Awenda Provincial Park - A Great Experience

Our family has gone camping for years. My wife and I camped even before we had kids, and we have visited many of the provincial parks in Ontario.

We just came back from what we felt was truly the best experience camping (excluding weather). It was at Awenda Provincial Park, near Penetanguishine / Midland. This is a fabulous park, particularly for those with families. While I don't have time to get into all the aspects of what we liked in detail, I would like to point out a couple of tings which may be of benefit to those looking for somewhere to camp, particularly if you have kids, and even if you don't.

I have two big pet peeves when it comes to camping: privacy and noise. I like more of the former and none of the latter. They are inter-related. One can argue that noise is everywhere...maybe, but I find that at campsites which are within close proximity of each other (and you can tell this by whether you feel comfortable taking a wizz in the bushes in broad daylight), you tend to get noise at night, from either rowdy young adults who had too much to drink, or those who can't shut their dogs up.

Most campgrounds offer radio-free sites, but radios have not generally been a problem over the years, for us. Awenda offers radio-free and pet-free sites (we were in the Snake campsites). At night it was so quiet.

But moreover, the camp sites are so spread apart, you cannot see your neighbour and it's not because of simply a dense smattering of trees, but each site really is a bit of a hike from the next. We camped with friends who have kids who are a bit boisterous when they talk and I'm not kidding you, you could not hear them, day or night. And yes, they were talking and shouting. We could hear a bit of other neighbours, but it was so faint, you didn't even know what they were saying...everyone had kids, so it was a great family area. Also, not be awakened by some yappy canine was such a treat! I really do not like dogs period, and I am glad that they had pet-free zones at Awenda.

Another forward-thinking family-friendly aspect to Awenda Provincial Park was that they had kids' educational programs running daily, whether it be learning about the habitat of some animals or the local industry in the surrounding towns. This is great for those parents who want variety and it is also a nice alternative when the weather does not co-operate.

While I did not go to the beach due to my aversion to beaches and my self-imposed avoidance of anywhere scantily clad women may be, my wife and kids went and they said the beach was awesome - white sand, clear water, lots to do.

The entrance to the park was a nice long ride in the car...if you have bladder control problems and are relieved to see the "Welcome to Awenda" sign, be prepared to wait for some time before hitting the registration desk. It's not as bad as Algonquin, but it's not your common short-distance from highway to park entrance either.

Only a few things I didn't like about the park - 1) the outhouses are not lighted, so expect to take a dump in the dark (our last camping experience, which was at Arrowhead, near Huntsville last month, was eased by lighted outhouses). 2) some comfort stations (showers) are nowhere near walking distance - they could have probably put more of them in, but that may simply cause more traffic. 3) Getting to the park was a bit of a challenge - you go into Penetanguishine, and go through a few streets before hitting a concession road, and then more turns. The Awenda signs along the way are very small. If you have a GPS, you'll be fine; if you're using a paper map, study it carefully before heading out.

I didn't get a chance to fish this weekend, mostly due to weather (it rained all weekend and it was freezing cold), so I can't speak on the fishing aspect, but I do plan to go back there next year with the family.

Overall, I really enjoyed Awenda and plan to go back. I really liked the privacy (lots of trees and shade), the quietness, and the stuff for kids to do. Each campsite has a longer-than-usual "driveway" to get into the site, so your campsite is not as close to the road as some are. The beach was great, and there are good hiking trails if you want to burn off your hamburger lunch.