Northern Ontario campers looking for comforts of home
Northeastern Ontario park and campground operators say campers are changing their habits.
They say in the last couple of years, campers have increasingly turned to renting rather than tenting.
Robert Aney, park representative at Carol Campsite in Sudbury, said he thinks the sky-high price of gas has people unhitching their trailers close to home.
Carol Campsite is on Highway 69, just minutes from the downtown by car. A total of 70 spots at the privately run park are rented for the entire season.
“For a campsite to be so close to town, it's a very, it's a nice idea to have a summer place that you don't have to drive real far to get to,” he said.
Ontario Parks spokesperson Anne Craig said when people do head for the woods these days, they are often leaving the tent and trailer behind.
New this year are cabins at Fushimi park north of Timmins and Finlayson Park in Temagami. They come with beds and comforts of home.
“The baby boomers are a large segment of our older population and they want to stay coming to parks and this is a way to do it,” she said.
Craig also said a growing number of people who immigrate to Canada are taking an interest, as they often don't have the camping experience that many Ontarians pick up at a young age.
“If you didn't learn to camp as a child … you might be a little intimidated by camping as an adult,” she said.
“So the roofed accommodations really appeal to the people who don't have that camping history that some of us do.”
The province already has yurts for rent in three northeastern parks: Killarney, Windy Lake and Pancake Bay.
They’re also testing such accommodations as prospector's tents.
A spokeswoman for private campgrounds said they, too, are offering cabins these days.
Alexandra Anderson said it seems people don't want to waste time anymore setting up and tearing down a campsite.