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Topic ClosedCamping in Canada ??

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HuronSailor View Drop Down
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Joined: 10 Jun 2009
Location: Owosso MI
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Camping in Canada ??
    Posted: 12 Sep 2014 at 9:38pm
Almost every time I cross the border at Sault Ste. Marie, MI (pronounced Soo Saint Marie, or as we say up here: The Soo) the Canadian Customs officer on duty tells me to "be careful and watch out for moose, eh?" 

So I will pass that along.
.: Mark & Beth :: Silverado 5.3L :: 2018 rPod 180 :.
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DavidW View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 12 Sep 2014 at 11:10pm
CharlieM, I will second Outbound's recommendations for Provincial Parks along your route.

You can check out my reviews, photographs and suggested campsites for Arrowhead and Grundy in the Ontario Parks review section. Booking ahead online will get you the best sites.

I drove through Killbear last week to check out our site 628 for Thanksgiving week-end and it is in a great part of the park. The views nearby are to die for.

You won't need a white hose to fill up at the water station in a Provincial Park. And you are not permitted to connect to a neighbouring water tap if you happen to be near one.

The bigger issue on length is to make sure that you have a long enough electrical cord. 75' should work but I personally recommend 100'. Make sure that you can reach the outlet before you disconnect your R-Pod.

Enjoy your trip!

[PHOTOS: Killbear Prov. Pk.]




David & Liz
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techntrek View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Sep 2014 at 4:38pm
Why do you say you won't need to use a hose to fill up the water tank?
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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CharlieM View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Sep 2014 at 5:58pm
[QUOTE=DavidW]CharlieM, I will second Outbound's recommendations for Provincial Parks along your route.

You won't need a white hose to fill up at the water station in a Provincial Park. And you are not permitted to connect to a neighbouring water tap if you happen to be near one.

QUOTE]

Same question. Why don't I need a white hose. Are there faucets to connect a hose to or do I have to haul water in 5 gallon (19L) containers? Or maybe a hose is permanently attached? If so, what length?
Charlie
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Sep 2014 at 6:09pm
I've run into dump stations where the fill station had  no hose and ones with a permanently attached hose, typically on one of the spring loaded masts...I also ran into 2 on my 30 day trip that had NO water of any sort.  Not even the wash water to hose down a spill at the dump port...

BTW I ran low on water at a USFS campground that had a hand pump for water...that was fun-
Had to pump a good 10-20 times before you got ANY water and if you paused for a few seconds the water column fell back down the pipe and another 10-20 pumps to get it started again...whew.   The pump was huge with a handle about 4 ft long, with about a 4 ft stroke, making it impossible to both pump and hold a collapsible 5 gallon container under the spout.   Required two people.
Definitely made one conserve water with all the work it took to get moreLOL

We stayed in one USFS campground near Vail, CO that had NO water available at all.   Even the poor host had to buy and haul his in.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Sep 2014 at 7:22pm
As others have already said, in Ontario Provincial Parks, the dump/fill is usually in the same area (Samuel de Champlain is the only one that comes to mind with separate dump and fill areas).  For the most part, the dump/fill stations are on a short, single-lane loop of road close to the park entrance.  Usually, the dumpstation is located first along the loop and then about 50' further up is the fillstation.  They're kept separate to prevent cross-contamination.  Occasionally, in the larger parks, the garbage bins are handily found in the same area (e.g. Arrowhead).

Dumpstations usually have a RED-painted water tower (steel, cylindrical, about 8' high and 8" around) with non-potable water to be used for flushing tanks/messes on the concrete bib around the drain.

Fillstations usually have a LIGHT-BLUE-painted water tower almost always have a short length of hose (suspended on a spring affair to keep them well off the ground) that you can use to directly fill your tank - no additional hose required.

The only exception you may run across is Bronte Creek Provincial Park, which keeps its water taps & hoses in small, heated sheds as the park was intended (but never realized) for year-round operation.  Everything to do with sewage and fresh water is clearly labelled and instructioned at all Provincial Parks.  Oh - Mew Lake in Algonquin has a heated closet for fresh water as well, but that's only available during winter months when the usual water source is shut down at the sanitary station.

