It’s been an interesting and at times challenging year for Woodlawn Regional Park, but those who stayed there during the season seem to have enjoyed the experience.
The park’s short-term camping season will wrap up Sept. 30, while the seasonal campers can remain until Oct. 15. Maureen Daoust, the park’s business manager, said they extended the season due to a late start stemming from COVID-19.
“We had pretty much the same number of seasonals this year as we did in 2019, and our short-term camping was really good, too,” said Daoust. “We had a few more (seasonal) people join us who were anticipating travelling, and then their plans changed due to COVID.”
The seasonal fee was reduced, because some people took a financial hit due to a lost job or reduced wages, stemming from the pandemic.
“We didn’t want to lose people who maybe had been camping with us for a number of years, and possibly, the reduced rate enticed people to come for the season who couldn’t get away due to COVID,” said Daoust.
They also had some short-term campers who opted to camp locally this year. The park tries to maintain a 60-40 ratio between seasonsals and short-term campers so that people can camp without committing to the full season.
The park was at capacity at the Souris River and Boundary Dam campgrounds during the August long weekend. They placed some of their seasonal sites into short-term camping, because the campgrounds were at capacity.
“We did also see an increase in camping out at Boundary Dam (this year), and that was nice to see,” she said.
The Boundary Dam campground has experienced a decline in numbers the past few years, but thanks to the warm, sunny weekends in Estevan this summer, people were eager to spend time on Boundary Dam and the beach.
“It’s beautiful to sit out there and watch the sunset at Boundary Dam,” Daoust said.
The park did not have hall rentals due to crowd size restrictions this year. Lots of people have shifted their rentals to 2021. Canoe and kayak rentals were able to start later in the season.
Fresh Air Fitness was able to open partway through the season, and their athletic facilities also opened later in the summer.
They were part of the Inside-Out initiative with the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum, that saw the works of Belinda Harrow, Monique Martin, Zoe Schneider and Regan Lanning displayed in different areas of the park.
The park still plans to host its annual Festival of Lights in December and January. Local businesses and organization will have Christmas light displays set up at the Souris River Campground. The Christmas in the Park kickoff won’t happen due to ongoing restrictions.
