Florida: Ortona South C.O.E. campground

[Deb&Sam D.]

Ortona South C.O.E. campground
Located near La Belle, FL. on the Caloosahatchee River
The C.O.E. operates the Ortona Lock and Dam for the Okeechobee Waterway at this location. The waterway extends (East-West) from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico.

We camped at Ortona last weekend with the Scamp. This was our first visit and we were impressed with the location, the scenery and the amenities of this well maintained park.

The weather was gorgeous all three days. Blue skies, no rain; with temps in the low 80's daytime and low 60's night-time. We camped waterfront and were able to watch the boat traffic and locks operation. We spotted many different types of wildlife from our campsite. The most notable were an eagle and a river otter. There were flocks of hummingbirds and many different types of butterflies around the flowering shrubs.

We will be returning to this park in the future.

Deb

[Ron Merritt]

There are actually two parks there, one on each side of the lock. The activity in the locks can be quite entertaining. I once watched a guy tie a brand new 90' Hatteras without any slack on the lines. When the water went down, his boat got pretty banged up!

I used to own a home just upriver from there. Nice this time of year, miserably hot and buggy in the summer!

[Jack L]

That looks like a wonderful campsite! Were they all that nice?

[Ron Merritt]

If you can't get in there, there is another on the river about a 1/2 mile upriver. It's a private campground - there are a good number of seasonal folks there.

[Deb&Sam D.]

@ Ron- thanks for adding your local view to the story. We spent some time on the observation decks watching the boats lock through.
@ Jack L. - Yes, all the campsites are that nice. There are two loops in the park. Sites on North Side of each loop are waterfront. Sites on South side of each loop have wide open view of cattle ranch land.
Deb

[clyle]

Nice fishing. And there are the resident "weezels" in the stream. Have stayed there several times for the 2 week limit. It's very nice, but a bit of a drive to anywhere if you need x-tra entertainment.

[Letitia]

Hi Deb
What site number was that?

[Deb&Sam D.]

Hi Letitia!
We were in the first loop, space 39. Site located across driveway from bath-house. Note that at night the outdoor pole lights @bath-house location do a VERY good job of illuminating the nearby area.
Deb