Campfires at Saunders Farm

KITC would like to welcome back guest blogger, Stephen Johnson. Stephen Johnson is an Ottawa writer who loves to write about family travel. During the summer, you will most likely find him and his family at a local fair or festival. During a non-pandemic winter, a beach in Mexico is a likely bet.

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One of the things I missed in 2020 was sitting around a campfire with my family. We were too late on the draw to go camping and my condo neighbours most likely would not appreciate a big bonfire in our backyard (and it’s against City bylaws).

This year, I was happy to see that Saunders Farm was offering campfires. The best part of it is that the campfire is already built for you and the package includes six hotdogs and buns, one package of kettle corn, ingredients to make s’mores, roasting sticks and napkins. Sounded perfect to me. 

We arrived on-site and were greeted by Saunders Farm staff. The campfires were well-spaced out and a person could park their vehicle right next to the campfire. When we pulled up our car, the campfire was already roaring. I loved opening up our box containing all the food ingredients. Much more fun than having salad for supper. We found our three roasting sticks and were ready to cook up some hot dogs. 

I was happy to see the hot dogs were jumbo sized and were not the type to easily fall off the stick. David, Sandy and I roasted up our dogs and worried about our diet for another day. 

Before starting on the s’mores, we took some time to relax and just take in the scenery. We were on a large open field with forest surrounding us. There were about twelve other groups enjoying campfires as well. Kids were running around, families were laughing, everyone was just having a great time. The campfires were so well spaced that the noise from one group did not interfere with the enjoyment of another. It also helped that we had clear skies, little wind and very few mosquitoes!

With our hot dogs properly digested it was time to make some s’mores. My wife, Sandy, goes by the adage it is best to burn the marshmallows as they then help to melt the chocolate. At first, I was not sure but did not object and she helped me make the perfect s’more. Our son, David, was more than happy to burn the marshmallows. By the end, we were a well-oiled s’more factory machine. 

The best part was that even after eating hot dogs and making s’mores, we still had more than an hour to enjoy the campfire. I am the type of person that enjoys having a roaring bonfire. In order to add wood, we had to ask a Saunders Farm employee to stoke the fire. I totally understand as I am sure Saunders Farm probably does not want their guests burning down the farm. Staff were always easy to find and went the extra mile taking a photo of us enjoying the fire. 

David started musing what would happen if you put various items in the fire. We tried a cherry tomato which we got from home. I drew the line when David started talking about smartphones!

Soon enough, it was time for us to pack up and make way for the next group of campfire enthusiasts. I would highly recommend this activity for any family or group that wants the experience of having a campfire but perhaps not the trouble of camping. We were well taken care of from the time we entered to the moment we left. Staff were always on hand to assist with the campfire or any other need. 

Bathrooms were close by and groups were well-spaced out making it a very safe activity. 

A few things to note is a group must bring their own chairs. You are allowed to bring non-alcoholic drinks onsite and can bring extra snacks in case you have a sudden licorice craving. Saunders Farm is also very open to accommodate dietary restrictions including gluten-free, celiac, vegetarian, vegan and halal. It is possible to purchase beverages on-site and fun things like sparklers. 

For more information about Saunders Farm and the campfires, visit, www.saundersfarm.com.

Stephen and his family were provided with the experience for free but all views are his own.

Family Friendly Campgrounds Close to Ottawa

Summer 2020 is the year of camping for many families. Lara shared how her kids love backyard camping, which is a lot of fun, but if you’re also looking to get away and out of urban (or suburban) Ottawa, check out these family-friendly campgrounds close to Ottawa. Some are provincial parks and some are privately owned. Before you book a site or visit, check what facilities/activities are available and continue to follow public health advice, including physical distancing by keeping at least two metres from others, wearing a face-covering when physical distancing may be challenging or not possible, washing hands regularly with soap and water or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.

Cardinal KOA 
609 Pittston Road
Cardinal, ON K0E 1E0
Phone: (613) 657-4536

Located an hour away from downtown Ottawa, this family-friendly campground has amenities for kids including a heated pool, a splash pad, kids climbing wall, a big bouncer, a mini-golf and a pirate ship playground (please note: at the time of writing this, these were closed due to COVID-19 restrictions). Activities also include hayrides on Saturdays and movies under the stars on Saturdays evenings. Summer Saturdays also include activities such as arts and crafts sessions, soccer and bike races.

