Origin Stories: Campsites

I’ve been looking through some old photos…I have so many great memories of my trips. My coming-soon camper top will be the beginning of big changes to how I camp. Up to now I’ve been a classic tent camper.

Throughout the years I’ve often documented my campsites with photos. In many cases I have interesting stories from the campgrounds that don’t always get told….but are a big part of the experience. I haven’t taken photos of every campsite, but I do have a good majority of them. It’s been long enough that I’m blown away by the length and breadth of my experiences.

So I thought I’d share some of my campsite photos and their stories. I have over 70 photos of campsites, and won’t include all of them. I’ll try to avoid retelling stories that have already been well blogged, so I’ll mostly leave Yukon out.

Here goes, in chronological order.

2005. This one goes way back, to my real camping origins. When I was 17-18, I camped with friends in the bush at the back of their farm. I remember late night campfires, waking up in the chilly morning, and going for a walk in the dew covered bush. Growing up, my family didn’t camp, but for some reason I had always wanted to tent camp, and this stoked that interest. This was also long enough ago that the photo is from my original 3.2 megapixel camera.

2007, Algonquin Provincial Park, Kearney Lake, Ontario. This was the first real camping trip that I organized. I managed to get some friends to come on a camping trip. We were a little unorganized…needing to make the drive into Huntsville part way through because we were low on food(and coffee). There are so many great memories from this trip. It was a huge starting point in becoming more independent and comfortable with planning and going on bigger trips.

2008, Chutes Provincial Park, Ontario. This was the first camping trip in which I was the only responsible “adult” present…and also the beginning of bringing along one of my young brothers(one pictured here). At the time, this was also the furthest from home that I had ever driven. It was also this Coleman tent’s first outing. It was a great entry level tent, and it stayed in use all the way through 2016.

2009, Broad Cove, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. This was my first out of province road trip, and it was an amazing time…fully cementing me as a road tripper. Looking back, I kind of understand why my parents were a bit concerned about my early big trips…I had only gone on my first camping trips the 2 years before this. This photo specifically reminds me of the rain in Breton. My brother and I had spent a few days on the west side of the Cape, then the day we were supposed to drive to the east side, it rained. We took the tent down in the rain and set it up at the new campground in the rain. This tent was solid, and didn’t leak even through all that. We still did some exploring in the rain, and on the following sunny day, we had to dry out a bunch of our clothes.
Another crazy thought…this was from a time when Cape Breton didn’t have Rogers cell service. So my first major road trip, and we had no cell service for the whole week. Seems unthinkable now.
Note: that blue jacket still exists and still goes on trips…although it’s getting quite worn out.

2009, Killarney Provincial Park, Ontario. 2009 was the year I graduated from university, so along with trips out of province, I started going on shorter weekend trips. This was the beginning of a tradition of short fall camping trips. I think it was the weekend after Canadian Thanksgiving, so it was late in the season. It was decently cold, and I remember being huddled around the campfire at night, and some racoons were hanging around trying to get warm too…

2010, Killarney Provincial Park, Ontario. This was a very early spring trip in April. It was quite cold, and there was still snow/ice on some spots on the trails. This is probably the nicest campsite in Killarney, and I think this is the only time I’ve managed to get it. Killarney is often my go to for off season camping, as it’ s one of the few parks open early/late in the off season.

2012, Prince Edward Island. I’m not sure exactly where on the island this is… My PEI trip was unplanned, in the sense that we figured it out as we went. The downside to that is: 11 years later, I’m not sure of exact places and locations. This picture is one of the more interesting camp memories. The campsite didn’t have a firepit of any kind…chances are there was a communal one somewhere. I had brought along a makeshift grill, so we built a structure with firewood…and then had to be careful not to set it on fire as we cooked. (one of my brothers pictured)

2013, Pukaskwa National Park, Ontario. This was the first time camping by myself, as well as the very beginning of my first long range road trip. It was a bit of a frustrating moment. I had just finished chopping firewood and was about to start the fire when it started raining. It didn’t rain long, but it was long enough drench the wood…and I was unable to get a fire going. I shifted to make dinner with the cookstove…in the end, the sun came out and I went for a short hike to see the sunset before going to bed. I often wonder in moments like these why God allows little trials like this. I’m sure it’s teach me patience and trust, although it’s not always that clear in the moment.

