Camping during Covid19 with a new Dog

HI Everyone,

Camping during Covid19 with a new Dog is certainly different and tiring. We are now two trips in and have found that the first trip was the better of the two, in the sense of practicing social distancing. Our first trip to Sibball lake was the best in terms of distancing, every second campsite was closed and people really stayed within their campsite area, with little venturing out to the campground. The day use area of Sibball Lake was disappointingly packed, and while we did our walk about, there were just too many people to effectively distance yourself. Lorraine and I steered clear of this area. As recreational areas reopen we are finding that people are not paying attention to the distancing rules and are instead packing day use areas to the point that people are shoulder to shoulder. We saw this and cringed on our last trip to Little Elbow. We spent a weekend in Kananaskis country at the Little Elbow Equestrian campground and what we found was not terrifying but concerning. For one, the Provincial government has opened all campgrounds to full capacity now, and day use areas are also open to all visitors; but this action has created an enormous loop hole where people are assuming it is OK to once again crowd into these areas. As we traveled down Hwy 66 we found that all trail heads and day use areas including Elbow falls were full to the max and actually all of them spilled out on to Hwy 66 acting as a parking lot for all of the visitors to the area. Lorraine and I significantly curtailed our visits in the area due to the large crowds and instead stayed within our campsite except when walking Finn.

Since this was our first trip to this campground we were unsure what to expect, Upon arrival we first noticed that all campsites were reservation only. Next we found that this campground was not setup to allow for any great social distancing. The Equestrian campground is made up of dual sites, all of it! So sharing your space with up to two to four other campers was the norm here. It was very disappointing! The only good thing was due to a mistake I made in setting up our campsite, we unintentionally took up two sites. Of course we did not find this out until dinner time when a young couple showed up looking to get into their site that we just happened to of parked the RV on.

As you can see the pad that these two sites were on was common ground and according to the campground host we needed to move over 10 feet to allow access for the other campsite. Where we thought we needed to be next to our fire pit; but I was wrong in that assumption. Well what a nightmare proposition. To have to pack up and move over ten feet at dinner time was not an appetizing thought. Lucky for us the host had one other campsite that was open that he could move the displaced couple to, allowing us to then purchase the other site for two nights. So effectively we camped on two sites during our visit here. Which was in the end a good thing as it allowed Lorraine and I the distance between campers to feel comfortable that we were distancing properly. It also allowed us the room to set up a dog run for Finn so that we remained in compliance with the dog rules of the campground. If we ever go back here I will certainly book two sites in the future as it was the best solution for us.

Wow! Can you say the terrible two’s? Boy! What a handful Finn can be! I have forgotten how energetic a two year old dog can be and how much trouble they can get into. I know he looks so cute and calm, but let me tell you this dog has Ya Ya's. Finn was a good dog; but, he certainly had Ya Ya’s to let out, and quite often you could hear Lorraine and I saying “NO Finn” as he ate and chewed rocks, tried to eat our camp chair cushions. Then there was the Barking at strangers and neighbors if they got to close to our campsite, and then he finally decided that horse crap smelled so great that he just had to roll in it. Oh Joy! During our stay I walked Finn three times a day down a horse trail while off leash and yes he got ahead of me and found a nice pile of horse crap to roll in. Well what do you do...Laugh and try to clean him up as best as you can? Needless to say for the rest of the weekend we smelled horse!

If you over looked all of the issues and horse crap the weekend was a success and a lot of fun. Regardless of circumstances Lorraine and I just love to get out and see new places and explore, and this weekend was no different. We just did our best to socially distance while remaining respectful and welcoming to our fellow campers. Of course I have some work to do with Finn as charging people and barking is not acceptable even if they encroach on our campsite. This will come with time and experience for Finn. Camping is still really new to him, though to his credit he is a great traveling dog. He took to traveling in the RV very quickly, and he and Annie have agreed on how to sit while driving with us. Of course both dogs sit up front in the space between the seats, so it gets a bit crowded but doable. Annie sits with his head on Finn’s back and the two of them look so cute. Next time I will get a picture.

So one thing I have discovered so far is that With Finn being a full time concern at times I have not had the time to get as many pictures and or videos of the two campgrounds we have traveled to so far. I hope to improve and get the necessary pics to show off the areas we travel to, but I guess it will take time, energy and a little patience on my part, waiting for Finn to calm down just a bit. He can be quite a handful when on leash! Which distracts me from looking at the world through my camera lens.

Our next trip which is in 9 days will see us again go back to Medicine Lake. It will be here that I hope to teach Finn how to swim. He has never ever been taught, and at first, three weeks ago, was afraid of the water. Now he runs through the shallows playing and splashing, but I would like to see him swim. He is a water dog and I think he would have a blast swimming and retrieving. I guess time will tell and I will describe our adventures in another post.

Since I have not the typical myriad of pictures to show off I am including some of the best pic’s I did take while at the Little Elbow campground. Enjoy!

Till next time

Happy trails!

The Glampurs