Cedar Cove Resorts
100 Cedar Cove Road
White Lake, Ontario K0A 3L0
Phone: (613) 623-3133

Located about 45-minutes from Kanata in White Lake (just past Arnprior, Ontario), Cedar Cove offers seasonal sites and weekend camping. There is also a grocery store, pool, sandy beach, restaurant, volleyball courts, a playground (please note: at the time of writing this, the playground was closed due to COVID-19 restrictions). and more. White Lake offers fantastic fishing too and they sell worms and tackle on-site!

Murphy’s Point
2243 Elmgrove Road, R.R. 5
Perth, Ontario K7H 3C7
Phone: (613) 267-5060

 Located on Big Rideau Lake, Murphy’s offers a sandy beach, walking trails, weekend activities as well as an early 1900s mica mine you can book free tours of, as well as family-friendly interpretive programming from June to Labour Day weekend. You can also rent canoes and kayaks for an additional fee (please note: at the time of writing this, these were unavailable to rent due to COVID-19 restrictions) and there is a small general store that sells ice cream and popsicles. If you’re lucky, Chuck Commanda will be onsite building a birch bark canoe (hopefully he’ll be back in 2021). 

Lac Phillippe Campground
300, Lake Philippe Road, La Pêche (Ste-Cécile-de-Masham),
Québec
613-239-5000

The largest camping sector in Gatineau Park with a family atmosphere, located 3 kilometres from the registration kiosk, and close to services, amenities and beaches. 206 campsites, wooded and semi-wooded. Close to Wakefield and offering many trails and beautiful views of the lake, this is one of our favourite campgrounds. 

Rideau River
2680 Donnelly Drive
Kemptville, Ontario K0G 1J0
613 258-2740

Located on the historic Rideau Waterway, this is a nice family campground with shaded campsites. It’s only 40 minutes away from Ottawa and surrounded by many small towns that are also worth exploring. You can rent canoes and kayaks for an additional fee (please note: at the time of writing this, these were unavailable to rent due to COVID-19 restrictions), which is a great way to explore the waters of the Rideau – or if you have a motorboat, you can fish for muskie or bass. 

Wesley Clover Campgrounds
411 Corkstown Rd
Ottawa, ON. K2K 0J5
613-828-6632

Open from June to mid-October, Wesley Clover offers family-friendly camping without travelling very far! Just 15 minutes from downtown Ottawa in a tree-filled setting, this campground is the perfect urban getaway – especially if you are new to camping or have young kids and want to try camping someplace closer to home. There are beautiful urban trails, places to bike and a fire put. There is no water to swim or fish in, but if you’re looking for a night outdoors in a rural setting, Wesley Clover is the perfect campground for that.

Voyageur Provincial Park Campground
1313 Front Road, Box 130
Chute-à-Blondeau
K0B 1B0 613-674-2825

With four beaches on the Ottawa River, Voyageur offers lots of space for families to relax and swim. They also offer a summer nature interpretation program and great fishing right from shore! There are also walking trails and many picnic areas. Great for a day or a weekend stay.

What campgrounds are your family’s favourites?

Skateboarding & Scooter Camps with Evolve Camps In Ottawa

Sports camps come in many varieties from the general all-sports camp offered for all ages to intense training for a specific sport. We get it - choosing the right summer camp for your child is not easy. Evolve Camps operates action sports programs for children across Canada including here in the Capital.

Some Great Questions Ask Your Child

Many times parents like yourself think to themselves “I found the best program, I can’t wait to register my child for this they are going to love it!”, but they do not consult their child before signing them up. In most cases, the parent just ends up with an unhappy camper because the child was put into a program they were not excited about.

Before choosing a program - whether it is with Evolve Camps or not - make sure you ask some of these questions to your child:

• What do you want to do this summer?

• Do you want to skateboard or scooter every day?

• Do you want to learn how to ski or snowboard this winter?

• Would you have fun at a sleep-away overnight camp?

• Do you want to just hang out at home?

• What are some of your friends doing this summer/winter?

