Fort King Campground nearly PERISHES in Forest Fire

It started out innocently enough.  Little chicas searching for sticks with their headlamps to add to a perfectly tame fire (from wood we had purchased at a nearby Winn Dixie).  Then....the (mad) scientist came out in Craig!!  He had to know the temperature of the fire.  And, as you will see in the film, his quick and active mind gave him the perfect means to quench the conflagration.

Our standardized results (rounded) gave us 1500 degrees Celsius as the melting point of our glass.  The aluminum cans were added to get a more accurate reading, as glass may have random production additives that may lower its melting point.  If the beer bottles were made of pure Quartz, it melts at approximately 1600 °C forming a tacky liquid that can be shaped into camping souvenirs.  In the course of melting, many silicon-oxygen bonds are broken.    This explains the chanting going on around the fire:  "Break bonds!  Breaks bonds!  BREAK all bonds!!!"  We wanted only pure elements to remain.  Aluminum cans melt at 1200 degrees Celsius.  All observers stated the cans vaporized in this fire.  Roll the film to see why.  We are probably all in jail as this post goes public, so enjoy...as we may never see you again.  It's now up to you to calculate the maximum temperature of this fire from the data presented.

Other possibly illegal activities:  Emptying O'Doul's bottles for the experiments and consuming inordinate amounts of KFC...with no vegetables or fruits to bind to the greasiness.  Dessert was Twinkies, soft licorice and Hostess Chocolate Cupcakes...all clearly forboden activities.



Illegal?  You judge:  Leading Craig-ors astray, Rolling in the Hay, at Ocali Country Days...hijacking a swamp transport vehicle...

....feeding fish Cocoa Puffs (below) in a protected area...

Fish really do jump out of the water after Cocoa Puffs

By popular request...here's the Rolling in the Hay clip.... 

Here’s the job EVERYONE wants!

Salt Springs has to be Florida’s best….very best! Campground. It’s well run by American Land & Leisure. Employees get a free site for as little as 5 hours of work a week. And you are paid minimum wage for your hours. There’s an activities barn with a full schedule of fun get-togethers and staff and campers who are living together as one caring family. Sweet! In fact, this fabulous park-like campground is so popular that every day of the week campers stop by asking how they can camp host here.

Office where we asked for a Job

We asked for a job ourselves, and there’s so many waiting in line to get in, we were given a zero percent chance of being hired. An “internship” is required, where you work through the summer to show you are the right stuff and deserve the job. We’ve lived through 14 Florida summers and you don’t know hot until you’ve experienced stifling, still, super-heated, 100% humidified air. If you aren’t used to it, it can even be life threatening. We went to the Forest Service Visitor Center and found out they need help there, so we blew the dust off of our application and tried to reach someone at the ranger station about getting a job.  We spent hours trying to get an email through to the volunteer coordinator (there's no internet service in The Ocala).  After two days we finally got through and received the following email with 4 generous offers:

Hi Eileen,
I found your application.  Chris mentioned to me that he felt you had great qualifications and would be a great addition to our volunteer program.  We may have a spot opening at the SSVC [the visitors' center link] if we can't work out some details with the current inbound volunteers but I don't know as yet.  We have 3 other sites open:  Delancy West, River Forest, and Big Scrub.

Campground host:  Delancy West is an OHV (Off Highway Vehicle) campground year round and also serves as a huntcamp from November thru January each year.  The host site is primitive and offers a landline and septic.  Water is brought to the host site by forest service employees or volunteers and a gasoline allowance is provided by the FS for a host provided generator.  This position is available right now.  Lake Delancy Link

Campground host - River Forest Recreation Area is a group site available by reservation only.  The camp ground is located on the St. Johns River.  The rec area is currently closed for use while we upgrade the the facilities but we like to have volunteer on hand to help keep up with maintenance and provide security.  This position is available right now.  The host site is full hook up.  River Forest Link

Recreation maintenance - Big Scrub Recreation area is and OHV campground year round.  The majority of the sites are available by reservations with a few sites remaining on a first come first serve basis.  Big Scrub has approximately 60 campsites, 3 full hookup host sites and 2 new (3 yrs old) bathhouses.  This position is available January 1- April 15.  The available position is a recreation maintenance position; duties include assisting with trash removal, bathrooms, mowing, etc.  Big Scrub Link

PAYING JOBS in Ocala National Forest

Yep…you can get a couple of thousand a month plus a free site and utilities. We met the Area Managers for the Alexander Springs area of the Ocala. What a nice setup! All of the hosts at Alexander Springs have a large concrete pad with a patio and new picnic table with FHU. The managers have a company truck and more electric carts than I knew existed.

