Camping Season is Near!

I know it's early, but I love camping so much, that I am already anticipating summer 2010 and all the camping trips that will be had once the weather turns around. This reminds me of what last summer was and the trips that happened during July and August. The best one, was at Riding Mountain National Park.

Joelle and I had a great 3 hour drive to the park together (awesome sister time). The one thing I didn't realize, was that we had to pay per person, per day when we arrived at the park. Our campground was inside it so we payed $36. I was surprised and kind of annoyed considering an unserviced site at Wasagaming Campground was $31/night. So to be in the park and camp for two nights, we payed $98. And that didn't include Rachel, Jessica and Sandra who were coming in a separate vehicle, our food or gas.

Once Joelle and I arrived at our site, we set up the tarps and the tent. Once the other girls arrived, we grabbed a snack and took a drive to purchase firewood. Once we got back, we realized our fire pit was on a pole about two feet off the ground. It was difficult to get our fire going, but we managed. By walking through paths we found the town of Wasagaming. Checked out the tourism building and pocketed paper for our fire (paper was the one thing we had forgotten). There always seems to be something. :)

We decided we'd go on the Gorge Creek guided hike. A 2 hour hike on the Manitoba escarpment (yes, Manitoba has one). It rained all night, so we decided against it. We went on a hike that was more difficult than we thought, but when we arrived at a clearing, we could hear loons and were in awe of the beauty that surrounded us. We had a good laugh when the loons responded to our turkey calls. For the rest of the afternoon, we sat at our site and played "The Game Of Things" for hours. We laughed so hard at times that my stomach ached (this is how i gauge my level of fun - stomach pain). That evening we went to the Bison Enclosure. Once we got there, it was dusk. We saw no Bison at first, but the silence was amazing! Only crickets and frogs could be heard...until one of saw a bat and freaked out. As we left, we spotted a lynx. Then, in the darkness, we saw a huge bison walking slowly down a dirt road. We stopped and drove alongside it. It was taller than the car. We tried to take photos, I gave my camera to Sandra but she was so scared of it, the photo you see to the left is all she got. It gives me a good laugh every time. She got everything except it's genitals...which were very large. Ha ah ha.

One thing I adore about camping is the food. I don't like to take a camp stove, so we cook everything over the open fire. I figure, you have it going already, why not use it for more than roasting marshmallows?! Over the last couple years we have perfected our recipes. Potatoes, cooked with onions, butter, garlic, seasoning salt and farmer sausage is our favorite. And it's so easy, considering I do all the prep work at home. We just dump everything into a foil pan and cover. But our newest favorite, is biscuit on a stick.

The wildlife that we spotted during our stay in Riding Mountain were a bison, a lynx, a baby grizzly bear (we knew by the white mane), bats (ha ha) and an elk. Amazing! We were awe struck by the scenery and the wildlife. And even though it rained a lot, we had a great time. Even knowing that it's quite a bit more expensive than we thought it was to begin with, it was well worth it! I will be there again this summer for sure.

If you are planning a camping trip to Wasagaming, here are a couple tips:
1. Be ready for the daily park fee. There is a campground outside of the park, but odds are, that you'll want to take advantage of all that the park has to offer. Have more than 2 people/car, this way you can pay the family rate ($19/car load)
2. Bring some sort of fire starter or pick one up at the store in Onanole. They sell a little paper cup filled with wood chips and wax that was a lifesaver for us. The firewood isn't the best quality, you will need something to keep it going.
3. Ask about the fire pit on the site you want. The pits that are above the ground catch too much of a breeze and are harder to keep going than the ones on the ground.
4. Visit the bison enclosure during the evening, before sun down. The edge of the road meets with a heavily treed area. Wildlife could jump out at anytime.
5. Bring extra cash so you can make use of the kayaks, paddle boats or boat cruises they offer in the town of Wasagaming (on Clear Lake).
6. Visit the tourism office in Wasagaming. They have a lot of hikes to choose from, and the staff can tell you if they are easy, moderate or difficult.
7. Don't bother with the viewing towers. They were built a long time ago, and you really can't see the beautiful scenery over the trees anymore.
8. Have your camera ready.
9. Don't be scared away by the bear warnings. They monitor the grounds really well. If a bear has been anywhere near the site you have, they will move you if they feel it's necessary. If you follow their directions and keep your garbage bag in the trunk of your car, don't leave food outside or inside your tent, you will be fine.