disaster! But we were here when it was dry! Beautiful pines and a small lake. Level cement pads with electric and water. Several class A coaches here no problem. Very peaceful and serene.

The road leading to it was a red dirt road and when we went down with our truck and 26 foot camper there was already huge cracks in the road. When we went to leave it had rained a lot and the road got much worse. We thought we were gonna have to put it in 4 wheel drive to get out because it sank so much when any tire went over the cracks. Also the bathrooms were clean but the faucets were broken in both women's bathrooms. Some of the sites looked a little tough to get into. We got into ours ok but it was tight for some of the sites. Only thing that i liked about this park was the concrete slabs making leveling a breeze.

We stayed 3 nights here in March at site 9 @ $23./night. Each site has a concrete pad, water, electric (50 amp only, so get an adapter if your camper uses 30 amps), picnic table, and grill. Most of the sites have direct water view. We enjoyed this spot very much. Peaceful even though we were able to hear the highway in the far distance. Nice sunsets and sunrises!!! Frogs made beautiful sounds all night. Saw a bald eagle here. Bathrooms were nice with showers, and the dump station was a nice bonus! Nice trails for walking and biking right from the campground. We did a 5 mile bike ride through the forest and it was exhilarating!

The sites have nice concrete pads nestled among a pine forest. The pond is scenic but not for swimming. We have stayed here twice, as its about 30 minutes from Panama City beaches, and during the spring and fall represents a good value for overnight camping. You can hear a little traffic noise from the highway, but otherwise its fairly quite. I would imagine during the warmer months the flying pests would be overbearing, but not so during the cooler months.

Ok, many of the sites are on a cute, picturesque pond. However, they're also right next to the road. Site 3, where I was, also had site 4 directly across the narrow road, so I had folks staring at my rig from 10' away. There is no map of the campground online to help you know stuff like this in advance. Site 1 is the host site. Sites 2-14 are along the pond, with the exception of 4 and 12, which are across the road. 15-20 not on the water, and you can't even see it from 19 and 20, the two walk up sites. That leads me to the poor management aspect. We booked site 3 for 1 night, paying $13 and change for the Florida Senior rate, plus a $6.70 reservation fee bringing the total to $21 and change. When we woke up the next morning we decided to stay another night. Since we could see our site was not reserved for that night, along with the other 17 vacant sites out of 20, I didn't think it would be a problem. I was wrong. The camp host finally made an appearance and I asked him if I just filled out an envelope and paid as the sign was contradictory. He told me no, I could not stay without a reservation. I said, "Well, I can't make a reservation for today, it's already today!" He said, "Well you need to do it sooner. The only sites we take money for here is 19 and 20, the rest have to be done online." 19 and 20 being the crappiest sites in the park and as far from the bathrooms as you can get. I had never heard of anything like this before...I have never not been able to extend my stay in any state or national park or BLM/FS campground if the site was open...no wonder the park is so empty most of the time. Even if I could have made a same day reservation online (reserve america gave an error when I tried) I would have been stuck paying another $7 reservation fee. Since I would have had to move anyway to stay there, I just moved on down the road. Oh, and yes, the women's bathroom was filthy and the water temp in the shower was not adjustable. There IS noise from highway 79. If it's the days leading up to a biker event in Panama City, it can be considerable. This place has a lot of potential but right now I'm too aggravated to consider returning.

This is a Florida Forest-maintained campground, not a Florida State Park. A Forest Service employee here told me that the Forest Service is primarily concerned with fire issues, such as controlled burns and fires, and that campgrounds come second. That may or may not be true, but look how many folks have commented on the fact that this isn't the best kept campground. There is no paid staff here - only the camp host of the moment, and the place isn't as spotless as the usual Florida State Park campground. Of course, the camp host could change tomorrow or wake up inspired and move this whole rating up to a five, because the campground is gorgeous. Only 20 sites, but many are on the water. It's not crowded. The sites are well spaced. I have no idea what the other commentator means by highway noise. There are 256 people living in the nearest town. The only thing I can hear are frogs. It's easy to get here on a short, packed-dirt road. The ATT signal is great. The trails are abundant and wonderful, and north Florida has pine trees that are so beautiful. There is a second pond a five minute walk from the sites which is loaded with cypress trees, and a wonderful long, newly refurbished elevated walkway takes you right through the pond. This is such an old forest that it really shows off how beautiful native Florida was and, in areas like this, still is. If you like primitive camping, ask for site one!