Loop Trail around Springs

John Schultz (pictured with his cart) has a home “in town” and loves working in the park…even though he doesn’t take advantage of a free site. He gets between 30 to 40 hours a week (minimum wage) but can’t get enough of his “office”. It is perfectly decorated with palms, a gorgeous spring, and live turtles and gators. His favorite job is chasing black bears out of the park and removing rattle snakes and coral snakes.

Our Camp Mangers shared some of their Grief: Corporate does not seem to see the maintenance needs of a semi-tropical park and therefore does not see the need to provide adequate funds to meet the Forest Service contract requirements. Basically…the damage from mold, mildew, moisture and intense UV radiation deplete the budget before the year is over. These huge costs are ever present, even if no campers are present. The managers end up paying for things they must have to keep the park running out of their own pockets.

Then there are the “interesting” campers you can meet in the south….like the tenting mom who turned her drunk teenagers loose on the campground. When a host went to her tent to ask her to rope them in, she came out bare-breasted and berated the host with, “You stop staring at me.” He asked her to put some clothes on and went for backup. The manager got the job of sending them packing. They were arrested within a half mile of the park for drunk driving and taken to jail.  The frustrating part of confrontations with drinking campers is their belligerent claims that the host is prejudice. Most campers in this park are (to some degree) Hispanic, Cuban, or black. Happily, Bob and I were raised to realize we are all brothers and sisters…yes, equals…and “prejudice” was not even in our vocabulary. So it’s offensive to us when people on either side of the controversy start firing their “prejudice pistols”. The crux of the matter has nothing to do with color, it has to do with breaking the rules. Drinking in a public area is not allowed in the parks. And public intoxication is not only illegal, it’s insensitive to those wanting to focus on natural beauty and the sounds of wildlife. Belching, puking and uproarious communications mess with this picture.

Our manager is currently being sued for VERBAL ASSAULT because he told a woman she needed to clean up her camp. She had ignored all signs, literature and even the big billboard at the entrance warning campers they will be sharing the park with BEARS. This woman had left her garbage and food all about her camp, and of course the bear made a party of eating and playing with the goodies. Then her disregard of the rules somehow translated in her mind to: “Hey! I have the right to sue the manager for instructing me to clean up the ______ mess!”

Bob had to jump in with his story from earlier this year. A tenting camper set up on a busy weekend without paying for his site first. Our son was visiting our campground from Afghanistan…just for the day. Bob sold the campsite to someone who discovered the non-paying tenter…who flew into a rage when he had to move off the site. He followed Bob around for the rest of the afternoon threatening law suits. Bob showed him the signs at the entrance that said you had to pay before setting up, but he would not take personal responsibility. He became maniacal. Bob finally said, “Look, I’ve been patient with you so far. But you are giving me no reason to work with you.” He finally quieted down as Bob found another spot he could set up his tent. Then Bob was in trouble for not spending the time he should with our visiting son.

The story that tops them all for me is the Florida Federal Court Judge who was caught stealing wheels used to transport the campground canoes. When confronted by the campground manager, she was hugely offended and lashed out with: “I’ll have your job!” The manager laughed at that one and said it was hers. 
However, the manager did not laugh at the camper who was toting a rifle on his shoulder in camp.  Mr. Camper said it was his legal right, as he was going hunting.  He was absolutely correct.  Anyone can carry a weapon, right out in the open, in the campground.

On the up side: Almost every camper is a delight.   These happy campers are patiently waiting for John to bring them the perfect canoe for the Alexander Springs Run.  But sometimes you get one at just the wrong time who bothers you enough to give you some unforgettable memories.

Job Offers Galore!



