The Happy Camper: 2025 Brings Big Changes To Ontario Parks
The year 2025 will bring significant changes to where canoe trippers can pitch their tents at night in some Ontario parks. Some paddlers say the changes are good; others are going as far as calling the beginning of the end.
Let’s start with the change in reserving backcountry campsites in French River Provincial Park. For the 2025 paddling season, Ontario Parks has implemented a site-specific reservation model for all backcountry paddling campsites at this Provincial Park, which previously had divided zones to reserve. This “site-specific” style of booking a backcountry site isn’t new. Other parks, such as the nearby Killarney Provincial Park, have already transitioned to this type of reservation when overcrowded by visitors, especially beginner canoe trippers.
Parks like Algonquin ask visitors to book specific lakes and choose any open site. Quetico allows a certain number of paddlers to enter each access point per day. More northern parks that get less traffic allow you to go rambling around the wilds, stopping wherever you darn well please.
The majority of paddlers I’ve encountered have praised the French River’s 2025 reservation system change. It eliminates conflicts among canoe groups racing for the best site and offers peace of mind at the end of a long day on the water. It also allows the people working on and maintaining the park a critical tool to identify and hand out penalties for garbage left behind and bylaw violations.
However, to the hardened canoe trippers, site-specific reservations destroy the true essence of paddling through wild areas. Being obliged to arrive at a specific site may also increase risk, which is already a concern on the ocean-like waters of the French River Delta out on Georgian Bay.
Temagami has also changed its backcountry reservation system for 2025. For sections of Temagami (Obabika River Provincial Park, Solace Provincial Park & Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park), Ontario Parks has implemented a five-month advanced lake zone/area reservation model for all backcountry campsites. This means that for bookings made for the 2025 season, you will be able to create your reservation up to five months in advance of your arrival date. In the past, those seeking to acquire permits were only able to do so up to 14 days in advance.
While these changes may seem positive to most, others are wary of the shortcomings. When you book within the five-month window for the 2025 season, you will be prompted to select a specific lake zone/area for each night of your reservation. In the past, reservation holders have been asked to select a “zone/park.” Many paddlers are thankful they’re not going to the site-specific system, but a solid group of traditional Temagami canoe trippers say that the old system simply provided paddlers with more options and a lot more freedom. It completely deletes any sense of “adapt and roam.”
Another noteworthy change for 2025 backcountry travel is the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) pausing any new applications (including renewals) for Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) permits. In the past by acquiring an RABC permit, canoe trippers would be allowed to portage across from the United States into Canada anywhere along the border of Boundary Waters Canoe Area and Quetico Provincial Park.
There goes the idea of elongated canoe journeys that retrace historic routes between the two countries. There goes the love affair between American and Canadian park users. There goes the ideologies made by legendary park advocates of the Boundary Waters and Quetico, Eric Morse and Sigurd Olsen. They’re probably rolling in their graves right now.
It seems some Ontario Parks are taking away the canoe tripper’s ability to have a spontaneous adventure. No longer can you “go where the wind takes you.” To some, that’s a clear sign that true wilderness simply doesn’t exist anymore.
What’s next? Ontario Parks creating “premium sites” that can be reserved with higher fees? Don’t laugh, the rumour is out that it’s coming to a park near you in 2025.
This site specific stuff does not fly with me. If I want that then I’ll just go to some campground. No thanks!
None of this would be necessary if the parks weren’t overrun and people behaved courteously.
There is still enough Crown land out there to wander and roam. Go for it!
5 months in advance réservations have kill the camping vibe of trips and camping as you go… all sites are reserved for 3 measely week ends for à lot of people while empty sites sits but cannot be reserved… unless you are Lucky. For working families that only have week ends… not great for planning 5 months ahead.
This reservation system will exclude older paddlers who can not predict advance health limitations months in advance. It goes against the fundamental principle of wilderness travel.
It’s necessary in this age of ‘I’ll do whatever I want’ for a system like this to be implemented. Gone are the days of personal responsibility and caring. Uncaring people have brought this on themselves and now we all have to live with it.
