Camping in August and September - it's all about Gold Mountain!

We didn't exactly have any plans to camp in August. We actually never really "plan" August camping trips. It's hot, there is always a fire ban and usually we are too busy with other things happening in and around our community.

This year however, we had to attend a wedding in Hedley so we booked Gold Mountain RV Park for a weekend without the kids or dogs. What a treat for us! We booked Site #6, which is arguably the best site they have, especially when you are having adult time alone.  Site #6 is on the edge of the grassy area and this is your typical view:

We didn't spend much time at the campsite as we were busy with wedding festivities but let me tell you again, what sets camp hosts of Gold Mountain, Tracy and Dave, 5 notches above the other campgrounds in our area. We pulled in. I jumped out and went up to see Tracy in the office, pay and catch up with her. When I returned, Dave had backed Nick into position and together they leveled the trailer and were done setting up. I walked up, poured a glass of wine and sat down in my chair. Voila!

 The weather was great. The river was low. The fellow campers were fantastic! It was a quick weekend August 21-23rd but it was wonderful none the less!

It was so wonderful that I booked a cabin for one night the following weekend!
This was my first staying in a cabin at Gold Mountain. It was definitely a different experience than the trailer. This trip was just my 8 year old and myself. We booked cabin #4. It comes with a bunk bed set and a double bed. My son slept on the bottom futon bunk. I slept on the double. I packed minimally for the 1 night stay. Coffee, filters, cream, sugar, snacks, and cereal and milk for the morning. I brought my own bedding and chair. That was about all I needed!

The cabins come quite equipped. Each cabin has a hot plate, a coffee maker, a toaster oven, a fridge, dishes for 4, dish clothes, and a dish pan with soap.

Cabins!

The BEST part of the cabins is the view from the beautiful decks. I could have sat all day and watched the river. While having coffee we watched a giant bald eagle make her way up the river with her full wing span out. It was incredible to see. Nothing beats this view.

$61 a night gets you a cabin with everything you need aside from food and bedding. Some are equipped for kids with bunks. Some have upgraded beds. This one did not and it was a very stiff mattress. If that isn't you thing I suggest bringing a foamy! :) You are a small hop, skip and jump from the bathrooms and showers. There are fire pits to use and of course the endless fun adventures to take advantage of. Sitting at the river, gold panning, horseshoes, chess, trails, Mascot Mines, Hedley museum and Doug's Homestead - just to name a few.

Gold Mountain RV Park does it again with their top notch customer service! Why go anywhere else? We don't anymore. Gold Mountain has everything we need for exactly the right price.

Labor Day Long Weekend....

 We decided last minute to see if Tracy and Dave had any campsites free for the long weekend. They had 1 site left. Site #15. In our humble opinion, there are no "bad" spots at Gold Mountain. We didn't mind #15 and were happy to get a site last minute! Tracy emailed me back a couple days later to let me know that a river site also came up as a cancellation if we wanted it instead. We decided to stay where we were but my Brother and Sister in law booked it up quickly for a weekend of fun!

 

The weather was great. We were able to have a campfire. The vibe at the campground was fantastic. As always Dave and Tracy went beyond their calls of duty. What I would like to make special mention of for THIS camp trip is the regulars. Never have I camped somewhere that held such a sense of "community". There is nothing better than taking a walk around the campsite and having smiling faces and waves from other campers who you recognize from previous weekends. Personally, I am all about the dogs. I absolutely love animals and recognize someone's dog before I recognize their owner. I love meeting up in the park with other campers and their dogs. Regular campers come to Gold Mountain from the lower mainland, Penticton, Kelowna and even further. When I set up at Gold Mountain I usually recognize about 4-5 campers now. THAT is an amazing accomplishment for Tracy and Dave. They have honestly created a community at Gold Mountain and to me, it is magically. I will be the first person to admit that I "keep to myself" most of the time when I am camping. However, I don't do this at Gold Mountain. I engage in conversations, pet dogs (and cats!), help out fellow campers with whatever they may need. My kids become friends with their kids.



Our long weekend was peaceful and enjoyable.

















Also big shout out to Doug's Homestead. I bought a package of bacon for roughly $6. The bacon was thick and when I cooked it, it didn't change size and there was no grease. It tasted phenomenal! We also purchased ground beef, beef&bacon sausages and steaks along with the token jerkey and pepperoni. Nothing was greasy. I will now buy my meat when I get out there instead of packing it from home.

Every time I am at Gold Mountain, I forget to take photos of the "front stoop" at the office. What a welcoming site when rolling in! Rocking chairs under a covered porch, a selection of books to take and leave. Always morning coffee for all guests on the porch! In addition this campground has a laundry facility on site. Handy!!

We have booked the last weekend in September as the kids have a couple Pro-D Days. We also booked the Mexican theme weekend for the 1st weekend in October. So our Gold Mountain days for 2015 are not quite over yet! That will make it a total of 7 camping trips to Gold Mountain this year.

On that note, Tracy and Dave opened their reservation lines up on Sept 1st for next years bookings! They have 4 theme weekends next year and most are at least 1/2 full already. DO NOT delay in booking or sadly you will miss out on the fun of theme weekends!!

The purpose of this blog when I first started it was to blog about all of the different campgrounds that we stay at. Sadly, the cost of the provincials have surpassed some private campgrounds with zero amenities. So with this being said, we are sticking to Gold Mountain next year with a mix of some rec sites only. Provincial campgrounds in our area are now at $30-$35 plus a $6 reservation fee per night with no hookups, extra fees for vehicles, sani, wood, etc.... It isn't worthy of the money anymore. So we will be sticking with what we know, what we love and the best bang for our buck! Gold Mountain. :)

For the 2016 year I am going to concentrate the blogging on tips, tricks,  recipes, checklists, ideas for camping with kids, how to maximize space in RVs, etc.

Stay tuned for many more articles!!