Hidden Lakeside Gems
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A Curated Adventure to experience the Lakeland
The only thing better than one great beach or camping spot over a summer vacation is four great beaches or camping spots. With a little planning and driving, take in all four of these hidden gems in the Lakeland, each offering something special.
Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park, Lac La Biche
A beachfront island escape in landlocked Alberta? Yep, it exists. Alberta’s only island park, Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park is located on Big Island on beautiful Lac la Biche. Choose between tenting, comfort camping in a cozy cabin or tipi, or just hanging out for the day. There are sandy beaches for swimming, docks where you can launch a kayak, canoe or SUP — all rented in the park. The trails around the island are plentiful and weave through a 300-year-old forest. Explore on foot or by bicycle. There is also a one-kilometre trail that is accessible to campers who use wheelchairs.
A walking trail is the only thing between the closest campsites and the water. The park has lovely sandy beaches, trails through old-growth forests, playgrounds, and a camp store with boat and SUP rentals.
Must Do: The sunset is particularly ah-mazing from
Boardwalk Beach. Dig your toes into the sand and watch the sky light up in pink and orange. Or, even better, plan your stand-up paddleboarding for sundown.
Chickenhill Lake M.D. Park, Glendon
Named after a ruffed grouse breeding area, Chickenhill Lake M.D. Park is a quiet little park with 29 30-amp powered sites on a small recreational lake with a large sandy beach at the day use area and playground. Bring your volleyball — the beach court here is full of soft sand, great for a day of friendly competition. Choose a lakefront site for sunset views or set up in the forested area to enjoy private, treed sites. Amenities include outhouses, a hand pump for water and dry firewood for sale. Check for fire bans.
Book online via letscamp.ca.
How to get there: From St. Paul, go north on Hwy. 881 and east on Township Road 594 for 28.9 km. The park’s rural address is 59314 RGE RD 482.
Must do: Have a barefoot game of volleyball in the soft sand.
Ross Lake at Whitney Lakes Provincial Park
The forested gem that is Whitney Lakes Provincial Park protects an esker formed when glaciers retreated more than 10,000 years ago. The park has four lakes with camping at three lakes. Ross Lake has the broadest options for camping with 144 powered sites and five unserviced sites as well as showers, flush toilets and a grocery store.
Thirty kilometres of trails connect three of the lakes, but the 4.6 km Glacial Esker Trail at Borden Lake is provincially significant and the park’s pièce de résistance. The kids will get a kick knowing that pilots have been known to navigate by the longest, biggest eskers— like giant worm tunnels from the air—all over northern Canada.
This trail is accessible by hiking the backcountry trails from the northern parking lot. Around this quieter lake, listen or watch for deer, moose, beaver, as well as for frogs and the elusive tiger salamander. Watch for the Northern Flicker, a large brown woodpecker with a long, slightly downcurved bill.
Must do: Hike the esker for raised and sweeping lake views. Check Alberta Parks for advisories
Kinosoo Beach
Kinosoo Beach was named one of the top 25 beaches in Canada by Canadian Geographic and is situated in the town of Cold Lake on the shores of Cold Lake, at 400 ft deep, true to its name.
Stroll a flowered promenade watching kids play on a zipline. Tuck under a shady spot or umbrella and start in on that beach read. Drag the kayak or paddleboard out with the kids and splash into and out of the water. Launch a bigger craft and head out for tubing or skiing or flyboarding.
Swim in the marked areas where it doesn't get too deep. Don't have your own watercraft? Look for Wicked Watersport Rentals' trailer on the beach to rent a SUP, kayak or pedal boat by the hour. Seeing CF-18 fighter jets overhead is not unusual as there is a nearby Canadian military base.
Access to the beach is available by a short five minute walk from Cold Lake Municipal District Campground, right on the lakeshore. The park has 159 spots including lakefront sites and walk up tent sites.
Must do: If you're feeling brave, book ahead to get a Flyboard lesson, the only spot in the province where you can learn to ride the water-powered hoverboard.
