This park is named in honor of the Phipps Family descended from Henry Phipps Jr. (1839-1930), a businessman and philanthropist. Phipps grew up with Andrew Carnegie as a friend and neighbor. As an adult, he became Carnegie's business partner in the Carnegie Steel Company and as a result became very wealthy. The Phipps family donated to the town of Palm Beach one of the most significant gifts in county history, an ocean to lake property that is now known as Phipps Park. The Phipps family had established public parks in Palm Beach and in the New York area. Phipps Park on the St. Lucie Canal was made possible with a land trade involving Michael Phipps which resulted in the public recreation facility. Michael, born January 10, 1910, in England was also associated with the St. Lucie Training Track for thoroughbred horses on SR 76. He passed away on March 13, 1973. Phipps Park is part of the St. Lucie South Recreation Area which has a 55 acres of camping and conservation land on the Okeechobee Waterway. In 2006 FEMA installed 35 traditional primitive campsites, and 24, 20-amp electric sites during the 2006 hurricanes when the park was being used for FEMA housing. Campground renovations began in 2018 and continue to this day. There are now 99 RV sites and 19 adventure tent sites that come with canvas tents. In the park you will also find hiking trails, fishing pier, a new boat ramp and dock, showers, laundry facilities, picnic pavilions, and restrooms. This park is popular with anglers who enjoy fishing both fresh and salt water. Next to the camping area is the St. Lucie Lock and Dam built in 1941 and managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers .The lock was built for flood control replacing the natural outflow of the St. Lucie River from Lake Okeechobee. This waterway is now part of a cross-Florida navigational route connecting the Atlantic Ocean to Lake Okeechobee and on to the Gulf. On the north side of the lock, the one mile St. Lucie Nature Trail traverses in a one mile loop through a subtropical forest next to a primitive group campsite. There is also a volunteer manned visitor's center which provides information on the history of the lock and the local ecosystem. With the historic lock, fishing options, and hiking trails, Phipps Park is worth exploration even if you don't plan on staying overnight to camp. read more

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My in-laws come down from Ohio every year for 2 months. They stay at Phipps park and love it. They say it is relaxing, fishing is good. They were impressed with the new bathroom facilities. They would give it 5 stars. read more

Phipps Park is a campground operated by Martin County. It is located to the right of the dam and locks as you approach by road and is downstream from the dam and locks. Many (if not all) campsites have full electric and water hookups. There is a centrally located bathhouse with restrooms and showers. There is also a " rent a tent" area where campers without their own equipment can rent a tent - on a wooden platform and equipped with cots. This is a great way to camp (or to try camping) without investing in camping equipment. read more

Seems clean and well managed, but the road noise and extreme temperatures quickly transform overnight "adventure tent" camping into a dystopian hellscape. There is nothing the county can really do to improve this; this repurposed flood control area is nicely appointed and kept up; its just that camping here may not be a great idea. read more

Phipps Park - You may see some small animals. Ducks bunnies lizards or even a hawk. - Parks Near Me - Stuart, Florida

Beautiful park with campgrounds and boat launch. They just redid the boat launch so there are now two docks to launch from yeah! The views at sunset are beautiful. Many birds to watch. You can also take a look at our local locks. read more

Phipps Park - Parks Near Me - Stuart, Florida

What a great campsite! The facilities are clean and the staff is very friendly. All of the campsites are spacious and on the river bank! An Absolute fantastic County campground! read more

What a wonderful facility, right on the river. The RV spots are spacious and there are plenty of open grounds to enjoy your visit. Each site has a picnic table and a fire pit as well as hook ups and there are common areas with barbecue grills and corn hole. The campground supervisor, Brian, was super helpful and welcoming and readily available to answer questions when needed. Pets are welcome and the guests seem to be respectful about how they enjoy the property with their furry friends. We could not have had a better experience. read more

