14th Annual South Florida Gathering 2025 (12/12-12/14 2025)

[JckDanls 07]

OMG... Where do you start...

I'll start with Jeff ( TulsaJeff ) .. If not for Jeff starting the forums none of this would have been possible... Jeff, Thanks for creating the best forums on the internet and a place where anybody and everybody can come and find the most trustworthy information out there...

I also need to give a shout out to our administrators Jerry ( pineywoods ) and Brian ( bmudd14474 )... They made a surprise visit to the Gathering and we all welcomed them by choosing them to be our judges in the Friendly rib competition on Saturday night (which I had to back out of, more on that later)... Thanks for coming to our event you guys that was awesome...

Thanks to Doug ( dougmays ) and Al ( SmokinAl ) for being the brainchild and starting the S. Fl. Gathering 15 years ago... I was just a lurker back when they started organizing the 1st gathering so I joined the forums and asked if I could attend the inaugural one.. Without hesitation they both said well of course you can... Anybody, whether you are a lurker or a member is invited.. So they certainly deserve a big shout out.. Thanks guys...

more to come later...

 

[pineywoods]

Karen and I had a good time was nice to catch up with some old friends and meet some new ones.

 

[olivia11]

The sites are spaced out and it would take a couple of years to figure out the better sites to book so we are together. Lake Louisa is a newer campground and laid out nice for RVs and those wanting privacy from the neighbors.
One of the Rangers knew HH and she didn't offer any alternatives when I mentioned we wanted close and easy cross site access.

Bottom line, I would love to camp there solo, but it wouldn't work for our communal system.


I talked with a couple that are camping there. They are familiar with HH and also didn't have an alternative.
They heard the HH campground renovation is for electrical upgrade AND adding sewage hookups. Hold your ... uh ... breath John. You may get your wish.

Sounds like Lake Louisa is great for space and privacy, but not ideal for the close‑together, communal setup you’re used to.
Definitely a place I’d enjoy solo too, but not the best fit for group camping.

 

[olivia11]

Karen and I had a good time was nice to catch up with some old friends and meet some new ones.

Sounds like a great time always good catching up with old friends and making new ones. Glad you and Karen enjoyed it

 

[dougmays]

Wow, what a great gathering! I think the majority of us agree that we do not want to go back to Hardee Alcatraz for another gathering but other then a pain in the @$$ park ranger, what a good time and scenic park!

I think this was one of our high turnout events we've had! Thank you to Jerry and Brian for making the trip down and judging, and i'm not just saying that because i won (after 12 years of losing) haha. Fierce competition, with 9-10 participants, and some great looking ribs!

All the food was great, from day time snacking to Friday and Saturday night dinners.

I didnt get a lot of pictures, but attaching the ones i took :)

Already looking forward to next ye

ar, ill see if i can get any information from Highland Hammock on reopening plans

 

[jaxgatorz]

Looks like an awesome time !!

 

[JckDanls 07]

What a great time that was... Seeing old friends, meeting new ones... And the food, OMG... We had 20 feet of tables lined up with food down both sides (hope there's pictures)... Both Friday and Saturday night... As for the friendly rib comp. I missed the turn in time as my ribs weren't done yet... But once they were done I believe I would have won (but I'm biased)....

I've always said my goal is to find something I don't like... To this day I still have not accomplished that goal...

Since the campground is only about 45 minutes away from home home I talked a lot of my friends into coming and joining us... They all said they had a blast and will come again next year...

Speaking of the campgrounds... I was really disappointed and will not return there again... The big draw to the place, which we have been to many of times before, Is/was the golf cart trails in the woods... Miles of them... Well, When the land was donated to the county to make it a park it was with the stipulation that all the wooded areas be deemed conservation areas... Somewhere along the line that was not put into effect and there was never any kind of authority after hours... So they had some idiots that weren't drinking responsibly (drunk) and rolled thier UTV on the trails and took a bunch of pictures and plastered them all over social media... Well the county commissioners got wind of it and reported it to DEP... So DEP sent two people out to investigate... This is when the conservation deal came to light... So they closed ALL the trails to any motorized vehicles... THAT SUCKS... Don't get me wrong, it's a really nice campground... So they then hired a live in ranger to police the area 24 hours... What a DICK he was... He did nothing put hounded us all weekend... Even got on me for going over the 10 mph speed limit on a golf cart... He asked me if the cart has a speedometer... Of course not, it's a frick'n golf cart... I said it probably goes about 10 mph... He said he didn't think so as he clocked me going all of 15 mph... WTF... So needless to say as Doug stated above, We won't be going back there again...

Anyways, We still had a great time, good food, and awesome fellowship... Even got to see some of the meteor showers Sat. night...

Sorry about the long post but I just wanted to vent/rant about the total turn around the campground has done...

 

[Fueling Around]

What a great time that was... Seeing old friends, meeting new ones... And the food, OMG... We had 20 feet of tables lined up with food down both sides (hope there's pictures)... Both Friday and Saturday night...
...

Here's the Friday spread.



After that I failed in photos. No cut and serve shots of my pastrami style and brisket cooked tri-tips that were a big hit. I had to scramble to get samples for Brian on Saturday

 

[Fueling Around]

After the Friday food coma there is still the bigger event on Saturday with 9 racks of ribs in the competition for our honored judges.


Brian ( bmudd14474 ) and Jerry ( pineywoods ) judging their way through 9 racks
Doug ( dougmays ) was the winner this year.


I didn't get any photos of the spread on Saturday. It was much larger than the Friday spread (as if we needed more food) for the same number of people.
Well, Ranger Bob was really sucking up to me for an invite.
I was busy slicing the traditional tri-tip that went on the tractor reverse flow way too early but rested nicely and plated after the eaters got into the ribs. Luckily someone added some Hawaiian sweet rolls so the late night eaters combined the two for a "I need some food after drinking snack."
Last photo is Charlyn (Jeramy's widow) in the blue shirt
This year was a tribute to Jeramy (chefjarjar) losing his battle with cancer and Rob (Charlotte's son) to systemic failure. Both were long time attendees to the gathering.

 

[fxsales1959]

After the Friday food coma there is still the bigger event on Saturday with 9 racks of ribs in the competition for our honored judges.
View attachment 728534
View attachment 728535
Brian ( bmudd14474 ) and Jerry ( pineywoods ) judging their way through 9 racks
Doug ( dougmays ) was the winner this year.
View attachment 728536
View attachment 728537
I didn't get any photos of the spread on Saturday. It was much larger than the Friday spread (as if we needed more food) for the same number of people.
Well, Ranger Bob was really sucking up to me for an invite.
I was busy slicing the traditional tri-tip that went on the tractor reverse flow way too early but rested nicely and plated after the eaters got into the ribs. Luckily someone added some Hawaiian sweet rolls so the late night eaters combined the two for a "I need some food after drinking snack."
Last photo is Charlyn (Jeramy's widow) in the blue shirt
This year was a tribute to Jeramy (chefjarjar) losing his battle with cancer and Rob (Charlotte's son) to systemic failure. Both were long time attendees to the gathering.

If you could remind the Missus to send Linda her candy recipe we would really appreciate it.