Blue Lake Resort — Hotel in Area A (Boston Bar/North Bend/Canyon Alpine)

We've now had the pleasure of staying at Blue Lake Resort twice, and are planning another trip back next month!

It's close enough to the lower mainland that the kids don't get too restless on the journey. Once you turn off the highway, it's a somewhat gnarly (but well maintained) switchback up the side of the mountain (honestly if you can't back your RV or trailer 20 meters downhill to the closest pull-off without taking out your family, why are you operating one in the first place?), and there's a gate they lock at night and unlock in the morning (one way in, one way out) so no unwelcome rando-visitors in the middle of the night. They have some awesome cabins you can rent, big gravel sites for camping or RVs, smaller dirt sites for people who just want to drive their car up and camp in a tent... Big open group campsite areas in a field... Many of the sites have water and/or power. Yeah it's a spigot or an electrical box coming out of the ground, nothing special... But it works, and you can safely drink the water!

They have a nice playground and petting zoo for the kids, a "general store" with just about everything you could need while you're camping including ICE!!, fresh eggs from their chickens, ice cream, drinks, even hatchets, gas cans, propane bottles, and dollar store toys. You can buy firewood by the tote... about twice as much in a tote as you'd get at a gas station, for about the same price -- and it's nice and dry. They have clean washrooms, nice showers, even laundry machines. We didn't spend much time at the lake, but if that's your thing, then you won't be disappointed! If it's not your thing, you'll still have a great time! They have boat rentals as well, we're probably going to try that out next time.

But even with all this awesomeness -- what really helps set Blue Lake apart from others, is that they want mature, responsible people who can keep it quiet at night and clean up after themselves. So if you have kids, especially young ones, this is the place you want to go. Quiet time from 10pm to 8am, and they enforce it with patrols. The first time we were there was May long weekend. They were packed full. Everything was going great until some idiot decided to throw a CO2 cartridge in the fire at 1am "to see what would happen". They immediately addressed it, ended up calling the cops out (it sounded kinda like a gunshot)... and dealt with it. The next morning the person who did it came around and personally apologized to everyone. This time when we went, there was what appeared to be a bachelor party setting up across from us, so we were like "oh great". The staff were pre-emptively handling it, letting them know that they'd be kicked out if they couldn't keep it down at night and then coming to us to emphasize that if there were any problems, call them and they will be all over it. They were being a little rowdy after the 10pm quiet time, and around 10:20 the staff did a patrol without being asked and told them to keep it down. They were fine after that, just some random outbursts every so often but it wasn't waking up the kids so it was all good. They actually ended up kicking out another party that was getting out of control on the other side of the campground, and to our surprise the bachelor party ended up not being a problem at all!

The staff is also amazing. If you're respectful and polite, you get it right back and they will go out of their way to help you (like getting us a broom and dust pan to sweep out our tent and re-arranging our August stay dates/campsite because we didn't like the one we had picked for it after seeing it).

On the way out, one of the owners thanked us for being exactly the kind of campers they want. It's just a great place, it feels good to be there and we don't have to constantly worry about our kids or some drunken brawl breaking out, etc.

If you're looking for a place to have a rowdy party, don't bother because they don't want you there and you'll be told to leave! If you're looking for a nice, safe, clean, friendly place to camp, then this is the...