2013, Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, Ontario. The day after my rainy camp, I showed up at Sleeping Giant and was told there were no available sites…but they would let me stay in the overflow area, which was just the parking lot by the lake. It was the long weekend, so not all that surprising. I could have seen this as a trial, but it was more of an adventure, and kind of to be expected, as by this point I no longer reserved sites in advance when on bigger trips.

2013, Waterton Lakes National Park. My first time camping in the mountains. This one was a bit different..the sites were walk ins. I got one decently close to the parking lot, so I didn’t have far to walk. I was there for several days and it did rain for some of it. One evening it was raining, so I was in the shelter reading. A boy scout troop showed up with some gear to make hot chocolate. They just had flashlights and it was getting dark so I went and got my lantern to help them with some light. They shared some hot chocolate, and I enjoyed talking travels with the adults.

2013, Squanga Lake Territorial Campground, Yukon. This was my first night in Yukon. It was mid-late August, but somehow the campground was almost empty. It was also my first exposure to free firewood at Yukon Campgrounds. As you can see, I went a little bit overboard with chopping firewood. Excited about possibly seeing the northern lights, I planned to have a long campfire and stay up to see them. Tired from my travels, I fell sleep, waking up in the dark, freezing cold, in my camp chair. I had slept long enough that the fire was almost completely out. It was overcast, so I didn’t see northern lights either. I’ve never fallen asleep like that while camping…so it’s a unique memory.

2014, Killarney Provincial Park, Ontario. This isn’t exactly a campsite photo, but it is from the campsite. It was a very different trip, as it rained a lot. I ended up doing a lot of reading, and this evening it was just lightly spitting, so I sat and read by the lantern. The rain eventually defeated me. My aging Coleman tent was no longer waterproof, and after 2 full days of rain, I woke up one night in a large puddle. I went home the next morning…a day early. You might look at this as a failed trip, but looking back, I see this as the beginning of some of my more relaxed trips. Prior to this all my trips were all about exploration and photos.  Somehow God used a rainy failure to make me enjoy the quiet moments just reading at the campsite.

2015, Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland. This site was an interesting lesson: just because it looks amazing, doesn’t mean it is. I had heard of these campsites right by the water in Gros Morne, but I also knew there were only a few and they were first-come-first-served. Imagine my joy when my brother and I showed up and one was available! In the end it was less ideal. There were no trees, so there was no shade…and we were already quite sun burnt. Also there was no privacy…and our neighbors enjoyed playing music…which even at a low volume could be easily heard. We relocated after 2 nights here. The perfect campsite is hard to find, and I’m kind of ok with that. It keeps me searching.

2016, Algonquin Provincial Park, Brent Access, Ontario. Speaking of perfect campsites, this is probably the closest I’ve come. This was a spring trip, and this section of the park was completely empty. So I had a very quiet, sunny, peaceful time at a wonderful lakeside camp. The only thing I could complain about would be the hoards of black flies in June.

2017, Somewhere near Goose Bay, Labrador. Along with this being my first major trip with a Jeep, this was my first time boondocking(car camping without the campground). This was a random spot by the side of a quiet side road. I had a really interesting time here. Not long after I setup camp, dark clouds rolled in. I could see rain pouring down in the distance and started preparing for a storm. It never happened. At one point, there were dark clouds all around, with visible torrents coming down…but it was dry where I was. It was as though God was protecting me from the rain. I had a great evening watching and photographing the storm, without getting wet. Sometimes God sends the rain, but sometimes he holds it back too. He knows what’s best.

2017, Near Cartwright, Labrador. My second boondock is the most epic one I’ve ever done! This one had it all: the off road track to get there, the amazing views, and I even saw the northern lights that night! That being said, I wasn’t able to properly stake the tent down, and it flapped loudly in the wind. A big part of getting a camper top for the Jeep is to help make spots like this work better for camping. I should also add, the next afternoon I was in a head on collision, destroying this Jeep and ending this trip. There’s something interesting about this amazing peace and grandeur God allowed me to experience right before everything came crashing down.

