Driving to Alaska is a grand road trip and a bucket list adventure for some. For travelers from the lower 48 states, that are camping along the way, Riverbend Campground is a popular stop. For those brave travelers, we encourage you to read on. Be Prepared In the past we occasionally had travelers with limited knowledge of Canada arrive with snow tires strapped on their roof and even extra gas cans on board. Today’s campers are much more knowledgeable. Today’s tourist has a better understanding of what they will encounter in Western Canada. Continue your research to avoid issue. For example, A ..read more

There is a growing interest in learning more about Indigenous history and culture and which has lead to a significant growth in Indigenous Tourism. Riverbend Campground is an excellent base for a your family’s discovery adventure. A camping staycation has become an extremely popular way to continue creating family memories. Adding a theme can enhance enjoyment of the great outdoors. In previous posts we have this guide for Planning a Staycation as well as Birdwatching Staycation, Fishing Staycation, and Introduction to Horses Staycation. In this post we offer information on our “Indigenous Tou ..read more

Where to Camp in Calgary Tourists travel to the Calgary area to experience the sights and attractions of the city. Over time we have seen the elimination of many camping options in the area but Riverbend Campground continues to be a popular choice because of our great Calgary access. It’s just over ten minutes to the city limits on the Queen Elizabeth II Highway. For more on camping in Calgary check the blog post here. Getting Around When visiting the city most of our campers drive because access is fast and easy. And traveling around Calgary is relatively easy. Avenues run east and west, and ..read more

Popularity of Daytrips When camping at Riverbend Campground, some guests like to take day trips. For people vacationing in the area, it’s an opportunity to explore. For weekenders that live nearby, it’s a chance to revisit favorite spots or discover something new. There are many options from urban adventures to communing with nature.  One area that should be on your list of top picks is a day trip to Kananaskis Country. The Beginnings Kananaskis Country is referred to as Alberta’s Mountain playground. It takes its name from the Kananaskis River which was named by explorer and geographer J ..read more

This year we provided opportunities for our campers to give us more feedback. Roads are often mentioned. Here is a small sample of the comments from campers’ surveys. Roads can get very dusty at times better roads I would pay an extra $50 a month, for paved roads, in the main roads. when it rains the road into and in front of our lot is left with a big puddle (lake) this needs to be filled up Road improvements (pothole repairs) We’d love the road on the ISLAND to be serviced with gravel. Its a mud pit in the spring, and when it rains Dust Keeping speeds down is the first step in r ..read more

When families are searching for a campsite, choosing a campground or RV park with lots of trees is often at the top of the list. Mature trees provide shade for those hot days of summer, protection from wind and attract birds and wild life. Being close to nature is an important part of the allure of camping for many. The Riverbend Forest When you drive into Riverbend Campground, take a moment at the top of the hill and look out over our forest canopy. From above it is impressive. Of course, over time we lose trees, During the floods of 2013 we lost many mature trees along our riverbank. We also ..read more

All short-term campsites at Riverbend have picnic tables and firepits. One advantage of our campsites s flexibility. Picnic tables and firepits are placed in spots that best suit the way campers want to use their site. Our picnic tables and firepits are moved a great deal. A family might want the firepit away from the bedrooms so talk around the fire late at night doesn’t disturb sleeping munchkins.  Some people want the table close to facilitate meal times while other families eat inside and want the table out of the way. Off-Season Project The off-season at Riverbend Campground is l ..read more

Neighboring Property Years ago, there were two campgrounds just west of us here at Riverbend. We had another privately owned operation called Wilderness Campground. They were located in the area at the base of the hill with their entrance along North Railway just before the east bound road curves and goes up the hill and on to our entrance. The second campground neighbor was the Okotoks Bible Camp which was south of Wilderness along the river. Both camps ceased operations a number of years ago. After closing, Wilderness Campground fell into disrepair. The campground infrastructure was removed ..read more

History of the Horse Our introduction to horses begins with some history. The history of horses in the Canadian west is very interesting. There is evidence that wild horses roamed the plains and foothills of Alberta 10,000 years ago. These early inhabitants are classified as the Mexican Horse which is now extinct. The cause of their disappearance is unclear. You can learn more here. After their disappearance, there were no horses in this area until about 500 years ago. Europeans brought them to North America in the mid-1700s by Europeans. As one might imagine their introduction had a sign ..read more

Cooking is Part of the Fun Campfires are a very popular part of the camping experience,. Who doesn’t love to roast wieners and toast marshmallows. Never take this activity for granted and never forget that you are dealing with fire. To ensure everyone has fun be sure to check out the campfire safety tips below. Safety First We recently published a post to our blog on RV Fire Safety. You can read that here. That post included a brief mention of campfire safety but we wanted to provide a more in-depth look at this. We feel this information is pertinent right now based on a recent incident at the ..read more