Military RV Parking

[Cbrez]

Originally Posted by CWtheMan

Naval Station, Mayport, FL

There are two RV parks at NS Mayport. The one used almost exclusively by seasonal patrons (Osprey Cove) is out of the way and back near the Hanna Park gate.

This is about the most popular, Pelican Roost RV Park. It’s out on the north jetties at the mouth of the St Johns River as it enters the Atlantic Ocean. It’s my most favorite RV Park in all of Florida.

We had reservations for the second week in April but the park closed and they cancelled our reservation. Several weeks before they cancelled the reservation they called to tell us about new (2020) security procedures. Anyone entering the installation without a valid CAC is required to stop at Pass & ID and have a background check. I have a retiree CAC but my wife does not.

She has a squeaky clean background so not worried about that. Biggest worry was how long it was going to take and where to park the rig while we wait. Pass & ID doesn’t exactly have RV parking. It was recommended to not get there late in the day or you risk being told to “come back tomorrow”.

Not sure if this is a Mayport thing or if others are experiencing similar procedures at other installations.

We love Pelican Roost and try to stay there every spring on our way out of Florida. Appreciate hearing from anyone who’s been through this new procedure at Mayport so we know what to expect next year.

[CWtheMan]

This RV Park is located on the St. Johns River. About a half mile from the park (on base) is a full service marina where boats from small Jon boats to full size pontoon boats can be rented.

Right across the street, (on base) there is a 27 hole championship golf facility - one of the busiest golf courses in southeast Florida – with a full blown golf shop, snack-bar and full service restaurant.

We had lived in JAX for 23 years when we sold everything and went full time RVing. This RV Park is - sort of - our home park.

There are more than 3000 civilian employees aboard NAS JAX. Many of them are military retirees. It’s a very busy place during shift change hours. The NADEP has 3 shifts. If you’re coming there for the first time, try and wiggle-in between shifts.

The Link below is active and lists all the amenities found at NAS Jacksonville.

https://www.militarycampgrounds.us/f...nville-rv-park

When these pictures were taken we were parked very close to the rest rooms and free laundry building.

Our site shows two TV antennas. That’s because the trailer on the other side of us couldn’t find a signal so I loaned them another 50’ of cable and we moved his antenna next to ours.

[CWtheMan]

Palm Oasis RV Park & Resort. That’s its name and it’s out in the desert, away from just about everything. It has a community atmosphere because in the winter months the RV residents outnumber the base residents.

It’s not a place we ever planned to visit. I had been there a couple of times when on active duty. Back then it was known as the National Parachute Test Range (NPTR) and mostly Navy attack squadrons from other bases around the country came there to practice bombing in the nearby bomb ranges. Later on it became a NAF when the Blue Angle flight demonstration squadron made it their winter home.

We stayed there for a couple of months because we decided to leave southern CA (where we had planned on spending our winter months) because it rained so much there, it was causing dangerous mud slides near our military camp site at San Diego. It was also raining in the deserts near El Centro and a lot of people were leaving because the dune buggy riders had no place to ride and went elsewhere. We were very surprised when we called from San Diego and were told there were a couple of sites available for us in the overflow area. That particular area had full hook-up service with 30 amps and another 15 amp plug-in for extension cords.

Our site was located in an old paved parking lot and backed-up to a ball field. Across the street there was a bowling alley, chow hall and a golf driving range. We could eat in the chow hall without reservations except on weekends and holidays. We got our mail from a general delivery box at a US post office about three miles outside the main gate.

It you can’t find something to do on base there isn’t much else close by. We did find a nice 9 hold golf course about 10 miles away. After we had been there for about a week the Blue Angles showed-up and there were no more quiet days except on Sundays. We had dish TV and finding a nice clear signal was no problem at all.

The rain caught up with us and it rained so long and hard they had to rent huge tanker trucks with vacuum hoses to get the water out of the parking lots around base. We drove over to Yuma and found people were also leaving there for other areas and we found a couple of side by side sites in a seniors (+ 55) park to spend the rest of the winter months.

Here are some pictures of our sites and the Blue’s flight line.

The link is active.

https://militarycampgrounds.us/calif...naf-campground

[kjbrooks]

I saw you post about the AL Post in Jacksonville that allows honorably discharged veterans with a DD-214. Is there a way to search, or filter, on the Military Campground web site, or app, for places that allow just honorably discharged vets?
Thanks, Kevin

[CWtheMan]

Texas is another state where we parked almost exclusively at military RV Parks & CGs. There are 18 military CGs in Texas.

Laughlin AFB is a flight training command located at Del Rio, TX. As AFBs go it’s kind of small but has all amenities the larger ones have. When last there the FAMCAMP – as the air force calls them – had 22 FHU sites. The larger of them on the main entrance road all had privacy fences. We had the last one at the far end and very large.

The base also has a CG with RV sites out on Lake Amistad. They don’t have sewer connections and I’m not good at hauling a blue boy to a dump station and avoid places without a complete hook-up. (We did have a 30 gallon blue boy because you just never know).

Lake Amistad is a huge reservoir bordered by Texas & Mexico. The water is clear and the fishing is excellent. The AFB has a smallish marina at the lake CG. There are fishing boat rentals from the recreation department. We rented a small Jon boat with a small powered motor and really enjoyed the fishing and bird activity.

There is an Indian casino right on the border with Mexico. I don’t recommend spending any time there after dark. In fact ,you should find another vehicle to follow going out and back.

Here are a few pictures. The aircraft one is at the entrance to the wonderfully manicured golf course.

[CWtheMan]

The year we stayed here; at Ellsworth AFB FAMCAMP near Rapid City, SD it was HOT. It was 105 degrees the day we pulled-in.

We had called here from our last stop in ND and requested a two week reservation. We got a nice large FHU back-in, close to the FAMCAMP office. That was good because we were going to take a lot of MWR sponsored van tours and they started and returned to the FAMCAMP office. We highly recommend the van tours. The drivers are mostly retired military and very familiar with all the attractions on the tours.

Ellsworth is a large base loaded with amenities and things to do. Right outside the main gate there is a huge military aircraft museum. They also provide a van tour of the base including the flight lines.

Don’t miss a trip to town for a walk around; lots of history. We ate at a basement lunch/brunch place that has the same unregulated temp in the 70s year round.

We went to all of the attractions. Some we had visited in the past and the newest, Crazy horse.

Here are just a few of the hundreds of pictures we took during this visit.

The link is active.

https://www.militarycampgrounds.us/s...th-afb-famcamp

[ACJCF2]

Spent a four day weekend at the Shaw AFB FAMCAMP in Sumter, SC. Nice campground with full hook ups and 30/50 amp service. Friendly campers and staff. We were visiting our daughter while she was there TDY.