Ocala National Forest called us again after we turned down Shanty Lake and offered us a very nice position at Doe Lake Group Site.  We'd just have to watch over one site that was mostly used by equestrian clubs.  I was in heaven!  I love horses so much that I thought I was one growing up.  Pictures are at Doe Lake Description   But then it got confusing.  We got offers to camp host at Gold Head Branch State Park, Juniper Springs with Recreation Resource Management of America (a great company to work for; apply at RRMofA Employment Application or http://rrmofa.com/ ) then four offers in one day from the Forest Service.  Next Jolene called from Manatee Springs State Park with an offer to run the Ranger Station a few days a week in return for a spot with hookups.  We spent a few day at this remarkable state park in January 2010, so that was completely exciting.  And church was an easy bike ride into Chiefland, which was an important feature.  Then on September 23, 2011, we got an email from a ranger in the Everglades offering us the job at the Nike Missile site.  But the job didn't start until December.  (We should have asked, because we thought it started October 1st, like all of the other offers we'd received.)  We also got an offer from Bahia Honda State Park on this same day.  I told Bob to turn it down:  too hot and too buggy!  Besides, I'd miss the family reunion that was planned for October 8th.  He seemed devastated...saying that would be his dream job of all time.


Manatee Springs, complete with Manatees....of course

Here's a sample email we received:  The Ocala National Forest has immediate openings for volunteer campground hosts at the following campgrounds:   Delancy West - available now - April!, Hopkins Prairie - available October 15 - April 15



Applying to American Land and Leisure

Silver Glen Springs, Florida

Our dream job for the winter was to continue with our present company, American Land & Leisure.  We loved the management and how well we'd been treated.  We called the Area Managers, Ken and Judy, in the only spot AL&L manages in Florida:  Ocala National Forest.  We learned we could probably work at a day-use area to cover the existing host when she needed time off.  We were excited!  Silver Glen is not just a beautiful spring, but a lovely boating and recreation area.  But the number of visitors from up north (snowbirds) had dwindled to the point that the company actually cut back on employees this season...and we were on our own to find a job in Florida.  Here we go...off into the unknown.  If you want to check AL&L's current openings in the U.S. just click here:  Current Job Openings  The application is simple to fill out.  When we turned ours in, I added a letter of recommendation from our former employers...which was not requested, but I think it helped.  Click here to see the Application for Employment  This company does supply everything you need to do your job, including some type of vehicle, nice shirts, caps, jackets, and work gloves.  You are even paid minimum wage for your hours. 

Talk the Talk and Walk the Walk

Tell everyone who will listen to you that you are interested in camp hosting. We decided to visit as many state parks and national forest campgrounds as we could while driving up the coast. At Pismo Beach everyone in the shops, the streets and the beach knew we were interested in campground management.

How to be a Camp Host

First, talk with any and all camp hosts you can contact who already work in areas you are interested in. I've never found one who didn't love the job...and who wasn't happy to pass on any info that might be helpful to you. It was only last year that I ever talked with a camp host, after camping all of my life. I thought they were aloof and dictatorial...essentially all about very strict camping rules. Wrong. This past year our contacts were not only friendly, but frank...and encouraging: "Do it! Be a camp host; you'll love it!"

Second, it's almost mandatory that you be married. Management companies hire couples. So be sure you and your spouse can get along well (I mean really well) in a confined space...and you have no problems working as a team. It doesn't work out well if one does most or all of the work.

Thirdly, look for a small assignment at first with 30 or fewer hours a week, if you can. It would be sad if you took a long assignment...say 4 or more months, with heavy responsibilities...and then realized hosting was not for you.

You can fill out applications for groups such as CampHost.org, Workamper, etc., and even send a resume...but usually nothing happens. It's best to go right to the campground you are interested in, check it out and start asking questions. If it's a place you want to be, ask if they need any help. We got our first job when a camp host asked us why we were parking our RV in a group tent area in Jordan Pines, Big Cottonwood Canyon near Salt Lake City. Our son had invited us to join his family on a church group outing, and we guessed that RVs weren't allowed...but we came along anyway. The host who questioned our being there was happy to answer our questions about his job. And when we asked how to get a hosting job (not seriously) he said he was the area manager and happened to have an opening at Albion Basin in the next canyon, near the Alta Ski Resort. We were curious enough to ask for an application, filled it out on the spot, and we were hired (with no interview). How could it be so easy? We soon got a cool ranger-like uniform, name badge and sturdy work gloves and were all set to go.