Reserve Alberta Camping is now up for the 2013 season

[Kritafo]

https://reserve.albertaparks.ca/public/reservation/findCampsite.htm

From the CTV news site.

It’s never too early to start planning for your summer family vacation getaway from Calgary, and Alberta Parks is making it easier than ever.
Starting Tuesday, individual campsites in the province’s provincial parks can be booked online.
Reservations can be made up to 90 days before your arrival and they can also be made over the phone for those people who aren’t able to get online.
RELATED LINKS
Reserve A Campsite
The reservations open about a week after group reservations were made available.
Bookings can be made on the Alberta Parks website.


Read more: http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/camping-reservations-open-online-1.1162384#ixzz2LM4mGsM0

[heavyfuel]

I will never understand this. Getting a camping spot is such a shit show, seems to me more peace and quiet can be found by just staying in town on summer long weekends.

[spikerS]

I am not that big on it either, the whole reservation thing.

I miss the days where it was first come first serve. The whole reservation thing in theory should have made it easier, but I can't count the number of times now I have seen a site reserved, and then sit empty for the weekend and people wanting to camp, but can't, then they remove the reserved sign, and it is too late for people wanting to camp that weekend.

additionally, private campgrounds are getting worse too. Many of them are removing their first come sites, and giving them to seasonal campers, thus, forcing the weekender out.

/rant

It was a good idea in theory, but in practice, I don't like it much.

[ExtraSlow]

opens at 9AM, as discussed in several camping threads.

Also, I NEVER camp anywhere near town on a long weekend. I'll either get out to one of the backroad campsites at least three hours of town, or more often, stay in town and do my camping on regular weekends.

[sputnik]

Camping in Alberta campgrounds is terrible.

[ExtraSlow]

ha, looks like the website has crashed. Like everything else our government touches, this system sucks.

[C_Dave45]

Ha!! It crashed last year too. I had my calendar alarm set months ago for today's opening. But I can't use it. The loop I like is first come first serve. Everytime I make a res, I end up canceling it because of change in plans.
I don't even bother with long weekends unless it's part of a two week stay.

[Perfect Dark]

Thank god I don't have to go through this shitstorm any more...hope you all get some decent sites though!

[ExtraSlow]

ha, just noticed that it's a max 90 days in the future. Since I was looking for mid-July, I guess I'll have to wait till April.
Reading the Rules > me.

[Dave P]

Permanent site at Kook. So worth it mwhaha.

[jaylo]

Used to camp at Tunnel Mountain during May long weekend but 3 seasons in a row it was a shit show full of high school kids fucking and partying loud all the way until 11:30-12am

[speedog]

Don't need it - stumbled upon a small public campsite about 40-45 minutes from the north end of Calgary.

Well water, outhouses, $5 or $10 a night (can't remember), fire pits and a stocked (rainbow) and aerated lake just a stone's throw from your camp site (tenting sites are even closer) and only about an eighth of a mile of gravel road to drive on to the entrance (paved the rest of the way back to Calgary). Not in the mountains or foothills but does have big cottonwoods and caraganas for shade and is quiet as humanly imaginable - actually can't believe I've lived in Calgary for almost 34 years and didn't stumble upon this little gem decades earlier.

No hook-ups of any kind and cell phone service is iffy at least for our Rogers phones. All sizes of trailers/rigs easily accommodated on several sides of the lake with tenters getting one end all to themselves.

Had tons of fun fishing there last summer/fall and actually couldn't care if we caught any fish because it is such a relaxing place to stay.

The following picture could be a giveaway (not my pic)...

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5040260/pics/fishing002.jpg

[C_Dave45]

Arrgggghhhh....fuckin Alberta Parks went and changed Elkwood AGAIN this year, without any notification on their website at all.
Fuck that annoys me. Every year they change the rules.

[ExtraSlow]

What's new at Elkwood? That's one of my favourite spots.

[SOAB]

i am looking for suggestions for a campground that is about 1 hour or less from Calgary for my shakedown trip with my new trailer. having power is a must though.

ideas are welcome. :)

[C_Dave45]

Originally posted by ExtraSlow
What's new at Elkwood? That's one of my favourite spots.
Well last year it was only Loop "A" that was reservable for the powered sites. Loop B was entirely FCFS. Which made it fairly easy to find a campsite. After Labour Day, Loop B, without notice to anyone, all of sudden went to only the first 16 campsites as FCFS...the rest were all reserves. So we headed up after the long weekend and couldn't find a spot, as everything had been booked online, and the 16 FCFS sites were snapped up quickly.

This year, it looks like they've kept that set up. Only the first 16 sites of Loop B are FCFS. Gonna make finding a campsite difficult if you don't reserve.

They did the same thing with Boulton. The first two years, the entire Campground went to FCFS after Labour Day. Last year, they changed it to all year long reservables.

[ExtraSlow]

I'm thinking I may spend a week down at Livingstone falls this summer.

[Kavy]

I only booked one weekend so far, I really hate camping reservations but I hate driving and not finding a site much more.

[Khyron]

Yep the risk of driving out and finding NO spots is too great. I'd rather book 3 sites and only use one.