2017, Killarney Provincial Park, Ontario. Back on the road with a brand new Jeep, just like the crashed one…and of course I was back to Killarney for a fall trip. I could mention that this trip included getting my weeks old Jeep stuck in the mud way out on a back road/trail, but this is a post about campsites, right? 😉 The main memory from this spot was my first(and only) close run in with a bear. I had just finished making and eating lunch and was sitting in my camp chair. I heard some rustling, looked over, and jumped with surprise. There was a black bear on the other side of the picnic table, nosing through my unwashed dishes! He moved back a bit, startled by my movement…maybe he didn’t notice I was there at first? I took that as my cue, grabbed a nearby pot lid and started banging it. He scampered away. I spent the rest of the trip looking over my shoulder, but he never returned. He must have been more curious than hungry. At least I have one bear story from all my camping…they’re hard to come by when your mom is always fervently praying that her son have no run ins with bears.

2018, Lac Olga, Quebec. I stayed here twice, near the beginning of the James Bay Road. It’s a quiet little campground. I had some talkative neighbors, who mostly spoke French, but we still tried to converse. They were there for fishing, while I was on my way into the remote Quebec wilderness. I’m always nervous about my lack of French in Quebec, but I find that in the remote areas, people are friendly and we figure out how to communicate anyway, even if there is a serious language barrier. I also remember going for a walk by the lake that evening, and being randomly joined by their dog, Basil.

2018, Baie James, Quebec.  For some reason I thought this was documented already on the blog…but the story actually never made it beyond facebook. And this is probably my most storied camp story ever! I’ll just copy what I wrote back then.
I arrived early afternoon. It was very foggy, which did add a sense of mystery. The plan was to take the afternoon off as it was Sunday, so I went for a walk along the bay. By the time I got back to the Jeep, the fog had gotten worse and I was starting to feel a bit soggy….it was that kind of thick fog that just makes everything wet.
I decided to setup camp. The wind was picking up, so I looked for place with some shelter near a large rock outcropping. At this point I hadn’t seen anyone else…although there was lots of evidence of civilization: boats on the shore, atvs, a couple of primitive buildings.
Early in the evening, I was reading in the tent, when a pickup truck rolled up. As I emerged from the tent, a man got out of the truck. I knew this was native territory and I assumed he was one of the Cree people. He asked my name, where I was from and how I heard about the place. He said that this wasn’t a good place to camp as people often parked their trucks there and there would be more people returning to their camps this evening. He also mentioned there had been recent bear activity. As he went on, he said they had been having trouble with people vandalizing the area, and this was supposed to be a private road. I apologized as I hadn’t seen a sign…he said the sign had been knocked down. He didn’t seem angry, but he wasn’t happy either. It was hard to tell if he wanted me to leave or just move my tent. He had mentioned earlier that across the bay was a place they usually let people camp, so I said I would move over there.
I moved some of my stuff into the Jeep, then dragged the tent down the road to the new site. It was actually a better place than before, and the wind was dying down, so it worked out.
As sunset neared, the fog began to retreat, so I got out my camera. As I was taking some pictures, the pickup truck drove up again. He was in a much better mood, and just wanted to make sure everything was ok. He asked for $20, which I happily gave him….he seemed surprised.
I wonder if he just wanted to see that I would respect his wishes, since I was on Cree land. He gestured to my camera and asked if I had seen the big hill yet. I said I hadn’t as the fog was there when I arrived. So I asked: where is the big hill? He kind of shrugged, and said, there’s a story about that hill. If you point at it, it will get really windy…so he wasn’t going to point. He laughed as he said it, so I’m not sure if he was being serious or not, but it did lighten the mood. He was smiling as we shook hands and he drove off.

