Hecla / Grindstone Prov Park

[Faced]

Booked a 2 night stay at Hecla this weekend.
Never been, I know the resort is closed but the campground is still going good!
We have a 15AMP no water site, the booking site had pics making it look like a very secluded site.

Will post a informative review upon arrival and thruout the camp weekend!

Any pre trip suggestions are appreciated.

 

[Faced]

Made our way out to Hecla for the 2 day weekend, this park is quite a hike from Wpg, so be prepared for a good 2 - 2.5 hours to get there.

Upon park entry there is a large Light house sign and pretty well maintained roads.
Campsites are all very well secluded, and even have sites for 2 units that are joined at the driveway! Great for duo camping.
Showers were clean warm and free, and bathhouses are located at each block.
Firewood is NOT available on site, and must be bought from Gull harbour (5mins away) OR Hecla Village about 20 mins away.
There are 15 and 30 amp plugs at ALL elec sites, and no water to any sites.

No restraunt or store at the grounds, but a very limited shop avail at Hecla Village, or Riverton (45mins away)

We had to stay in the pup most of the time due to terrible storms, but overall it was still very enjoyable!

 

[darrenandmelissa]

We went there a few years ago and loved the camp ground. The fact that it is a fair drive from the city and not much to do in the surrounding area will probably keep us away for a while.

My favourite part was the beach, it feels like you walk through the woods and out pops the beach.

So is the resort permanently closed now.

 

[Faced]

Yep,

Resort is closed, but still very well maintained! The drive is far, however this is one of the few campgrounds where I never heard anything other then nature outside..
No trains, no highways, no parties. Just me at one with the outdoors.. And all my gadgets.. LOL

 

[darrenandmelissa]

Have you ever been to Spruce woods? About the same distance from the city and also secluded.

 

[Faced]

Went to Spruce Woods As a kid for boy scouts, but not as a pupper....
This is one of the parks that will be visited this upcoming spring/summer.

 

[jinxiepie]

We camped in our pup for a week there last year. it was okay. i would not say this is a family friendly area. We went with our 3 yr old and found that most of the grounds are seasonal campers and are a bit older. We hardly saw any kids or families when we went in mid july. the play structures were very old and metal and too hot to play on (DD got bum burn). The biking trails were awesome, and they have a wonderful dog beach where you can swim in the water with your family. the grounds are well maintained but not modern. the beach is far from the campground, and is quite the hike.

But beware the water is very polluted and gross. We only went to the dog beach, and we saw a lot of feces floating in the water one day, so the dog went for a swim and we didn't. The water coming out of the showers was yellow/orange and smelled like rotten eggs. We had an electrical/water site, and even the hookup water was disgusting. We made the mistake of letting our dog drink the well water coming out of the tap the first day she had the runs for the whole week. I wouldnt wash my dishes in that water so having the water hookup was a waste. We brought water for drinking cooking and washing dishes that lasted 3 days, then we drove into a nearby town to buy more bottled water. Lucky for us I like to do pre-prep of fruit and veggies and all our food was washed at home and ready to eat.

 

[Dubbya]

We camped at the Gull Harbour Campground for a weekend two weeks ago. Being that school wasn't out yet, it was still pretty quiet and there were plenty of sites available. All sites are well treed, reasonably level, quite private and we LOVED the paved roads since there's not a lot of dust blowing around.

Several sites with water/electrical service but they need more full service sites.

Restrooms and showers were clean and in reasonable condition but they're getting old.

Park staff were friendly and courteous but pretty much invisible outside the CG office. As far as I could tell, they only drove around in a golf cart on Sunday afternoon to check the sites and ensure those that hadn't registered for the day had left. To be fair, it's early in the season and I'm sure they'll have more staff on hand when school lets out for the summer.

Nice, modern playgrounds for the kiddos but not a lot of services in the surrounding area. You can pick up a few items at the gas station in the nearby village but it's pricey and selection is very limited but you can shop always pick up groceries in Gimli on your way out or bring what you need with you from home. On the other hand, the bike paths are nice and the girls seemed to enjoy riding their bikes to the store in Hecla village for candy. The village also has some tourism spots relating to regional and Icelandic history (Don't expect much but it's something to do if you're bored).

We found the beaches were fairly tidy (no visible garbage) but not at all well maintained with a lot of lake litter, stones, brush and shrubs on the beach and shoreline. We don't have a boat but if you've got one, evidently it's a great place to go boating and sightseeing. Hated having to climb up a hill to get back to the parking lot, your experience may vary.

Gull Harbour Resort is open for business now, so there's a little more traffic but it's not a problem.

The restaurant/pub at Gull Harbour is cute as a bug and the staff are friendly and personable. Service seemed good enough and the food they offer looks tasty as well. They've got several summer kitchens (screened eating rooms) outside with painted decks to walk on. Had us thinking it'd be a great spot to take larger groups. Their convenience store wasn't staffed so you had to go to the restaurant to have someone come out and open up the store. I know it wasn't high season but still, a little annoying. The Gull Harbour Motel is getting old as well and the rooms are small but the folks we talked to seemed to enjoy staying there.

Long story short. Gull Harbour Campground is a pretty decent place if you like quiet, well treed sites, don't mind driving on two lane highways and don't need a lot of services. I give it 3-1/2 out of 5 stars.

 

[jnbarrett]

For those who have dogs, there is a beach dedicated for them (Sunset Beach) here on the West shore of the campground. It's a short hike through the woods and well marked.

It's kind of rocky so bring water shoes for yourself. It can get a bit choppy on windy days when the wind is coming out of the West.