For the next two weeks I will be at WP Franklin Park

I checked into WP Franklin Corp of Engineers Campground on an island at a lock on the Caloosahatchee River by noon on Saturday.

Here is an aerial view, this is the 3rd time I got campsite #8.

The campground is northeast of Fort Myers in a quiet neighborhood.

For paddlers or fisherman there is a lot to do. You can fish from the dam area, launch a boat from the boat ramp upstream into fresh water or go downstream through the lock and fish in salt water.

For paddlers, about a mile down stream, you can paddle up the narrow Telegraph Creek about 3 miles , beyond that it is very narrow and often blocked by fallen trees.

I expected to see hurricane damage this year but everything looked normal, except I saw no large alligators but many more smaller ones.

There were plenty of birds and a few turtles.

Paddlers can also paddle about 1-1/2 mi upstream from our campground and head south up Hickey Creek, a wider and deeper creek, to a park with a landing and a picnic area and pavilion. You can continue upstream another mile or so but it narrows and you will again be blocked by fallen trees.

For bicyclists you can bike around the nearby neigborhood streets which will require short rides down River Rd which has no bike lanes but light traffic. I try to wait for no traffic and sprint to the next street. It is not hard to get in a 8 to 10 mile trip. There is a regional park 2 miles down River Rd that has mountain bike trails. If you have a car you can drive 10 miles over to Babcock Ranch which has miles of paved bike trails through this newer growing planned community.

You can also get some pretty sunrise or sunset pictures from your campsite.