Achi news desk-
As the temperatures continue to warm, so does the demand for camping.
The Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) and most provincial parks in southern Ontario have already opened campgrounds this month. Private sites such as Whistle Bare Campground in Cambridge are scheduled to open Friday.
“A lot of campers are coming out, starting to get ready for the season,” said Laura Bingaman with Whistle Bare Campground.
Bingaman said the site has enough room for 82 vans, with spots nearly full heading into the weekend.
“It’s important to start ordering in advance for sure because in the summer, especially on long weekends – we order quickly,” said Bingaman.
The Leveille family reserved one of the 82 campsites at Whistle Bare Campground for this weekend. Five-year-old Kaylee Levy says the best part of being outdoors is “camping and fishing.”
Demand is growing
Business is booming at the mountain equipment company in Kitchener.
The camping retailer sells tickets to all national parks across Canada. Sales associate Charlie Denomy said everything was flying off the shelves from tents, to sleeping bags and water sports gear.
“We’re in ‘camp week’ right now,” Danomi said. “The season really started well. They were busy.”
The GRCA told CTV News that there were “nearly 5,300 bookings on opening day, which is a 37 percent increase from last year’s opening day bookings.”
Denomey believes the additional demand was a growing trend.
“There are a lot of people who are starting camping because of the epidemic,” Danomi said. “It just expanded exponentially.”
As of Thursday, some campsites were still available to book online through the GRCA website, with swimming, hiking and other activities available.