2018, Chutes Provincial Park, Ontario. This was a bit of a frustrating camp, but it had its moments. The campground I was originally headed to(without reservations) was closed for the season early, so I ended up at Chutes. There was rain, but there was also sunshine. I had got a new tent to replace my leaky Coleman, but this tent was not very rugged. After only 2 seasons of use, the zipper was already failing. It started raining one evening, and I went into the tent and then couldn’t get the door zipped back up. I spent a bunch of time slowly making the zipper work…while it poured rain. This was the last time I used that tent. On a more interesting note, I had forgot my coffee pour over, so I figured out how to make a decent cup of coffee using only a mug for mixing and steeping, then held a plate against the opening and kind of filtered it into another mug. Somewhat similar to cowboy coffee; let it be known, if you don’t have coffee making apparatus, you can still make camp coffee.

2019, Somewhere in Manitoba. I’ve almost never have trouble getting a campsite without reservations on my big trips, but this one was different. This was the Sunday of a long weekend, and I was trying to put down lots of km to get to Northwest Territories. So this was the end of a very long driving day that had started at 4am(plus a stop for church in the middle). I had been getting very tired near the end, so I even stopped at a random campground before my planned destination…but they were full. I had planned to stay at Riding Mountain Park, in part assuming that if they were full, there would probably be some overflow setup. But I arrived and they were full, with no other options. Searching on my phone there were very few other options close by and the daylight was fading. I stopped by the next closest campground but they were full as well. I can’t remember if I started looking into hotels, but it was kind of the middle of nowhere. There was some kind of RV park that was 20 min away, and at least continued my direction to the west. I tried calling, but got no answer, and otherwise information was sparse online. So I headed out that way anyway. It looked like an old school building, but there were some RVs out back, and people around. The guy said they don’t usually do tent camping, but I didn’t need a firepit or power, so he set me up on the grass between 2 greenhouses…specifically because it was incredibly windy. God had provided, even if it took some time. When I tell the story mechanically like this, it does miss the fact that I was starting to run out of options and truly didn’t know what to do. It was too quiet an area for motels, but still too populated to boondock. This was truly a case of relying on God when my methods were failing.
With the move to a camper top, the hope is that these kind of situations will be easier, as I can technically sleep anywhere I can park.

2019, Five Mile Lake, Yukon. As I struggled to decide which Yukon campsites to include here, I wondered, which one was my favorite. It’s hard to choose, but I have fond memories of this one. After camping in the cold Arctic, this was back down where it was warmer. I remember just simply enjoying camping again, as for the previous 2 weeks, camping had been more about survival than enjoyment. The fall colors were in full swing and it was warm enough for a t-shirt. I also had some fun with the critters at this park. The squirrels and grey jays were constantly trying to get my food…I had to be vigilant about putting it away. I stayed here for several days, resting up, getting back in the swing of things…after all, after 2 months on the road, I still had 1 month to go. This campsite definitely filled me with energy once again.

2019, Nahanni Range Campground, Yukon. My main memory from here was the cold morning. It had been quite cold in the night; my water jug had ice in it that morning. I was awake early for some reason, so I got up to see the sunrise. I was going to sit and read some devotions, but the cold was too intense after having just woke up. I went for a jog around the campground to attempt to warm up(I’m not a jogger…if that gives an idea of how cold I was). Then made a coffee, and sat shivering with my warm coffee in my cold hands. As the sun crested the mountains, the valley was suddenly filled with light…and WARMTH. The cold was gone, vanquished along with the darkness.

After that cold morning, I wrote this and posted on my facebook. So now you have more of the context.

A frozen frosty morning in the mountains.
Sitting, cold hands wrapped around a warm mug of coffee.
Suddenly, a burst of light.
After a long journey, the sun reaches the summit of the mountains and bursting forth it raises it’s arms in triumph, covering the cold valley below with it’s warmth and joy. 
I’m so thankful for the warm sun on cold mornings!
And how similar the rising of Jesus and how it brings warmth to our cold hearts. Up from the grave he arose…

Over the years it seems I’ve collected camping experiences that parallel real life in many ways, and I tend to be more open to learning those lessons while camping. I’ve been camping pretty much every year for half of my life. A lot has changed…it feels like I’ve been through several versions of life, yet camping has become something of a constant. God still has a lot to teach me, and I look forward to what’s next.