There should be a forfeit time though where they become fcfs.

Before, at a lot of fcfs places, you had to be out by Wed to stand a chance. So it became a chore of drive out with the car and pitch a tent and a couple of chairs and go back home (and pay for the nights anyway).

Course until they get more camp spots the problem is never going away. Used to be able to drive anywhere and find spots but not anymore. Last long weekend we ended up camping in the trailer in our backyard - but at least we have a fire pit.

[Supa Dexta]

Whats the best plan of attack for something like this? I want to make a booking for a camp ground elsewhere, that hasn't opened booking yet.. The morning of, should I have a few windows opened with a few chosen sites picked, and then when its hits 9am or whatever, click submit on them all?

I know its going to be a shit show trying to grab one of the sites I want, so I really want to increase my chances of landing one..

(first window - you choose site, length, dates and number of people, and then there is a submit button at the bottom.. I have no idea what the second window gets you, if it locks a site for you, to fill out billing info or what?)

[Supa Dexta]

Bump, anyone?

[IggyB]

http://www.redrocksawmills.com/

[C_Dave45]

Originally posted by Supa Dexta
Whats the best plan of attack for something like this? I want to make a booking for a camp ground elsewhere, that hasn't opened booking yet.. The morning of, should I have a few windows opened with a few chosen sites picked, and then when its hits 9am or whatever, click submit on them all?

I know its going to be a shit show trying to grab one of the sites I want, so I really want to increase my chances of landing one..

(first window - you choose site, length, dates and number of people, and then there is a submit button at the bottom.. I have no idea what the second window gets you, if it locks a site for you, to fill out billing info or what?)

It's not too bad now. The "90 day" refreshes everyday at 9:00 am. So today, for example. At 9:00 am you could book up to June 29 arrival and up to 16 days later for departure. There's a few power/water sites in Kananaskis. You'll see that all day those sites will probably sit free.

I use the Date calculator (http://www.timeanddate.com/date/dateadd.html) to determine what is my arrival date and then make an alarm in my phone for 90 days before that.

[nonofyobiz]

That looks nice, have you been there before? I'm curious how full it gets on the weekends.


Originally posted by ExtraSlow
I'm thinking I may spend a week down at Livingstone falls this summer.

[C_Dave45]

Originally posted by nonofyobiz
That looks nice, have you been there before? I'm curious how full it gets on the weekends.



I would imagine it fills up pretty fast. Not far from the city, no reservations, and only 22 sites. You would probably have to head out Thursday night. For a long weekend, I wouldn't even attempt it.

Here's some pics of the area:

http://forums.beyond.ca/st2/scouting-out-new-camping-areas/showthread.php?s=&threadid=341154

[ExtraSlow]

I have been only once, but it was great. We rolled in there on a non-long weekend around 4:00 Friday, and it was maybe half full. It was probably 90% full by Saturday morning.

Good spots for the kiddies to play in the river, apparently good fishing, although I didn't get any bites. Not super far. Just have to do a bit of gravel driving to get there, and realize there are no hookups.

[ExtraSlow]

For Long weekends, I generally won't camp anywhere less than three hours from town, and I prefer to leave town Friday before noon. With the kiddies, I actually find I prefer to stay home on long weekends. I get a lot of vacation days, so it's not that tough to make my own long weekend anytime.

My Favorite spot for busy weekends is Fenwick Creek out near Canal Flats. It's a free an mostly unmaintained site. I was there on the Canada Day weekend once, and there was only one other group camping, and we only saw ten vehicles drive past the entire weekend. It's about three hours on pavement, then another hour on gravel. I wouldn't recommend taking most trailers or motorhomes in there. It's 2wd accessible, but some years that's a stretch. I've been in several times in small cars, but it's a lot less stressful in a truck or SUV. Some of the other sites are on more main roads, and are fully accessible by any type of rig.
BC has recently improved the web information available on these recreation sites. Lots of them are free, and if you don't mind the long drive from Cow-town, pretty awesome.
BC Sites and Trails (http://www.sitesandtrailsbc.ca/)

[ExtraSlow]

And for anyone looking for Canada day, reservations for that open in just a few days.

[C_Dave45]

Originally posted by ExtraSlow
And for anyone looking for Canada day, reservations for that open in just a few days.

Isn't that the June 29-July 1 weekend?
That just opened up this morning.

[Supa Dexta]

Im booking elsewhere in Canada. I was just curious how the govt sites work and what the best plan is to snag a spot if you know they are going to be slammed on opening booking morning.

[ExtraSlow]

Originally posted by C_Dave45


Isn't that the June 29-July 1 weekend?
That just opened up this morning.
wow. I fail at using a calendar. You are correct. I just checked, and very few sites left for that weekend (searched for 41 foot plus sites)

[Supa Dexta]

Got my spot! In what looks to be one of the best spots in the park from google satellite.

It kinda frigged me up, as the booking opened at 8am, I had my window all filled out to hit submit - AND THEN IT NEEDED ME TO REGISTER WITH PARKS CANADA! lol

So I typed that up as fast as I could and still got my spot.. All spots were gone in under 10mins though.. Stoked!