Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park — Attraction in River Ridge

I've been going to Starkey Park for years, and I've never had a bad experience there. Ever. I'm a bit surprised by a couple of the negative reviews, especially the one complaining about the mosquitos. This is a WILDERNESS PARK... not a theme park. Of course there are bugs. There are also snakes, wild boar, alligators, deer, turtles, and even MORE bugs. The beauty of this park is that it's NATURAL. Bring bug spray and a bandanna to cover your mouth and nose during really buggy times. And yes, there is a $2.00 parking fee. So what? How much did you spend on the way to the park, getting drinks and snacks? Sorry to be blunt, but it's fairer for those who use the park to pay than to tax everyone. The bike path is really well maintained, with shaded rest stops and water coolers spread out along the way (I do carry two bottles of water on my bike, as should everyone, just in case those before you have drunk all the water. The bike path connects to the Suncoast Trail, so it's really easy for me to get in a 25-30 mile ride after work. I always advise carrying a little more gear than most people do, like a first aid kit, poncho, bandanna, and clear glasses (to keep the bugs out of your eyes when the light is too dim for sunglasses). I pack a light dinner of fruit, bread, and peanut butter, and have a much more enjoyable evening than I would just sitting around watching TV. It's nature, and it's great... enjoy it!

UPDATE: Since I wrote my review, they have added off pavement bike trails (I haven't tried them yet) and numbered location markers on the bike trail, every hundred feet or so. In case of a bike accident or medical emergency, getting help quickly is important, and I'm glad to see these bright yellow markers...

Visited here for the first time on a late Saturday afternoon for a 2-hour hike. Very nice park with lots of bike and hiking trails. Although the park was pretty busy, we were able to have plenty of time to ourselves on the trails as we only ran into a few people. Parking seemed adequate and the restrooms were surprisingly clean and well-maintained.

The reason I took off a star is because it seems with this park, you need to know where to park and how to find the trail you want before you get there. Meaning that signs and maps in this place are lacking. There are no clear signs off the road showing where to park for hiking trails. The maps they have posted are not like what you would expect at a park; they look like hand drawn maps with no trail names or labels, only lines. We’ve been hiking extensively through state and national parks and am pretty good with directions, but the lack of available (good) maps makes it difficult to get around. More importantly, the hiking trail we were on had very little signage. We passed several intersections with no signs indicating what trail it was and missed a turn that we apparently were supposed to know to make. We found a few other people backtracking on the trail for the same reason. Now that I know that we can’t rely on the park to provide direction, I’ll make sure to have a better plan next time. All in all it’s a beautiful park work visiting, just find a map online before you go if you plan on hiking. I found that the bike trails were...

I went camping here for the first time, and rented "Group Camp Site" for 1 Day at the rate of $41.00. The website was easy to navigate, and the park staff were informative and friendly over the phone.

Once you book your reservation on the website, go to the park from hours or 2p to 5p to check in with park staff at the Kiosk. Kiosk is located across from Education Center. They will ask for your Photo ID, have you sign your name on a paper receipt, and provide you with the gate code.

This camping area is a 5 min walk or 1 min drive from the bathrooms, completely private from camp sites 1-10, and offers a hiking trail at the entrance.

The camp site features a huge fire pit with fire wood included, multiple grills, multiple picnic tables, multiple benches around fire pit, on a shady piece of land filled with beautiful curvy tall trees. This site is large enough to accomidate 8 Campers.

The ants and mosquitoes are minimal on this site. You may see deer, turtles, owls, squirrels, moths, salimanders, and armadillos. At night the crickets are singing along with the owls, and other birds.

I rated only 4 stars because the public restrooms need to be pressure washed and bleach mopped. Not sanitary for people especially children. It would not take long to clean these restrooms, and cleanliness could eailsy be maintained. Restrooms are well stocked with paper towels, and toilet paper which...