Screen shot of the Alberta Parks online reservation system.

By Alex McCuaig

Great outdoors

Online Alberta Parks reservations see brisk business as campsites prepare for June 1 opening

May 14, 2020 | 4:34 PM

ELKWATER, AB – Reservations for campsites at Alberta provincial parks opened Thursday morning as part of the province’s Stage 1 relaunch strategy. By the afternoon, many outdoor adventurers had snapped up a lot of prime real estate.

Provincial park campsites will be operating at 50 per cent capacity to begin with and the earliest anyone can spend the night at a site is June 1.

But businesses such as Elkwater’s 12-34 Cafe say they are ready for the anticipated influx of campers.

“There is a lot of people tired of being cooped up in town and I think the reservations are going to go quick,” said cafe manager Dave Ziegenhagel. “I can see come June 1 right to the end of September – after the September long weekend – Elkwater is going to be very busy.”

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And Ziegenhagel says he expects things will heat up in the Cypress Hills as soon as this weekend with the park open to day-trippers and anglers looking to escape the global pandemic if only for a short break.