There are water taps peppered throughout the campgrounds as well.  Generally, these have non-threaded taps and occasionally, they must be held in the on position to keep the water flowing.  But, a water thief usually works fairly well to connect a hose.  As DavidW has said, even if you do have sufficient hose, its prohibited to connect to any of the campground taps.  But, I have been known to hook up for the 10 minutes it takes to fill my fresh tank - as long as its only for a few minutes, no one cares.
Craig :: 2009 RP171 towed by a 2017 F150
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Tars Tarkas View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Sep 2014 at 9:02pm
I've long been mildly curious -- this is the first time my curiosity has risen to the level to ask about this -- but when dump stations are coupled with a potable water station, do they really have two water sources, one non-potable for washing down dump station spills, and another, separately plumbed, source for potable water?  I understand not wanting to use one hose for the both purposes, but really, what do you even have to do to have two separately piped and plumbed water sources coming to essentially the same spot?

Now, I used to have a farm where I had water for the cattle and horses come from a spring and a gravity-fed tank to the troughs, and separate household water.  I can see that in some cases that would be doable and even very appropriate, but how often is that even possible, let alone remotely practical?

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Sep 2014 at 9:58pm
Perfect summary, Outbound.

I was not meaning to imply that one does not need to have a white hose in your R-Pod - merely that it is rarely used at an Ontario Provincial Park. In fact, I carry two 50' foot white hoses for those situations where I am at a private RV park.

Again, for electricity I always carry 100'. Most electric posts in our Provincial Parks serve two adjacent sites. Depending upon when the electric lines were put in place, one can find the electrical post at the edge of one's site, deep in the woods between two sites, along the entrance road, or even on your neighbour's site. Hence the need to be flexible with the length of one's cord.

It is useful to check the Ontario Parks website to determine where the dump station and water fill-up station is located. Sometimes it is after the gatehouse (Sandbanks), sometimes before the gatehouse (Driftwood), sometimes on the way "out" of the park (Bronte Creek or Murphys Point) in which case you then have to re-enter the park.

I have adopted techntrek's strategy of always having a small 2 gallon water carrier filled with water from home (or water bottles) which we use for coffee, brushing teeth, and for our dog's water.

I also have two 6 gallon "army style" flat rectangular water carriers which I picked up during my stay at Murphys Point. As I couldn't find the water fill-up station on my way in, I had already set up my R-Pod before I discovered where it was. Then it was too late. Luckily, water taps are located fairly close to one's site such that it wasn't too difficult to fill up the carriers at the water tap and transport them to our R-Pod.

This avoids running into any problems with the water supplied by the Park. For example, I know that Mew Lake has a lot of silt in their water system if one camps in April. In that case, it is useful to arrive with one or more full portable water carriers in your TV (You wouldn't want to fill your tank with water anyway because it would be liable to freeze in April).
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Sep 2014 at 7:18am
Tars, never really thought about the water source. I always just assumed that there was 1 well and it served both dump and potable sites, just split in 2. But then your talking gov't supervisors... sooooo likely 2 drilled wells   40ft apart with wells 100ft deep and $50 a foot to drill..............   
Ron & Shirley
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Sep 2014 at 7:10pm
Originally posted by Tars Tarkas

when dump stations are coupled with a potable water station, do they really have two water sources, one non-potable for washing down dump station spills, and another, separately plumbed, source for potable water?  I understand not wanting to use one hose for the both purposes, but really, what do you even have to do to have two separately piped and plumbed water sources coming to essentially the same spot?

For the most part, you're correct of course - its a single source of water for both the non-potable and potable taps.  Both taps will have backflow preventers (at least 2) installed to prevent upstream contamination.  Parks staff are fairly sensible and usually try not to waste money/time/effort.

But, in a few cases, the taps are fed from "separate" sources.
  • In parks where drinking water is treated on-site and the treatment plant is located reasonably close to the sanitary station:  the non-potable tap will be fed from upstream of the treatment plant while the potable tap is fed treated water.
  • In a few parks where the dump and fill stations are physically some distance from each other: a dedicated well (typically an old well that was dug long before water treatment was necessary) provides non-potable water for the dumpstation.  The fillstation is connected to the treated campground water supply.

Craig :: 2009 RP171 towed by a 2017 F150
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