Last updated on June 19th, 2025 at 08:22 am
Faver-Dykes State Park is known, first and foremost, for superb kayaking along Pellicer Creek.
Jack and Nanci LaMarre are serious kayakers. Their primary paddle destinations in winter are the Florida Keys, but they take their time on their way south from their home in North Carolina to explore other Florida paddle trails.
On this visit, their agenda, such as it is, was an overnight camp and plans for two 10-mile paddles from the boat launch at Faver-Dykes.
Their first trip took them upstream to explore a feeder creek known as the Cracker Branch.
In the account on their web site, which they graciously agreed to share, the LaMarres said the first three miles were uninteresting with continuous bends through salt-marsh grass. (Sounds like a great place to fish!)
The creek narrowed with hardwood swamps on both sides, mixed with tropical vegetation and cypress trees, as tidal saltwater gave way to freshwater.
Although they encountered little wildlife, they did find “beautiful white swamp lilies scattered among the cypress knees.”
Their second paddle took them east, towards the Intracoastal Waterway, to explore the expansive Pellicer Creek Aquatic Preserve.
From the boat ramp, they paddled a mile through marsh grass before reaching a large bay. Following a shoreline thick with hardwoods and semi-tropical vegetation, they came to a scattering of small mangrove islands where they encountered bald eagles and dolphin.
Park visitors are generally enthusiastic about the wildlife, pointing to the abundance of water fowl and shore birds, as well as fish species black drum and redfish, sheepshead, spotted sea trout and snook.
River otters are a fairly common sight, and more than 100 species of birds can be spotted here during spring and fall migrations.
Faver-Dykes State Park has a kayak launch, but rangers no longer rent kayaks. Bring your own, or you can rent kayaks and stand-up paddle boards at Tropical Kayaks of Palm Coast, 15 Palm Coast Resort Blvd, Palm Coast. Phone for rates and availability: (386) 346-1593.
Fishing, hiking in Faver-Dykes State Park
Fishing is abundant along Pellicer Creek, which is essentially a breeding ground for gamefish that dominate nearby coastal waters. The creek is brackish and tidal, delivering both saltwater and freshwater species to anglers.
Catches at the fishing dock include redfish, black drum, sheepshead, spotted seatrout and snook. Freshwater species such as largemouth bass and bream can be found farther upstream, accessible only by small boat.
There are four nature trails for hiking. The first follows the creek. Look for the odd-shaped and scraggly Turkey Oaks that are common along this trail, which is near the picnic area. A second trail leads out of the campground into hardwood hammock.
The Pine Loop Trail is a triangle trail that connects to the longer Hiram Faver Trail. It has beautiful views of longleaf pines, saw palmettos, native shiny blueberries and many grasses/wildflowers. The Hiram Faver Trail is a 2.6-mile shaded trail with benches and ends at an overlook of the Pellicer Flats.
The park also has several miles of boundary and backwoods roads that are restricted but are generally open for hiking.
For the kids, there is a children’s playground near the picnic pavilions along Pellicer Creek.
Camping at Faver-Dykes State Park
The campground is deep in the woods at the end of the park road.
There are 30 campsites, all with water and electric hookups, an in-ground fire ring with a grill and a picnic table. A dump station is located within the campground.
While most sites are on hard ground, a couple have concrete pads designed for campers with disabilities. The rest rooms and (hot) showers are also ADA accessible.
All of the sites are well-shaded with thick undergrowth providing privacy, I found that most of the sites were quite small, narrow and not very deep. The maximum RV length is 30 feet, but only a handful can even accommodate that length.
On most sites, rolling out the RV awning would be a challenge, requiring precision maneuvers backing into the site on your first day. You definitely want to think ahead.
On the other hand, these sites are ideal for tent campers.
In March, a busy travel season for snowbirds along I-95, we found almost half of the campsites were vacant, strongly suggesting that this may not be a hard campground to book at any time of year.
Faver-Dykes State Park, 1000 Faver-Dykes Road, St. Augustine FL 32086. 30 RV or tent campsites in a shady hardwood hammock with natural buffers between most sites. All sites have water & electric, fire ring, grill and picnic table. ADA accessible hot showers and restrooms. Dump station. Day-use Admission: $5/vehicle. Camping fee: $18 plus $7 daily utility fee. (Utility fee does not apply to tents.) Pets OK and alcohol permitted at your campsite. Reservations up to 11 months in advance for Florida residents, 10 months in advance for non-residents at reserve.floridastateparks.org
Florida seniors over 65 eligible for 50% off base camping fee.
Things to do near Faver-Dykes State Park
If you know of kayak rentals near Faver-Dykes State Park, leave a comment below to share details with our readers.
We showed up in June 2025, planning to rent canoes and kayaks, to be told the park had stopped renting them in 2023. More timely information would be appreciated.
Sorry about that. We can’t revisit every park as often as we’d like to, but we really do our best to keep up with changes. In this case, even park’s own web site missed the boat: floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/faver-dykes-state-park/paddling-pellicer-creek. We promise to do better.
If I keep reading your articles I will have to reinvigorate my old camp gear. But at 72 crawling out of a cot at 3 am to pee is a challenge!