We stayed here for 5 nights and were tenting. Booked a double site near the playground and washroom/showers. It was a good central location. 3 min walk to the beach. Our site had good shade cover for most of the day. It was a double site with two picnic tables but only one fire pit and one water tap. Would be awkward if it was rented as two separate sites as there is no separation or privacy but maybe it is only rented as a double site. Trying to find level ground for the tents was a bit of a challenge and we had to clear many rocks before we could set up. The entire campsite itself was covered by many rocks which made walking around tricky especially for the younger ones. There were a few tumbles for sure. Check in was quick and easy both on line and in person. We visited the store once for ice. It seemed to be well stocked with all the essentials that you might need if you run out or forgot something. Didn’t have much interaction with staff but the ones we did encounter were pleasant. The kids enjoyed the playground. They couldn’t play on it mid day until after dinner as everything is plastic and extremely hot. The petting zoo is right there too. (pls note: the slides are REALLY fast. My 2 year old grandson flew off the end and bounced 3 times before stopping lol) The grandkids loved the nightly movie that played in the common area. Wreck-it Ralph was the favourite. The bench you have sitting there is in need of repair or replacement. though. It is not structurally sound and dangerous. If you are supplying one, I would suggest one with a back on it. That would be would be much more comfortable since you are sitting there for the length of a movie. The beach area was very nice. It’s not a huge area but we never felt overcrowded. Great for young kids as there was no sudden drop off to deeper water. Not a lot of shade so come prepared with an umbrella or shade tent. The lake is lovely, very clean, nestled in and surrounded by mountains. Like most lakes, feels chilly at first but once you’re in it is so refreshing. It was quite windy the week we were up there which made kayaking and boating a bit more of a work out. The no dogs on beach rule was ignored by many pet owners, however they did have them on leash and most of the dogs seemed to be well behaved. Not too much barking that we noticed. Luckily, none of our party were scared of them but I could see that being an issues as the beach area is small. Perhaps a small clearing with a designated dog swim Area could be implemented in future improvement plans. The quiet time of 10 pm seemed to be ignored by many guests but most did settle down by midnight and it was quiet. It got louder as the weekend got closer and sites filled up. Our last night there (a Friday night) there was no water at the tap onsite or in the bathroom sinks. Assume the shower and laundry facilities would have been affected too. The toilets still flushed though. The water flow was better by morning but not fully restored. I was stressed by all the reviews about the road up there as I am a timid driver. It almost made me reconsider my reservation. I planned my trip so I would arrive later in the afternoon in hopes of not meeting any late checkouts coming down. I drive a small SUV and made it up and down without incident. Did meet one truck but I saw them coming and just pulled over as far as I could and let them pass. The road was wide enough for a big truck and trailer and there were wider areas where you could pullover if needed so I felt ok in my car. I was looking as far ahead as I could in case I needed to find a pullover spot. There was only one small section where it felt a little narrow (god bless you brave souls that drive a huge trailer up there) and there were no barriers between you and the edge bit it was only a short section of the entire drive. I’m not going to lie, It was only about 5 mins each way but I was happy to reach the end of it going up and coming down. Overall, we had a really nice...

Our family camps at many different campsites all summer long and we've been coming to this campsite for 12 years. Love the lake, campsites are kept in good condition and amenities are great. But we will NEVER return!

The owner needs to brush up on his customer service! Completely rude from the very start. Treated us like we were privileged to be at their campsite.

We understand if they have to enforce rules. But there is a way in which it should be delivered. Yelling, screaming and swearing is not the way in my opinion.

Overheard staff calling guests "Idiots" because they were not following traffic signs. Grounds keeper was having a temper tantrum with the garbage cans because guests were not putting things in proper bins. Understandably, I can see them being frustrated, but maybe keep comments and outbursts for staff meetings and not in front of the guests.

In the end, it is not the campsite that is getting the low review, it is the owner and staff.

EDIT - RESPONSE TO OWNERS COMMENTS Thank you Jim for your kind words. At this point I am not surprised by what you have said. I have read your other responses to bad reviews and your rudeness follows you even after guests leave. Let's make things clear:

Friday and Saturday night- we got a kind reminder at 10 oclock that quiet time was at 11. As your son does his rounds to all campsites every night. We did not see him again either night. He even apologized for our neighbors being too loud. Clearly we were not being a problem.

Sunday night- I will agree, we were up late. You ended up yelling, screaming and SWEARING in your underwear. Very professional. This was the first time all weekend and evening that we were asked to keep it down. If you received all these complaints why wasnt it addressed earlier? I understand having to police rules. And our intentions were not to keep anyone up or cause problems. And we did go to bed after your blow up.

I did not rent any equipment but my fellow campers did. So that is something you would have to discuss with them directly and not on your response to my review. But you did rent them a canoe which they discovered had a hole in it while they were in the middle of the lake. They had to frantically scoop water out while trying to get back to the dock. Thankfully they made it back safely.

I also did NOT say "see you next long weekend" as expressed in my review, we would never return. Even though we have been loyal customers for over 10 years and have always recommended your campground to friends and family.

In regards to the late check out: you came and told us that we had to pay the late fee, but we could stay until 8 oclock if we wanted. When I came to pay the late fees you were the one that was hostile. You sat outside of the office on your phone and when I approached you and I handed you the money, you did not even look up to acknowledge me.

We DID NOT leave your campsite in a mess. I checked it over and over to make sure. The campsite was left as it was when we arrived. We put the fire out with large jugs of water and it was not burning when we left. I should have taken pictures to clarify all of this.

We did not "steam" out of your campground either. We patiently waited near your office to use your sani dump, only to find out that it was full to the surface. You then explained to us to just let out our tanks slowly. No thanks!

This review is not to justify us being up late and disturbing our neighbors. Where our group has a problem, is how you handled the situation. Which was explosive and uncalled for.

I do find it funny that you comment on our "behavior" but your behavior while we were there and your responses clearly spell out your true character. And clearly shows that we are not making any of...