Falling Waters State Park, Chipley, FL

Waterfall at Falling Waters

CAMPGROUND NAME: Falling Waters State Park
LOCATION: Chipley, FL
KIND: State Recreation Area
SEASONAL: No
RATES: $18 plus tax or $19.80 total
RESERVATIONS ACCEPTED: Yes, via Reserve America
CAMPGROUND WEB SITE
HOSTED: Yes
PHONE: 850-638-6130
GPS: 30.73090, -85.52883
ACCESS: Roads to and in the park are paved. I believe there are 4 handicap accessible sites
SITES: 24
SURFACING: Sandy dirt
PULL THRU: Yes
BACK-IN: Yes
MAXIMUM RIG SIZE: 45′
TENTS: Yes
LEVELNESS: Most sites may require some leveling
SHADE: Yes
SPACING: Close
TENT PADS: I didn’t see any but there were plenty of tents set up
FIRE GRILLS: Yes, ground level
PICNIC TABLES: Yes
PETS: On leash in designated areas only

HOOKUPS:
DUMP STATION: Yes
ELECTRICAL QUALITY: 122 volts, 60 Hz, no faults (As inidcated by my Progressive Industries Power Management System, Model EMS-PT30C.)
WATER PRESSURE: I did not meter PSI but when I turned on the hydrant there was plenty of pressure.

CELLULAR:
AT&T iPhone 5s without Wilson Mobile 4G booster:
People complained that my signal was breaking up without the booster.
2 bars, LTE
Download speed: 1.63 Mbps
Upload speed: 0.87 Mbps

AT&T iPhone 5s with Wilson Mobile 4G booster:
3 bars, LTE
Download speed: 1.45 Mbps
Upload speed: 3.81 Mbps

Verizon iPad Air without Wilson Mobile 4G booster:
3 bars, LTE
Download speed: 9.15 Mbps
Upload speed: 4.77 Mbps

Verizon iPad Air with Wilson Mobile 4G booster:
I didn’t check because connectivity was good enough without it.

TV
Over-the-air: I scanned 21 stations
Cable: No
WiFi: No

There is a little bit of hiking from Falling Waters campground. Some of it has wooden boardwalks to cross wet areas. This section has a little covered bridge with benches to sit and enjoy the surroundings.

RESTROOMS: Yes
RESTROOM RATING: Pass (I assign a Pass or Fail rating based on many considerations including: cleanliness, usability, hot water availability, hand soap availability, ease or difficulty it is to use the toilet paper, condition of fixtures, if using the restroom is a pleasant or unpleasant experience, etc.)
SOAP: Hand soap
TOILETS: Flush
SHOWERS: Yes
SHOWER RATING: Pass (I evaluate showers in a similar fashion to restrooms. See above.) The shower I used had a curtain that was drawn into to shower by the air currents created when the shower was on and pressed itself against me. I find this incredibly annoying, the result of poor planning by people that really don’t care. Can you say, government? I gave a passing grade, reluctantly, because I noticed some little suction cups attached to the curtain which presumably can be used to mitigate this “curtain stick” and with a little fussing I was able to minimize the annoyance.
TRASH: Yes
WATER: Yes
LAUNDRY: No
RECYCLING: Aluminum

BUGS: Not much activity when I was there in mid April.

Smoke from a campfire clouds the air in this shot of Falling Waters State Park Campground/ It’s also referred to as a State Recreation Area (SRA).

NEAREST FACILITIES: Chipley a few miles away should have most everything. There’s a Walmart SuperCenter there.
Gas: Chipley, a few miles away. If you’re coming from up north in Alabama you may wish to fill up there. It was quite a bit less when I passed through.
Dump: In the campground
Propane: Check with AmeriGas in Chipley

The campground at Falling Waters State Recreation Area (SRA) is set in a woodsy environment. The campground road is old but it’s fine. Let’s just say it has a little character. It’s narrow, however. Except for the Accessible sites which have concrete pads the campsites themselves are sandy and in many you’ll be quite close to your neighbors. Some sites are too small for RVs. Others, according to data on ReserveAmerica can handle rigs to 45′. It feels a little closed-in here. The campground is nice enough, it’s lovely in fact, but having just come from Gunter Hill it was a little bit of a let down, but most places would be after having just been at Gunter Hill.

Literature for the park boasts Florida’s highest waterfall at 73′. Oddly, although the brochure for Falling Waters prominently features a photo of the waterfall on its front cover none of the campground maps I came across show it anywhere! When I walked the short hiking trail to the waterfall from the campground it seemed signs pointed to everything… everything that is except for the waterfall. Finally, when I was within 50 yards of the waterfall I came across a sign pointing the way. Government… sheesh.

This shot shows part of the waterfall at Falling Waters. I’d call it a cute little waterfall. I’ve seen the falls at Yosemite, for example, which dwarf this little guy.

During my short hike to the waterfall and back I came to the lake as it is referred to in the brochure. It seemed too small to call it a lake. I think pond would be more descriptive. A swimming area is roped off for those brave enough to use it–a sign next to the lake warns of alligators! Go for a dip? I’ll pass, thank you very much.

I stayed at Falling Waters for a couple nights on my way from Montgomery Alabama to the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia. There are more direct ways but I needed to get to Florida in order to check it off my 50 states list.

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