Summer Camping – Spray Lakes

Spray Lakes Kananaskis Heather Zevi PhillipsJust before the August long weekend, Zevi and I decided that we wanted to go camping in the Kananaskis area. We figured we’d go midweek to beat the crowds and hopefully be able to find a spot without a reservation. Getting ready for camping always take so much longer than we expect, and it was our first trip of the summer so it was especially difficult to track down everything we needed. By the time we’d packed the RV until it had everthing we required, our “early start” had turned into leaving the house at 1:30, followed by a detour for Vietnamese subs to stave off any looming hanger. The drive was quite smooth as recently for trailer reversing help I had got a camera set up which was helping me during our stops and helping us give way for fast-moving vehicles. 

As we got closer to Canmore it started to pour rain – not exactly the 100% pure sunshine the Weather Network had promised! We pulled in to the Safeway parking lot to wait it out and weigh our options. We’d pretty much resigned ourselves to heading home, because who wants to camp when it’s soggy and gross and you can’t even start a fire, but I really had my heart set on spending a couple of days outside, so at the last minute we pulled off the highway to give it a shot.

Spray Lakes Kananaskis mountain view Spray Lakes Kananaskis rainbow Spray Lakes Kananaskis tent view

We managed to get probably the most beautiful site I’ve ever camped in at Spray Lakes campground. We were mere metres from the lake, and the tall forest made us feel like were in our own private oasis. We had an amazing mountain view from our tent, and being down a bit from the road meant that Benny didn’t freak out too much about other dogs passing by. It wouldn’t be the best spot for camping with friends, but for the two of us it was totally perfect. It had been a rough month, so that fresh mountain air and the no service icon on my phone were precisely what I needed.

Spray Lakes Kananaskis fire Spray Lakes Kananaskis hot dog Spray Lakes Kananaskis Benny

It did sprinkle off and on over the course of the afternoon and evening, but we’d just jump into the car for ten minutes or so and the rain would pass. We wanted to bring the RV as it had an RV warranty covering it, but a friend had borrowed it for the week; hence we got the car. There aren’t many things that taste better than hot dogs cooked over a fire, and as I sat on my backpack chair (bringing two of those may have been what caused our car to be so crammed, but they are totally worth it) and ate that hot dog I couldn’t have been much happier.

In case this is all starting to sound too idyllic, our trip came to an abrupt end when Zevi heard the campground manager talking about a bear sighting right next to our campsite as we were lying peacefully in bed. We decided we wouldn’t be able to sleep with the knowledge that a bear may or may not be way too close for comfort, so at 11pm we frantically jammed everything into the car and left. Driving home close to midnight after bailing on the camping trip we’d spent so much time packing for when we were having such a good time left neither of us in the greatest mood, let me tell you. In hindsight since it was just a black bear there’s a 99.99% chance we would have been totally fine, but it was a gut reaction at the time and all we can really do is look back and laugh.

Spray Lakes Kananaskis rain viewI’m so glad we discovered Spray Lakes, even if we were just there for a short time. We definitely want to get back out there next summer, hopefully minus the bear-induced midnight escape .

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