Author Topic: British Columbia Bound  (Read 3580 times)

Bob Bulot

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British Columbia Bound
« on: January 08, 2018, 07:10:44 PM »
Much info is available here on places to go and things to see in southern BC, but what Wacky Wife and I are trying to find is a place to camp for a month or so in the area big enough for a 45' with 50 amp service, if available.  Mobile home parks would be OK.  Any suggestions?
« Last Edit: January 08, 2018, 07:22:18 PM by Bob Bulot »

Bill Sprague

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Re: British Columbia Bound
« Reply #1 on: January 09, 2018, 01:51:51 AM »
We've enjoyed a few of them.   50 amp hook ups are not as common in Canada.  It tends to be cooler so you don't need the A/C. 

Try Canyon Alpine RV Park & Campground near Boston Bar, Fort Steele Resort and RV Park near Fort Steele and Kokanee Bay Motel Cabins and Campground near Lac La Hache. 

Canyon Alpine RV Park might have new owners.  The old owners were wonderful.   All three are near interesting things to do and have spaces to fit bus sized RVs.

Keith Moffett

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Re: British Columbia Bound
« Reply #2 on: January 09, 2018, 02:10:35 AM »
Bob
Just a suggestion.  We use an ap called 'All Stays' to find Rv parks.  Never let us down and works in Canada too.  DW gets a suggestion from the Ap and uses google maps to see the salellite image just to look it over.
Wish we could go too.
Have fun!
2007 Patriot Thunder
45' C-13
2006 Explorer Ltd.
DW is Carol
Safe travels and
May God bless!

Bryan Beamon

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Re: British Columbia Bound
« Reply #3 on: January 09, 2018, 03:36:52 AM »
Bob, we enjoy Capilino rv park in North Vancouver.  It only had 30 amp service but fantastic location and it will accommodate your rig. You can walk to shopping and ride your bikes to downtown  Vancouver and Stanley Park across the Lions Gate bridge. Also explore Whistler mountain resort.
C & Bryan Beamon
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Joel Ashley

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Re: British Columbia Bound
« Reply #4 on: January 09, 2018, 03:44:27 AM »
Ft. Steele RV Resort was full when we went through the area, Sept. of 2012, but Ft. Steele Campground had spots available.  If you prefer the larger private park setup for your month, I'm sure the Resort will suffice  https://www.fortsteele.com/rv-sites .  However the Campground http://www.fortsteelecampground.com/page1/page1.html  is a family-run, older park that might do if you like quieter and smaller.  It's back away from the highway and in the trees, but has limited space for large rigs;  call ahead.  Family members greet and help get you set up, and regularly make sure all is well.  It's more primitive than the Resort, but off the beaten track and a bit less money.  I'm not sure they could supply 50 amp, but this is not an area where air conditioning is a necessity.

Another option is Dutch Creek, further north toward Fairmont Hot Springs.  The Hot Springs Resort was not my favorite, too big and popular, full to the brim with people, and we got stuck next to the highway, the WiFi was terrible and overloaded, and the staff overworked.  Though it included the infamous hot springs, we were not there exclusively for that like most seemed to be, and it was not my cup of tea.  We moved the next day down the road and discovered Dutch Creek, which was essentially a "permanent" renter/owner RV setup.  They were in a period of flux at the time, as to overnighters, so I'm not sure of their current status, but you could check it out.  They have large sites with plenty of space between neighbors, lots of trees, and you can easily hike and enjoy the flora and fauna and the raucous "creek" that seems more a river that empties into Columbia Lake, the Columbia River headwaters.  An osprey nest overlooking the creek was cool to watch daily from our site.  It was at the time a developing "resort", and we seriously considered buying a lot there as a summer RV retreat.  http://www.dutchcreekresort.com/

Regardless of where you park, the nearby town of Cranbrook is sizeable, with every amenity and service you'd need, and Ft. Steele itself is one of the best and most accurate reconstructions I've seen.  No wonder films have been made there.  We enjoyed the horse-drawn grain harvest where I got an idea of how my Quebec farm-raised maternal grandfather must've farmed his Alberta prairie homestead.  Closeups with Percherons and other workhorses made me feel closer to his locally famous steeds from the early 1900's.  The blacksmith's shop at Ft. Steele, given I was a lone visitor that day, put me in touch with my Ashley-side grandparents' English/Nebraska occupational heritage.  Then the 1800's bakery down the street sold Lee the only Whole Wheat Sourdough loaf we'd ever heard of;  subsequent daily meals confirmed it to be our favorite bread.  None since has been as good, even when we have managed to come across the somewhat rare whole wheat sourdough elsewhere.  Fresh and warm it was to die for.

Methinks one could hardly do better than staying a month around Ft. Steele.  There's also some RV parks in Cranbrook itself, although to my eye they weren't quite as intriguing and more just places to park in the midst of the large town's conveniences.  It would be a last resort for us, but at least an option if everything else is booked.

Joel
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Bob Bulot

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Re: British Columbia Bound
« Reply #5 on: January 11, 2018, 12:17:10 PM »
Thank You all for your suggestions!  This gives me plenty to check out. The combined experience of all on the Forum never fails to amaze me.