Camping has always been a cornerstone of my life. Some of my earliest memories revolve around family camping trips, starting with a tent trailer and later a travel trailer my parents owned, up until our first travel trailer and camping as a family, to now with us touring in a class A motorhome. Even as a young kid, I vividly remember the adventures we had in those campers.
One place that stands out in my memory is Wood Lake RV Park in British Columbia, a magical spot for a kid from a small oil town in central Alberta. The Okanagan region, with its family-friendly vacation spots, drew many families like ours—”flatlanders,” as the locals called us.
The excitement would build in the days leading up to our trips. Packing for a week’s vacation was a big task for a school-aged kid, and I often didn’t pack enough, while my brothers overpacked. After an 8 to 10-hour drive, we’d arrive at Wood Lake RV Park. It felt isolated yet inviting, with its lakeside location, a pool, a small playground, and even mini-golf added later on. The mountains were magical to us kids who lived in a very flat area.
One of our favorite nearby attractions was Adventureland, where we’d brave a giant slide. Climbing up two or three stories and sliding down in a burlap sack was both terrifying and exhilarating. The park had other classic kids’ rides, like teeter-totters, slides, and a merry-go-round, which I loved to spin as fast as possible to see if I could launch my brothers off.
Another must-visit was Flintstone’s Bedrock City in Kelowna. Seeing the giant wooden Fred Flintstone sign by the highway was a thrill, signaling our arrival. Walking through Bedrock City felt surreal, especially since The Flintstones was one of my favorite shows. Meeting characters like Fred, Barney, and Dino was as exciting to me as meeting Mickey Mouse at Disneyland.
I found an old video on YouTube you can watch here:
Wood Lake itself was a paradise. I remember one night, my brother rolled out of the tent trailer and woke up outside, startling my dad.
“Dad. Dad!” my brother said – waking us all up. We were sleeping in our tent trailer then. It was pitch black and you couldn’t see anything.
I remember hearing my dad crawling around on the floor, feeling for my brother. “Dad dad!” my brother exclaimed again.
“Where are you? I can’t find you?” My dad said.
“I’m outside!”
Another time, my youngest brother, without inflating his water wings, jumped into the pool and sank like a rock. We older kids took turns diving to bring him back to the surface. These adventures made Wood Lake unforgettable.
Fast forward about 20 years, and my family had moved to BC. I eventually moved to Kelowna for college, met a girl, and we became a couple. Her parents, who spent winters in the southern US, once spent a winter at Wood Lake. They offered us their travel trailer for a weekend, which we eagerly accepted, relishing the privacy away from roommates.
I later married that girl, and we had a son. One of our first camping trips with our travel trailer was to Wood Lake RV Park. The setup process felt like it took forever, but watching a class A motorhome level and hook up in ten minutes left me in awe. Our son loved the pool, running back and forth in his water wings and life jacket.
We’ve returned to Wood Lake many times. One memorable trip involved friends from work, a guitar that never got played, and a lot of laughter around the campfire. Rumors about the park being sold and turned into condos worried us, but thankfully, it reopened eventually.
Recently, we spent a couple of weeks there, preparing our RV for a journey to central BC. Wood Lake RV Park holds a special place in our hearts, and I look forward to making more memories there with my family. Our connection to this park will continue, either until it closes, or we retire from RVing.