"Mommy" Style Camping

I don’t know about you, but camping in a tent in the woods is not something I really like to do. I have done it once in my life and I ended up sleeping in the car. Recently though, a bunch of friends asked my family to go camping. At first, I was a little hesitant, but after looking at pictures online and talking to my friends, I decided we would try it. Especially, since we were going to be in a cabin and not a tent.

We booked the camping trip a few months in advance. We had to pay up front for our cabin, so we really couldn’t back out once we committed to it. It was in Ocala, Florida, at the Silver River State Park. Besides the campground, the park has ten cabins you can rent in the woods. The cabins are $110 each per night. I think we had almost all the cabins rented with our friends in them. Some of the families shared a cabin to cut down on cost. You can fit up to six people in a cabin.

We had our own cabin, which was really nice. I was a little nervous about what to expect until we got there. When we opened the door and saw it had a kitchen with a dishwasher, stove, microwave and refrigerator. I was delighted and amazed. The cabin had two bedrooms and one bathroom with a shower. To top it off there is even a gas fireplace. Each cabin had a wrap around porch with rocking chairs and picnic tables. Outside our cabin there was a fire pit and grill, so we could cook out. The cabins were nicely updated and very clean. It was so nice to be in the woods with electricity too!

My kids were even more excited than I was. This was their first camping experience and they were thrilled to be in the woods with all their friends. We had the best of both worlds as far as I could see, with a beautiful cabin surrounded by nature.

It was an enjoyable time to hang out with our friends, grill out and play games. One night we played card games and had fun talking. The next night we had family relay races. Each family raced against another family in races like the sack race and egg on the spoon race. The kids enjoyed running in the woods and climbing trees.

You can also rent canoes and canoe down the beautiful crystal clear river or go hiking or biking on the trails.

We also had a chance to go in the Silver River Museum, which is within walking distance from the cabins. It was very educational and the kids liked touring it.

Our camping trip was short only two nights, but it was a lot of fun. It was something I wouldn’t mind doing again. And for the record, yes this is still camping. At least in my book it is.

Click here for information about the Silver River State Park