The Camping Season that Went Sideways

Sorry for the radio silence…read on to discover why.

Earlier this year, we’d mapped out a plan to do a lot of camping in Alberta.  We still did a lot of camping, but most of it was for one reason: we were moving cities. In April, we decided to move. Fed up with big city life in Calgary: the crime, the noise, the commuting,  the lack of friends, etc., we decided to move to Lethbridge, the city close to where my husband grew up, and where he still has lifelong friends.  Lethbridge is safer, cheaper, quieter, friendlier. (It’s like we woke up from the pandemic and realized life had changed forever, and we were more than fed up with it all. Calgary experienced a huge increase in crime, we lost a lot of friends , traffic was a nightmare,  noise was getting worse, I could go on and on.)

But I digress…

We were super grateful for our RV as we used it when we were house hunting, when we needed a break from getting our house ready to sell, and, when we finally had a place in Lethbridge, we stayed in it for 3 weeks while our house was being painted.  All these nights (about 40) would have cost a fortune in an Air B N B or hotel.

We spent a lot of time in Southern Alberta camping during this.   You are not limited to the KOA in Lethbridge with its’ noisy location beneath the highway, expensive rates, extra upcharges and surcharges, and only 7 minute free showers in their bathhouse. I don’t know about you, but 7 minutes is barely enough time to wash my hair. Some of the surcharges and upcharges at KOA’s these days include

1. late checkout – $25
2. Specific site – $50
3. Charge to use WI-FI
4. $3 pet fee

Nickel and dime folks to death, much? Basically with KOA’s you pay, pay, pay and then pay some more.  

So, skip the KOA in favour of two hidden gems in the Lethbridge area that were just great to stay in.

1. Elbas Farms operates 16 RV sites at the back of their farm.  This is an active farm, with hay sales, llamas, cows, and sheep (our dog loved the sheep), very idyllic.  They are fully serviced lots but the units must be self-contained as there are no shower or bathroom facilities available.  The RV park has weekly and monthly rates and the weekly rates make it a very affordable place to camp, at about $40 a night. And, free wi fi!  It’s super quiet, very peaceful, yet minutes from Lethbridge. This RV park seems to attract a lot of people who have come to this area to work. This was our home away from home; spent nearly a month there, all told.  
2. Owl’s Nest Campground, Coaldale.  This small, privately owned campground is in a great location in Coaldale, and right next to an off leash park, and several walking trails along the canals.  There’s even a tiny home on the premises you can rent (separately owned from the campground). This campground has decent sized sites (full hookups), a picnic shelter, and a bathroom and shower building.  I have a pet peeve about paying for showers  when you’re already paying for a site, so I didn’t utilize the showers but a peek into the facility revealed it was spotless.  

Next year we are planning to either go to Alaska with our RV, or across Canada.