Not Exactly As Hoped…Or Advertised…
We had a not so great last camping experience this past weekend. We were at Half Moon Lake RV “resort”. We started out pretty hopeful this would be a nice place to camp as it was on a lake, and the drive wouldn’t be too bad to get there. Things went into the crapper once we got there. It took us an additional 1.5 hours drive time one way compared to what Google told us, and only about half hour of that can attributed to a pee and lunch break. Our pull through site was so narrow we had to swing way over to avoid the sewer and since the campground hadn’t maintained the trees, the branches on the opposite side of the site from the sewer, were so low it took out our antenna and scratched or scuffed the side of the fifth wheel. When the manager was told, he didn’t seem to give a rat’s patootie. “We had a flood and it rained a lot and the trees grew like crazy.” Asked if he had a chain saw he replied he did but “didn’t have anyone to run it until Monday.” I thought, Um, you look pretty capable buddy what’s the issue. “Just pull up a lawn chair and relax”, he continued. How dismissive! (On the plus side my husband is amazing and can fix anything. He quickly ascertained the issue with the broken antenna and determined what needed to be done to fix it. It sounds like a minor repair but that is not the point.)
It cooled off enough overnight we needed to run our furnace in the morning and we discovered there’s an issue with it. The furnace got going but had definite issue starting (would start / shut down, start / shut down) and fan didn’t sound good at all. (We checked when we got home, looks like a mouse had taken up residence in the furnace area. So off to the RV dealer to get the area and furnace checked out and ensure no wires were chewed, etc. We’ll take steps to screen off any entrance points into the furnace from the outside. Darn mice, they get in anywhere. See https://ourhotelonwheels.ca/2020/10/19/a-mouse-in-the-blender-and-other-critters/ for more about our critter adventures. )
But I digress….
Then, when draining to leave our (full hook-up) site, the sewer backed up a bit. Our neighbours’ sewer also backed up and he hadn’t even drained yet. This was a Sunday, and everyone was heading out. We had to adjust our schedule from two nights to one so this issue is not on us. Again this appears to be the fault of the campground, either by not having the lines maintained properly or getting the truck out to drain the storage tank as often as is required.
Going home, traffic had to be re-routed as there had just been a major accident and we got lost in Edmonton trying to get back on to the 216. We received poor directions from the cops blocking the roads and I tried frantically to find the directions via Pindrop which weren’t overly helpful to our situation. You can’t make a U Turn w/ a 5th wheel, Siri. I took it all on, trying to get us back on the road, and the dam finally broke. I had a total meltdown when we were totally lost and told God he had to get us out of here as I couldn’t. Eventually we had no choice but to make a U turn, and got back on the 216, and carried on.
Lessons Learned
It was a 4.5 hour drive one way which was too far away for two nights; we will never do that again. $200 in diesel to go there and back, and $70 a night for a site that’s poorly maintained. The cost of this site was definitely not worth what you paid for it. Ended up costing us almost $300 for the weekend, which is a bit upsetting as well.
In the future we will likely stay at provincial or national park campgrounds located closer to us. A little cheaper, and hopefully better maintained.
Note to other campers, don’t make our mistake: check the reviews before heading out. Don’t believe everything you read on the website (Half Moon Bay RV resort’s website advertises wide sites); drive by the site they’ve assigned you to, to see what it looks like and if it will work for your unit. If it doesn’t work, ask for a different site.
Half Moon Bay RV Resort is trying, and there’s a jumping pillow for kids, a basketball court, pickle ball court and mini golf. The manager stated the area flooded this past June so maybe that partly to blame for the unkempt look near the lake but that was 3 months ago; I guess I’d expect some more effort towards repairs and so forth by now. Is good help that hard to find?
The entire RV resort is in need of a major face lift. Apparently they are putting in a swimming pool now. Never mind an outdoor pool, how about fixing your deck and other structures located by the lake, maintaining your sites better, cleaning the sites, fixing the issue with the sewer lines, etc.
The Lake Itself
Half Moon Lake is pretty to look at but is not a swimmable lake; leeches, swimmer’s itch and blue-green algae, oh my….
It’s unfortunate our last time camping this year was a disastrous one but because of it, we have learned some lessons and made some decisions going forward.
Our Hotel On Wheels 