• Do any of your friends want to try skateboard/scooter/ski/snowboard with you?

• I found this program called [Evolve Camps]. Here is what they do; how does it sound?

• Out of the camp options that [Evolve Camps] offers, which would you prefer?

About Our Skateboarding & Scooter Summer Camp Sessions In Ottawa

Drop off Summer Camps vs. Bussed Summer Camps

Summer camps also offer a variety of services to help you have easier mornings and even easier afternoons. Generally speaking drop off summer camps are cheaper. These type of summer camp options are great for parents or guardians who work from home or have a flexible schedule a camp.

Evolve Camps like many other programs offers a pick-up and drop off service in various areas throughout Ottawa. The beauty of Evolve’s program is that the kids visit different skateboard parks throughout Ottawa. Campers get picked up in the morning between 7:45AM and 8:30AM and drop off back at the same spot between 3:45PM and 4:30PM.

Some of the pick up locations include:

Earl of March Secondary School, Merivale High School, Hopewell Public School, Lester B. Pearson Catholic High School and Broadview Avenue Public School. Full Details HERE.

Read Online Reviews

We could spend all day telling you about all the amazing things that your child will experience as a camper with Evolve Camps in Ottawa. Rather than hearing it from us, you can read for yourself from our many reviews on Facebook and Google that were written by parents of other children that had a great experience with Evolve Camps. We encourage you to hear first-hand from these parents about the positive growth and benefits that they have seen in their child since attending one of our programs. We also recommend to do the same for any other camp you are considering.

Kids In The Capital Discount

If Evolve Camps skateboarding and scooter camp in Ottawa sounds like a good fit for your child use the following code to SAVE $25 of any session. At check out use KIDSINTHECAPITAL.

Register here: https://www.evolvecamps.com/scooter/ottawa-scooter-camp/?dp=OTTAWA

Follow Evolve Camps online:
Evolve Camps: http://www.evolvecamps.com
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/evolvecamps @evolvecamps
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/evolvecamp

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Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Evolve Camps.

A Whitewater Adventure with Wilderness Tours

KITC would like to welcome back guest blogger, Stephen Johnson.. Stephen Johnson is an Ottawa writer who loves to write about family travel.  During the summer, you will most likely find him and his family at a local fair or festival.  During the winter, a beach in Mexico is a likely bet.  
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Last summer, one of our family highlights was going on the Ottawa City Rafting Tour.  Once the warm weather hit this year, we decided to relive our whitewater adventures.  We wanted to go further afield and chose Wilderness Tours which is located about an hour and twenty minutes west of Ottawa along the Ottawa River.

Arriving on-site,  the first thing I was impressed by was the size of the facility.  They have a restaurant, overnight accommodations, bungee jump and basketball courts amongst numerous other features.  We signed up for the family gentle rafting day trip and were quickly processed.

Our guide, Drew,  quickly instilled confidence as he briefed all participants about the safety aspects of the trip and introduced the other guides.  He had a laid back attitude, not about the safety, but made everyone feel at home and excited about the experience.

Soon enough, we were hopped on a yellow school bus and were ferried to our drop-off point on the Ottawa River.  With lifejackets on, we met up with Drew and were heading down the river in our raft. The trip started off with a bang as we took a rapid appropriately called Initiation.   Drew called out for everyone to get into our safety positions as we hit the rapid. It was exhilarating but I never felt in danger.

After getting through the first rapid, what would come next was incredible.  We passed through a second smaller rapid and then saw a few people on the other rafts pointing.  We came around the bend and saw two majestic eagles. One was perched on a rocky outcrop while the other was further back in a tree.  The closest bird was only about fifteen metres or so from our raft. It is the closest I have ever felt to being in a wilderness documentary.  After about a minute, the bird flew off leaving all of us with our jaws still in the water.

It was hard to top what we had just seen but the rest of the day was amazing as well.  At a calm point along the river, everyone had a chance to get out of the raft and go for a relaxing swim.  

After cooling down, we were back inside the raft heading to our next big thrill. We took the Butterfly rapid at full tilt offering up a lot of excitement. Next, we headed to an area of the rapid called Caterpillar Hole where it was possible to position the raft as if we were surfing. This was David’s favourite part of the entire trip. He loved having the waves crashing into him as the guide expertly managed our raft. I was happy I was on the side furthest from the waves only getting mildly drenched.  