What an awesome, educational experience at this park. When you first pull up, you'll see a playground, and then lots of fences that look like top security. Well, what lies behind those fences is the next to last lock before you reach the Atlantic Ocean when traveling along the man-made Okeechobee waterway from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean. This waterway was made to provide storm drainage throughout the state, allow a way for boaters to pass through the middle of the state to get from one body of water to another, and as a way to keep water in the Okeechobee Lake. I grew up on the Treasure Coast of FL, but never knew this existed! There are quite a few locks along the waterway, which keeps the water dispersed and prevents it all from draining out into the ocean. Depending on the water level, the locks open to allow boats in. Sometimes they do this on a schedule, other times on demand. While I was there this weekend, I saw it open twice. On the western side is a lake/river that is 14 ft higher than the lake on the other side of the lock. The lock is a passageway that serves as a dam between the two waterways. There is a walkway over the lock, which allows you to go to the other part of the park, where there are picnic tables, an outhouse, several nature trails, and a fire ring. Apparently this is also a campground. You can watch the lock open from either side, but you are stuck on that side until it closes back up. When it's time for the lock to open (you will usually see boats waiting on the one side of it), an alarm will ring which will cause the fences in front of the walkway over the lock to close. Then, what looks like a dam will open slightly, and water will begin to pour in from the higher side to the inside of the lock (14 ft). This continues until the water is the same height, and then the lock opens all the way and the boats come inside. Then, they close the lock and the boats tie up, but allow themselves 14 ft of slack, as they will now drop to the level of the lake on the other side. The lock gate on the other side then opens slightly to allow the water to drain out, and when the water levels are even it opens, allowing the boats to pass, and then the gates close. Pretty neat to watch! The park itself is kind of an eyesore with all the gates and equipment, although there are pretty views overlooking the water if you venture far enough away. The trails are pretty, and there are lots of wildlife. read more

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I haven't been to this park since the 80's Reading the reviews, it seemed management was aggressive. Arriving early I was approached by staff. I found him very helpful. He went above and beyond. I had a great weekend and will tell my camping friends. I didn't get the mans name, but I hope he reads this and knows we appreciate the great stay. read more

We camped here in a tent for two nights. Bathrooms were large, clean and well functioning. There is some mild highway noise but all the other campers were very quiet making it a peaceful environment. read more

Have an absolutely marvelous time at this campground. Very courteous staff, beautiful view of the water and a very peaceful and quiet environment. We will be going back many times! read more

NOT WELCOMING AT ALL! We too were scared off by the sour guy on staff. When we arrived he drove up quickly with his truck lights flashing like he was going to arrest us for trespassing. When we asked for information about the park and available services, he started in on telling us about how he's the only one there and he has to do everything himself. Fortunately we didn't have a reservation, so we quickly departed the Phipps Park Campground. read more

We live nearby and occasionally like to take the kids camping here for fun. We also launch our boat from here if we spend the day on that side of the inlet. All around it's a good campground but... The guy who manages the place is aggressive and harassed us numerous times over meaningless things. I've camped for decades and I know etiquette and I know the rules. We are a quiet little family that was continually accosted by this guy who was playing angry cop. We also had family visiting with a large 5th wheel camper on a separate occasion and the park attendant also harassed them numerous times for no reason. Just angry harassment. I will never go there again since his aggressiveness almost led to me calling the police. I can't believe he is still employed there. read more

This campground is located just east of the lock on the St. Lucie River that runs from Lake Okeechobee to the inter coastal waterway and the Atlantic ocean and about a mile west of I 95. It is a Martin County Park with both RV sites ( some with electric and water but no sewage hookup ,there is a dump station ) and tent sites. Also a boat ramp at the east end of the park. For nonresidents the cost is $ 23 plus tax for electric and water and $ 17 for non electric per night. We made our reservation by phone and they did not tell us that the water and electric service was about 60 feet from where we had to park. Not all of the sites had that problem. Our site was along the river with plenty of room and a fire pit. The river is about 30 feet below the bank so it is not what I would call water front but you could watch the boats of all sizes traveling to and from the lock. For fishermen, there are lakes to fish in if you do not bring a boat for the river. The park opens at 6 am and the entrance gate is locked at 7:30 pm. Campers are given the gate lock combination which changes every Monday. We will go back. read more

SPOTLESS BATHROOMS! We tent camped here 2 nights in January. This is a great park for convenience to other things (we ubered to downtown Stuart for live music at Terra Fermata) but being convenient means it's not quiet. The highway noise if significant but we were just there to sleep while we paddled and did other stuff during the day so we didn't mind it at all. The bathroom building is large and the bathrooms were very nice and absolutely spotless!! It's right on the river and there is a small lake/pond in the park complete with gators. The sites are open without much tree cover so would be hot in summer but they were perfect for winter camping. Fairly good sized with a fire pit and picnic table. Quite a few long term RVers in the park in January. It's difficult to book ahead, there doesn't seem to be any way to call the park directly that I could find, so plan to arrive first to secure your site and get the gate code and then return after your adventures. read more