Sopchoppy sits in that little curve of Florida before the panhandle known as The Forgotten Coast. It’s a sleepy little town in the Apalachicola National Forest without much happening. Sometimes, though, that is exactly what you need. We made Sopchoppy our layover on our way from Crystal River to Santa Rosa Beach. Our previous and future stops were social and our calendar was full, so Sopchoppy would give us a week to ourselves to chill out and catch up on projects around the “house.”

The City

We heard that the city of Sopchoppy ran a nice, economical ($15!) city park on the river, so we pulled in to find a spot. There are full hookup sites along the road, but we opted to forgo sewer, so we could have a site along the river. Our windows afforded us a peaceful view looking out along the water and that’s worth giving up the convenience to me.

We settled in for some r & r and took a tour around town on our bikes. This didn’t take long as the town is only 1.5 miles square. We found a small grocery store for essentials, a street named Faith with three churches, a railroad Depot Museum, the historic gymnasium, and even a recording studio! There was a cute little shop, too, but a sign on the door said, “Gone Shopping” and a return date after our departure.

River Paddle

The Wakulla River is only 30 minutes away and we decided to rent a canoe and have another paddle in Florida. There had been quite the downpour during the week filling the river to capacity and turning it a muddy brown. The Wakulla River normally isn’t as clear as say Silver Springs, but it still has some translucency. Despite the murky water, we had a good time floating along seeing the wildlife and cypress trees. On our way back, we stopped at some roadside art made from old, rusted cars.

Sopchoppy Pizza Company

Back in town, we had to wait until the end of the week to visit the pizza parlor we saw on our bike ride. It was worth the wait! To be honest, we weren’t expecting much from a small town pizza shop in Florida, but it surprised us. The dough was made with local tupelo honey and blistered just right in the oven. It had that delicate balance of chewy and crispy that is a hallmark of a thin, hand-stretched pie. The toppings were fresh and full of flavor. This was good pizza! We also ordered a Greek salad that came with their house-made “Cody Bug’s Mo’ Betta Feta” dressing. Creamy with the zing of vinaigrette, the dressing complemented the greens and artichoke hearts perfectly.

Sloppychoppy, as Brandon likes to call it, turned out to be a great place for quiet relaxation, focused work time, and a bit of adventure. We may have to go back sometime for the Worm Gruntin’ Festival we heard about. A small town festival and worms, what’s not to like?