**PAST EVENT** (ON) Intro to Frontcountry Camping – Killarney Provincial Park – August 2024
- Friday, Aug 23 - Sunday, Aug 25, 2024
- George Lake Campground, Killarney Provincial Park, ON
- Cost: $75
- Beginner
Event Details
This event will be held on the traditional territory of the Anishinabewaki ᐊᓂᔑᓈᐯᐗᑭ (specifically, the Ojibwe (also called Chippewa), the Odawa (also called Ottawa), and the Pottawatomi, Huron-Wendat, and Mississauga territories.
We love our allies, but due to very limited space, this event will prioritize BIPoC registration.
We are excited to invite you to our first camping event in Ontario, held in partnership with the North Face and Killarney Provincial Park. The 3 day, 2 night event will include:
- An introduction to front country camping (packing, camp set up, and cooking)
- A campfire safety session
- A 1.5 hour birdwatching hike
- A 3 hour introduction to canoeing led by ORCKA certified instructors.
This event is designed to be inclusive, welcoming, and accessible to participants of all fitness levels while encouraging folks to learn more about camping and canoeing in Ontario provincial parks. We will be camping as a group of 6. There will be 5 community members and our Ontario lead facilitating the weekend.
**Note: This event is not guided and everyone is expected to attend at their own risk. Our leads are experienced campers that will provide as much information as required to have a safe trip, but are not professional guides.
Details:
Cost: $75 tax inclusive. This includes campsite fee tent, sleeping pad, sleeping bag, camp stoves, pots and pans, fuel, firewood, canoe rental, paddle, life jacket, and boat safety kit, and binoculars.
Location: George Lake Campground, Killarney Provincial Park
What to Bring:
All camping gear (tent, sleeping bag, sleeping mat, camp stoves, fuel) will be provided by Killarney Provincial Park. Killarney Outfitters will provide paddles, life jackets, and safety kits with the canoe rentals. Binoculars will be provided by Killarney Provincial Park.
You will need to bring:
- A thicker/comfier sleeping pad or air mattress if you wish
- Your food for the weekend
- Sunglasses/sunscreen
- Water bottle
- Dress for the weather and activities – comfortable clothes to move around in and have sun protection
- Swim gear + towel if you want to swim (the campground has a beach)
- More detailed packing list to be provided later.
Transportation: Please note: each participant will be responsible for getting to this event. You can organize carpooling through our Private Facebook Group. If you are carpooling with someone, please make sure to chip in for gas/parking.
Application Details:
The program will be run on an application basis. We are prioritising individuals who are interested in and committed to building community with BIPoC to go camping with, and would like to prioritise Black and Indigenous registration especially. We encourage you to reflect on your personal experiences and use that to guide open and honest responses. Please do not treat our events as a discounted service. Please reach out to let us know at [email protected] if you apply and later find that you can no longer make the dates.
Application deadline: August 3rd at 11:59pm (EST).
Selection Process: We respectfully ask that you do not contact us to inquire about a spot in the program; once applications close, we will be in-touch via email between August 5th – 6th with the participants who have been selected. To ensure that our email finds its way into your inbox rather than your spam folder, please add [email protected] to your safe sender list. After that timeframe, the next folks on the waitlist will be contacted.
Policy and Community Guidelines
Inclusion:
At Colour the Trails, we are dedicated to fostering an environment that champions inclusivity, respect, and equality. We want to make it clear that we will not tolerate any form of anti-Blackness, anti-Indigenous attitudes, racism, homophobia, ableism or transphobia within our organization or community.
Photo & Video Release Consent:
By purchasing a ticket you grant permission for Colour the Trails and sponsors to use any of the photos or videos from this event that have been taken by Colour the Trails videographers and photographers. They will be used for the purpose of sharing experiences with the community and encouraging future participation in events, which can include but is not limited to, print or digital versions, social media and websites without compensation or recognition given. Colour the Trails will not use the photographs in a manner that would exploit or cause malicious representation toward you. Please contact [email protected] BEFORE the event if you do not want to be photographed or on video during an event.
Cancellation Policy:
Cancellation Policy for Multi-day Adventure, Summits, Retreats, or Partnered Events
This policy applies to larger events, including summits, partnered events, and multi-day overnight events, where attendance planning and logistics are especially crucial. These events take us months to plan and execute. We understand that unexpected situations may arise that require event cancellations, but we want to ensure smooth and fair execution.
- Cancellation Timeframe: For cancellations made at least 20 days in advance of the scheduled event, participants will not incur any penalties. You can request a full refund or choose to transfer your payment to a future event.
- Cancellation Within 20 Days or Specified Period: In the unfortunate event that a cancellation is requested during specified time frame, or no show happens, the following policy will apply:
- Refund: Cancellations made less than 20 days of the event will not be eligible for a refund unless we manage to fill in the spot.
- Penalty: A six months ineligibility to attend future events. We leave a right to cancel any registration of the person under penalty in this time frame. After the six month ineligibility period has elapsed, participants can once again sign up for future events without any restrictions.
Content Creation Statement
We ask to respect our work and not create content to promote any brands or organizations during our events. Our team is putting a lot of energy and time into creating community spaces with little support and unrelated organizations should not benefit from our hard labour. You are encouraged to share about Colour the Trails work as it shows the welcoming and safe space we are creating and word of mouth helps our community to grow!
Please view the full list of community guidelines here.
FAQ
What is frontcountry camping?
‘Frontcountry’ means an area within 1 km of a highway or park road.
‘Backcountry’ areas are more than 1 km away from any roads.
‘Wilderness’ is generally used to describe remote backcountry areas with no facilities.
In the context of this event, we will be car camping – driving up to our site and camping there. We will not be hiking or paddling to our site.
What time do we have to arrive at Killarney?
Programming will start around 5 or 6:00 PM with getting tents set up and dinner ready before we have our campfire. So it’s best to aim for arriving around 4:00 PM to account for any delays traffic etc as we don’t want to be setting up in the dark or have dinner get delayed.
What will we do during the event?
We’ll show you how to set up your tent, cook on a camp stove, run workshops about fire safety, birdwatching, and canoeing. We’ll also have some campfires and time to relax and socialize
Are there toilets?
Yes! Flush toilets are available in the campground and the day-use area. Pit toilets are provided throughout the park.
What’s a pit toilet?
It’s an outhouse with a toilet that doesn’t flush.
Should I be worried about bears?
We’ll learn lots about bears and other animals during the weekend. But generally, bears like to avoid large, noisy groups which we’ll be!
Will there be water?
Yes, there are water taps in the campground. Water taps and water fountains are available in the day-use area.