Meadow River (Elliott Knopp/meadowlakeNOW Staff)

By Elliott Knopp

Summer Parks Review

Meadow Lake Provincial Park receives higher attendance despite wildfires, COVID-19

Aug 20, 2021 | 3:14 PM

In a summer filled with concerns surrounding COVID-19 and wildfires across the country, many people have found relief through engaging in activities like travelling and camping to make the most of the season.

Meadow Lake Provincial Park seems to be one of the beneficiaries from this mindset as officials with the park are reporting the local sites have seen attendance numbers that could surpass the all-time highs.

Park manager Trevor Finlay said the total number of people visiting the provincial park aren’t expected to be released until the end of the year, however, he expects the totals to rank near the top of the list.

“It’s probably one of the busiest summers on record for the park,” Finlay said. “We were extremely busy this summer.”

He mentioned an increase in first-time campers seemed to be one of the key contributing factor to the above-average numbers.

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This comes in a summer heavily consisting of fire bans put in place to decrease the chances of starting an accidental fire. So far in 2021, 561 wildfires have been recorded solely in Saskatchewan, more than double the provincial five-year average of 261.

While fire bans serve to protect the environment, humans and wildlife, they can have a significant affect on a camping experience. Many campers rely on campfires to prepare food, stay warm and set the scene for a late night with family or friends.

Finlay shared many of those visiting the provincial park were respectful of the fire bans. There was a portion of travellers who ignored the restriction, but rather than approaching these individuals with fines and penalties, crews used these situations as a learning opportunity.

“We try to educate people and let them know the reasons why the fire bans are in place. There’s lots of signage out there explaining why the fire bans are in place, and I would say we had a few people that broke the rules,” Findlay shared.

“In general, I would say people were very compliant. I think they understood the situation, particularly with the news of what was going on in B.C. and all around Saskatchewan.”

During the season, Meadow Lake Provincial Park staff continued to deploy enhanced cleaning protocols in site washrooms and service areas to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Findlay said despite mandatory public health measures being lifted in July, these sanitation efforts were continued to provide camp goers with confidence that they weren’t at risk of transmission.

“We got a lot of feedback from our visitors saying that they felt very satisfied with how clean our facilities were, so that was always good,” Findlay explained.

“Some people were definitely nervous about it, but we did our very best to try and make people comfortable.”

A new reservation system was introduced for online bookings earlier this year which reportedly had experiences some difficulties early on, but eventually were resolved out as the summer progressed.

As the summer slowly approaches the end of the season, Findlay reflected on the season, calling it a success while expressing gratitude for the visitors.

“I want to reach out and say thanks to everybody for supporting the parks in Saskatchewan. It’s been a great year.”

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elliott.knopp@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @ElliottKnopp