1 Day in Caladesi Island State Park

 Caladesi Island State Park

https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/caladesi-island-state-park

The park is open from 8 a.m. until sundown, 365 days a year

Dunedin FL 34698

"One of the few untouched islands along the Gulf Coast, Caladesi Island State Park is accessible only by boat, but is worth the extra effort. Whether it is a stroll along the island’s pristine beaches or a kayak trip through the bayside mangrove forest, a trip to Caladesi Island is an unforgettable experience."

This was a must on our list when we visited Florida in September. 

We headed to Honeymoon Island State Park. The Osprey Trail and Pelican Cove Trail are popular options for hiking and birdwatching. These trails take you through a variety of coastal habitats, including mangrove swamps and pine forests. Pristine sandy beaches and crystal-clear waters. You can find a variety of seashells along the shoreline, especially after high tide. 

Fees:

• Entrance fee of $8 per vehicle for  ppl
• $4 single-occupan vehicle
• $2 for peds, bikes, & extra passengers

After stopping to admire a tortoise (I think it's a tortoise?!) crawling through the grass, we then we took the Caladesi Island Ferry to travel to Caladesi Island State Park for a four-hour stay. 

This ferry ride was great! 20 min ride where they give you an educated history of the island. Prior to the Hurricane of 1921, Honeymoon Island and Caladesi Island were one large island known as Hog Island (you'll have to dig deeper for the story behind that!) The hurricane split the island in half and created Hurricane Pass. We also learned how Honeymoon island got its name, and who were the first honeymooners to stay in the honeymoon cottages, before that idea fell apart. 

Hint: actors/actresses from a famous movie

We even added to our ferry ride a little bit as the captain circled around a pod of dolphins that were swimming in the area, so we could get up close for a better view and photo opp. (As close as you're allowed.)

Ferry departs hourly all year, beginning at 10am, with half hour departures Mid-February thru Labor Day and weekends.  No pets allowed on the ferry. 

Fees:

• $18 per adult, round-trip
• $9 for children ages 6 to 12.
• Children 5 and younger ride free

Click here for a $1 off coupon

"Caladesi is famous for its beautiful, soft, white sandy beaches and clear, turquoise waters. There are several nature trails that allow visitors to explore its diverse ecosystems, including mangrove forests, coastal dunes, and maritime hammocks. You can rent kayaks and canoes to explore the park's mangrove tunnels and waterways. Paddling through the mangroves provides a unique perspective of the island's natural beauty. The island is known for its excellent shelling opportunities. You can find a wide variety of seashells along the shoreline, especially after high tide."

Once docked at Caladesi, we used the free bathrooms, filled up our water bottles at the water fountain, and bought a hot dog hahah. After that, we set out on a "hike" instead of opting for the beach access in close proximity. 

You can stop in the park rangers office, where they were happy to give us a run-down, and a paper map. Once we found the Caladesi Island Trail trailhead, pictured above, we jumped on the hiking trail, that leads you through coastal scrub. The Island "Hiking Trail" connects you to the "Hammock Loop" which encircles the old growth forests of Caladesi Island, about a 3-mile loop. However, we turned off at the "Beach Trail" which leads through the salt marshes and mangrove swamps, down to the beach.

Oh. My. Word.

This beach is exactly what I picture in all those movies where you get washed ashore and stranded on a deserted island. White sand. Palm trees everywhere. Huge seashells and sanddollars galore. Blue waters. And not a person in sight. 

We hung up our beach towel on a palm tree, and waded out into the water. Huge pelicans were diving for fish right near us, as we dug our toes into the sand to find some sand sanddollars.

This was one of my highlights from this trip. <3

Maybe Floridians are shaking their heads that we could be so amazed by something this "common" down there, but our Maryland and Delaware beaches do not compare to this. The murky water. The crowds of people. The broken up shells. 

Caladesi was so magical.

Half a Day in Goblin Valley State Park

 Goblin Valley State Park

Address: 18630 Goblin Valley Rd, Green River, UT 84525

State Park Website

This was our 4th stop of our Mighty 5 Roadtrip. 

We stopped here after we did a half day at Dead Horse Point State Park. It was a 1hr 45 min drive from Dead Horse, but it was on our way to our next 2 stops, 

Little Wild Horse & Bell Canyon & Capitol Reef National Park.

Hours of Operation: 6 am to 10 pm daily

Fee: $20; and no, the interagency pass (if you bought it) covers National Parks, but not State Parks.

Since we did Dead Horse first, we didn't get here until mid-day, so the line to get in is LONG. Once they reach capacity, its 1 car in = 1 car out.

Once you get past the entrance, keep to the L when the road forks, and park in the main parking lot.

Parking lot was CROWDED, but there really weren't a lot of ppl. So small parking, but lots of land to spread out.

Thank you to Earth Trekkers for helping us plan our trip. Their blogs are amazing and have so much helpful info. Highly rec!

After we parked, we took a glimpse down into the valley, via Observation Point.

 Hoodoos fill the area! Hoodoos, referred to locally as goblins, are "formations of mushroom-shaped rock pinnacles, some as tall as several yards." Kids were running around playing hide and seek-tag among the massive figures. It honestly did look like we were on a different planet. You can climb on them, making it lit the perfect playground for kids, but to be careful not to damage any of them.

We read there are 5 hiking trails in Goblin Valley State Park. The plan was to just explore the valleys, bc of what I read on Earth Trekkers, but Matt found a hike with an underground cave, so we HAD to do it! So very glad we did, as this was a big highlight of our trip.

The Goblin's Lair

Distance: 1.5 miles one way

Basically, instead of going down into the valleys, you stay on top and wrap around to the L, that leads you BEHIND the cliffs that create a back wall to the valleys. 

This is the Carmel Canyon loop that then splits off after 1/2 mile to cont on to the Goblin's Lair. We enjoyed our hike, as the scenery was so different from what we had seen so far on our trip.

 We had fun with some pics, until we arrived at the talllll rock scramble. 

The cave is not actually a "lair" but is a slot canyon that the entrance has been sealed by a rockfall years ago. We had to scramble up the steep slope over boulders, to get to the top entrance, and then repeat, scrambling down into the cave. 

The holes in the "ceiling" allowed light beams into the cave. 

We saw a guided tour of 4-5 people rappelling down into the cavern, which was something I would have loved to do, if I knew it was a thing. 

You can pay $4 at the visitors center for a permit to rappel, but if you aren't experienced, you can book a guided canyoneering tour at Get in the Wild Adventures.

On our hike in, we passed some kids that had just rappelled, and were hiking back. They told us that there is a small passageway inside the cave, that you can go into and explore even further. It leads you completely THROUGH the rock scramble, to get back out of the cave, instead of going OVER it. 

I was hype about this; I could get out of climbing the rock scramble up and down for a 2nd time? I'm game. But then they told us, the small passageway gets smaller and smaller. To the point where you have to take your backpack off, put it in front of you, and PUSH it through, as you army crawl behind it, in the TOTAL PITCH BLACK DARKNESS. No thank you. We left our headlamps in the car. But even with them, idk if I could do it. 

When we got back to the parking lot, we headed over to explore the Valleys.

The Three Valleys

When you descend the steps from Observation Point, you are in Valley 1. 

We trekked out to Valley 2.

and tried for so a longggg to get to Valley 3, bc we heard the hoodoos out here were the best. If I could do it again, I would skip trying to get to Valley 3. It was just a long time of the same landmarks, and no shade. We kept checking the map but weren't really making progress. With no other people in sight, and starting to get late, we headed back before we officially made it to Valley 3.

Next up: Little Wild Horse & Bell Canyon