Historic Blakeley State Park — Attraction in Spanish Fort

Full review - This is a neat place, but plan carefully. Tons of history and trails. While labeled a state park, it gets no state funding & I think that's evident. Good signage, park map could be better, but it's functional. Friendly and helpful staff. I think the best way to explore it would be by horseback, after that mountain bike or Ebike - just expect rutted roads. You can drive most places too, but expect rough roads. The main road is paved to a point but it turns gravel, sand/clay along the way with large ruts from washouts possible.

RV Camping - this is a RV campground "in the rough." Sites are wooded, most are well shaded, and private. However, better have the gear to get to your site and out again, especially if it rains. Some sites have steep gravel/clay that can wash out. Some don't and are great, but you don't really get to choose. Best have a lot of leveling gear too - suitable for soft clay/sand possibly mixed with some gravel. Also, there is no full bathhouse in RV section so best be sure all your plumbing works 110%. Sewer input pipes vary by height so be prepared for that also. It's quite the hike to a vault toilet from most sites, though some sites are reasonably close. You can't choose your site, though they will work with you if any others are available. It's just a gamble. You will have to drive to showers in tent camp area if you need them.

Tent camping - Delta Improved section is the best and close to full bath house. It's also close to some of the historical stuff. Bartram section has a vault toilet and a short walk to the sites. Harper has some sites close to full bath house, most are not close to any bathroom & only have table and fire ring.

You will need at least a day to explore everything - waterfront boardwalks, battlefield, ghost town of Blakeley- if you don't include any trails or boat tours. There are miles of multi use trails. The boat tours currently depart from Mobile convention center but will return to Blakely waterfront when it is renovated. Grant has been awarded for that and work should start soon. They run about 30 different types of boat tours. We did one of the Mobile Port and enjoyed it. Additional fees and reservations...

My friend and I like to ride our bicycles, but we are just "townie" riders. We decided to visit Blakeley because of their bike trails, and, because we wanted an opportunity to ride for a few days, we rented one of their cabins. That was our reason for visiting the state park.

Here are the good things we enjoyed about our stay. Everyone there was very nice to us. We talked with Robin, Yvette, Joel, and Richard. The staff there was quite helpful. The cabins are new and nice. The beds were comfy, the towels were soft, the living room furniture was comfortable, the kitchen was well stocked with utensils and cookery, and the large deck with a picnic table was quite inviting. The park is absolutely beautiful. So much to see! It's only 3 miles from Spanish Fort, so there was an opportunity to go to town quickly if you forgot anything.

Here are some things that were a little surprising, but not a big issue. The bike trails are really for mountain bikes only. However, there are enough paved and hard packed dirt trails for anyone who is just wanting to go pedal around the park. We had a great time on our bikes. The cabin had two bedrooms and a loft. However, the bunk bed room downstairs is right off the larger bedroom with a queen bed. The loft only has cots, not true beds. The only bathroom is downstairs, and you have to go through both bedrooms to get to it. No doors separate the rooms. My friend listens to music at night, and I snore, so it was not ideal, but we dealt with it.

Overall, this park is absolutely a wonderful place to visit for some history, hike a trail (beware of feral hogs because we saw a huge one on the Champion Trail), or ride your bikes. I really enjoyed my trip to Blakeley, and I will be going back!

**I posted this same review on...

ADV Motorcycle Hammock Camper: For me, Blakeley State Park (which isn't actually a State Park) was a chance find after I arrived at another State Park in Mobile, AL - to find it full. Blakeley doesn't accept walk in campers; you must register using their website. After the very kind lady at the gate got past the fact that I was riding a motorcycle, the check-in experience was dripping with southern hospitality. . The primitive campsites were...primitive. Don't expect any amenities at (or close to) the sites, and you can expect to walk a good ways to the bath house, which was clean, warm and well maintained.

There is ample windfall firewood on the grounds, but much of it is rotten and wet. You can buy firewood at the gate, but the bundle I was given proved to burn very slowly (great for cooking, but not for that classic campfire atmosphere).

The site I was given (D17) was spacious and well maintained. There were plenty of hammock friendly trees to choose from and plenty of level ground for a large tent (if I had one). What I didn't realize at first was that the campground is located on the old battle ground itself, right between the Confederate and Union skirmish lines. The ghosts of Fort Blakeley where thankfully rather quiet while I was there.

Blakeley is conveniently close to Mobile, and just a short ride from several fantastic seafood restaurants as well as the USS Alabama maritime and aviation museum (which is well worth a visit). The access given to visitors, deep within the ship, is remarkable.

If you are planning a trip through Mobile, I highly recommend you (visit or) stay within the grounds at...