Before lunch, participants also had a chance to get out of the raft and take one of the rapids on their back.  I am not the strongest swimmer in the world so passed but it looked like everyone was having a good time.

Once all the raft and body surfing was done,  it was time for lunch. We landed on shore at the scenic Garvin’s Chute with huge appetites.  I’ll be honest, I was expecting perhaps warmed over hot dogs or floppy burgers as we were in the middle of the wilderness.  Instead, we got super tasty sausages and chicken burgers. It was as good as anything you would get in a restaurant.

With our hunger satisfied, it was time for the final leg of our journey.  We took a couple more smaller rapids. My family and the other people in our raft playfully teased me as I dropped down to the safety position for each rapid.  

We wrapped up the day by landing our raft on shore and being offered  a glass of water, mango juice, lemonade or craft beer which was brewed at the nearby Whitewater Brewing Company.

It was time to get back on the bus and head back to the headquarters.  Everyone looked exhausted but happy from an exhilarating day on the river.   

I would highly recommend the family rafting tour for almost any age.  There were certainly a few thrills but the guides were very safety conscious and kept us in good shape.  The day was also seamlessly organized. We never had to wait for the bus, lunch, etc. It was obvious they have been doing these tours for a long time and also know what they are doing.  

For more information, visit www.wildernesstours.com

Packing Tips for Sleepaway Camp

I'm on year four of packing my kids for sleepaway camp and every year I learn something new that helps with making the process go a little more smoothly - for both the parents AND the kids. So, I thought I would share some of those tips with you and save you some of the trial and errors we've gone through.

1. Labels - lots of labels

It takes a LOT of labels to label everything for summer camp. I often under estimate how many we'll need or forget to order them until the last minute.

I love Mabel's Labels because they ship really quickly and they have a camp specific kit that makes it easier for me to know what I need. I go through a lot of their little labels on clothes (and stopped bothering to label their socks) and put multiple big labels on the really valuable things (like life jackets!).

I also just order our last name since a lot of the stuff passes from kid to kid and when I'm lucky, some of the things are already labeled when I go through it the next year!

While I am sometimes tempted to not label everything, the camp my kids go to do the entire cabin's laundry in one go, once a week, so having names on things is an easy way for everyone to get their own stuff back.

2. Send the old stuff

These kids are going to get DIRTY and stinky and wreck a lot of the clothing that gets sent to camp. Send the old crappy clothing and don't worry about trying to get them all kinds of new stuff.

Along this same note... be prepared that some things won't make it home - the brand new water shoes and lifejacket that disappeared are ultimately a small price to pay for the amazing experience of camp! :)

3. Plastic bins and plastic drawer systems

I've been using the bins for three years and only just discovered the drawer systems so haven't implemented it yet, but will definitely be doing this next year.

Plastic bins are a great way to store all the non-clothing stuff and get it to and from camp easily. I've found that some of the cabins have shelving and storage and some don't, so having an easy way to separate the clothing from the other things the kids will need is a handy and easy way to pack.

I recently discovered something other parents do and plan to try it next year: buy plastic drawer systems and essentially deliver your children to camp with a dresser and their clothing already organized! 

4. Make sure your kids know what's theirs

The first year my child tried to use shampoo as insect repellant for a week (WHAT?!) because he never took the time to read the bottle carefully and last year one of my kids thought he didn't have a toiletries bag because he didn't recognize the one on his shelf with all of his stuff (that was also full of his stuff) so BORROWED toiletries all week. 

Make sure your kids know what they have with them, even if you're only finalizing all the packing late the night before you leave, or all your time and effort may go to waste if they don't even realize all the amazing stuff you packed them is theirs!

5. Get your kids involved in the packing

My kids each get a copy of the packing list and they are responsible for getting me everything they're bringing in one spot, creating a shopping list for what they're missing and labelling the items. Packing kids up for camp is a big job and I get them as involved as possible. See note above for what happens when they aren't involved in every single step! ;)

I keep learning more every year but hopefully these tips will help make packing your kids up for sleepaway camp a bit easier!