Donald Chase
The idea of site specific campsites ruins the whole experience. Have a rigid itinerary to go from A to B takes away all the enjoyment wandering around freely in a park that you used to be able to do that in all the time. My experience in many parks has been if it’s a heavy wind day you stay put. If it’s a heavy rain day you stay put. If you’re doing around trip and this happens and now you are restricted to an itinerary there’s no freedom. And you risk conflict with other trippers. Last year I went to Booth Lake in Algonquin Park the site specific on that Lake that I had somebody was already on it I paddled around for 4 hours before I found it site and it happened to be the last one. There is absolutely no joy in this. They need to just restrict the amount of people that go in. Instead they’re just out for the cash grab. Very disappointed to say the least.
It’s a fact, the world is becoming smaller. People are every where now, including in the bush and on the lakes. We see it both crown land camping and in the parks.
While it’s nice to see so many people outdoors, I have been to all of these parks within the last 7 years and can attest they are overcrowded.
We now approach planning our Provincial Park canoe/back country trips in the same way we plan our city trips. Time of year and location matter. If it’s a popular location, we go during off peak season. Yes, we chance the weather, water levels and bugs in exchange for less people in the park. Sad but true.
Thank goodness there are so many amazing parks in Ontario we can choose from. We choose a different park each year.
I experienced site specific reservations for the first time may 2024 in Killarney. I liked the fact that my days are less rushed and more relaxed as I do not have have spend part of it looking for a site on a lake BUT that means if I arrive on a busy lake earlier in the day I can’t just move on to another site if by chance the current occupants of my site for that day are still there and are not required to move along until 2pm. Also I do like that abuse of sites can now be tied directly a party who reserved it…I’m hoping that enables much better enforcement of regulations which hopefully leads to educating those who beleive that the rules don’t apply to them and put future site users at risk because of it.
The prettier drive in waterfront sites at Oastler already have a premium price.
One of the reasons I liked canoeing in French River Provincial Park was that I did not have to reserve any campsites and I could go there at any time (let’s face, planning 5 months in advance isn’t easy and I’ve ended up canceling quite a few of my reservations; besides, my paddling partner often flies from Europe and he can’t plan that far ahead).
Although sometimes my “favourite” campsites were occupied, there were plenty of others available, which often turned out to be even better. So, I’m not too crazy about this new rule. Perhaps a better solution would be designating SOME campsites as reservable—and letting the others to be used on a first-come basis?
Incidentally, I went to French River Park for the first time in 1995. There were no fees and no designated campsites at all!
I agree with Donald Chase’s comments (“The idea of site specific campsites ruins the whole experience… My experience in many parks has been if it’s a heavy wind day you stay put.”) Although nowadays we usually stay on just one campsite (like in the Massasauga Provincial Park) or the crown land (Franklin Island, Philip Edward Island), there have been plenty of times we were unable to continue our trip due to strong winds and had to spend up to 4 extra nights on the same campsite before finally being able to continue our trip. If our campsite were reservable and other people showed up (e.g., kayakers, who can often paddle in rough weather—or even boaters), there would certainly be conflict with other trippers—yet what other choice would we have? After all, canoeing in such a weather would be extremely risky, if not outright impossible.
The commodification of sites flies in the face of wilderness camping ethos. We have lost sight of the freedom to paddle and camp as required. We need flexibility to choose a site as conditions permit. A step backwards in my opinion.
As much as I believe that most of us wouldn’t need the rules of site-specific booking, the sad fact is that there is a need. There are enough people out there causing issues that they feel this is a necessary step, and I can’t say I’m surprised. With the rise of interest in outdoor travel, there has also been a big increase in people not respecting the areas they are exploring or the other people using them. I don’t have a magic fix, nor do I know if this change will fix it, but it will at least give them more of an ability to hold people accountable.
As camping -canoeing and backpacking, has surged in popularity, especially since Covid, some of these changes in park management are crucial for Ontario Parks to try to manage the sheer number of campers, both seasoned and less-experienced that are flooding the parks system. And as with any change, some people will love it and some will hate it!
There are many people trying to enjoy a limited number of attractive and accessible water sites. If this doesn’t suit you, there are literally thousands of lakes in this province – as well as crown land – that is available to you.
As a novice canoe tripper who just started out this year, I understand the advantage of a site specific booking. Not having to feel like you have to “race” to get a campsite on a popular lake. However, I feel the loss of flexibility and freedom overall outweighs the advantages it brings. I envy those who started canoe tripping years ago when the parks weren’t this crowded and there probably wasn’t a need to consider these changes.