The region’s most popular camping spots are now open for business.

Reservations are now being taken for Kokanee Creek and Syringa provincial park campgrounds, with reservations opening for campsites in select parks in the West Kootenay and across B.C. for the 2025 camping season.

Although half of the campsites B.C. Parks operates are managed on a first-come, first-served basis, there are some like Kokanee and Syringa which accept reservations well ahead of the camping season.

Campsites can be reserved four months ahead of the desired arrival date. Reservations for the May 2025 long weekend opened this week for Kokanee, Syringa, Champion Lakes, Pilot Bay Park (Kootenay Lake), Rosebery Park, Summit Lake Park, McDonald Creek (Arrow Lakes) and Beaver Creek Park.

To make a reservation, visit: https://bcparks.ca/

Park it here

This is the year you visit one of the region's top camping spots. The following list is why.

Arrow Lakes Park

• Shelter Bay campground, booking opens May 1
• Park is open May 1 - Sept. 30

Upper Arrow and Lower Arrow Lakes are a widening of the Columbia River and lie between the imposing Selkirk Mountains on the east and the Monashee Mountains on the west.

Narrow strips of beach varying in width are interspersed with rocky headlands and steep cliffs along both shorelines of the lakes. These give way to heavily forested mountain sides that rise rapidly to elevations averaging 2,500 metres on the west and 2,700 metres on the east.

Champion Lakes Park

• Champion Lakes campground, booking open June 15
• Park is open June 1-Sept 15

Champion Lakes Park offers an all-inclusive recreational package to visitors. This includes fishing, canoeing, mountain biking, swimming and hiking. Over six kilometres of trails link three lakes together.

Nancy Greene Park

• Nancy Greene campground, no booking available
• Park is open May 15-Sept 30

A roadside park with a natural setting and sub-alpine lake. It is the perfect place to enjoy fishing, picnicking, walking, swimming, boating and in winter nordic skiing. The special feature in the park is the sub alpine lake.

Pilot Bay Park

• Pilot Bay backcountry, booking available year-round
• Park is open year-round

Pilot Bay Park is the safest harbour on Kootenay Lake, where boaters often gather to weather out the summer storms. The water is warm in the bay for swimming and some of the best fishing for trophy “gerrard” trout is nearby. There is an extensive network of hiking trails through the park and along the Pilot Peninsula. It is an easy walk to the historic Pilot Bay lighthouse which has been restored by area volunteer groups. Even though it is primarily marine accessed, the park can be reached by road.

Rosebery Park

• Rosebery campground, booking available May 15
• Park is open May 15-Sept 15

Tucked along the banks of Wilson Creek, this park has an intimate, forested creek setting that offers secluded camping for overnight travellers or visitors seeking more adventure.

Summit Lake Park

• Summit Lake campground, booking available May 9
• Summit Lake group picnic area, booking available May 10
• Park is open May 9-Sept. 28

Summit Lake Park is a six-hectare park located with in the Nakusp range of the Selkirk Mountains. Park visitors enjoy canoeing, fishing for rainbow and cutthroat trout or swimming in the lake’s clear, refreshing water.

Syringa Park

• Seven different campsites and day-use areas; booking available May 1
• Park is open May 1-Sept 30

Recreation opportunities on the Arrow Lake Reservoir have made the park a long time popular destination. This park offers a comfortable base camp for visitors to pursue a variety of activities including fishing, boating and swimming.

Beaver Creek Park

• Beaver Creek campground, booking available May 1
• Park is open May 1-Sept. 30

Beaver Creek Park is a popular local recreation area that offers vehicle-accessible camping and nature trails. It protects habitat for various species of wildlife and vegetation, some of which are rare and endangered.

McDonald Creek Park

• McDonald Creek campground, booking begins May 1
• Park is open May 1-Sept. 30

Situated just south of Nakusp, McDonald Creek Park is one of a system of four provincial parks on the Arrow Lake reservoir. With facilities on the eastern shoreline, it is a holiday destination for swimming, boating, jetskiing, waterskiing and fishing opportunities. It features several kilometres of fine sandy beach, waterfront sites and open grassy meadows.

Further afield

Provincial parks in the region that do not have camping facilities, but are still worth a look include:

West Arm Park

West Arm Park extends along the shore of Kootenay Lake, from Nelson to Harrop and up to the peaks behind. The creek fans and pocket beaches are popular with boaters and there is a historic trail (not maintained) up Lasca Creek. The park is largely undeveloped and there are no facilities or designated campsites.

King George VI Park

King George VI Park protects several species of endangered plants and is home to a variety of wildlife. Old-growth cottonwoods buffer the park from adjacent land use and offer additional habitat for a variety of cavity nesting birds, such as barred owls, pileated woodpeckers and red-naped sapsuckers.

The park was originally established to provide a day-use rest stop and campground for people entering Canada from the United States along Hwy 22. The facilities were vandalized and ultimately removed, and BC Parks has returned it to its natural state.

Erie Creek Park

Erie Creek Park protects a mature cedar-hemlock forest and riparian black cottonwood ecosystem along the northern banks of Erie Creek. Despite the park’s small land base (15 hectares), it provides an essential wildlife corridor for large mammals. In addition, Erie Creek retains healthy populations of both rainbow and introduced brook trout.

The park was formerly a day-use area, however, constant flooding and the resulting damage to facilities prompted BC Parks to close the site. Currently, the park is unsigned and deactivation of the entrance road and parking area discourages day-use.

Grohman Narrows Park

Grohman Narrows Park protects special natural habitat of several species of provincially significant plants, animals and insects. A small island included in the park also contains a stand of old growth black cottonwood that provide habitat for many birds.

The park also provides opportunities for local outdoor recreation and nature appreciation. It is used by residents for walks and occasionally by school groups as an outdoor classroom for nature studies.

Cody Caves Park

Cody Caves is a unique provincial park located in the Selkirk Mountains above Ainsworth Hot Springs. In the Cody Caves System, an underground stream flows for over a kilometre through ancient limestone.

Lew Creek Ecological Reserve

Lew Creek Ecological Reserve was established to protect a complete watershed containing an elevational sequence of three biogeoclimatic zones in a wet interior environment.

Ecological reserves protect special natural ecosystems, and support research and education. They are not intended for outdoor recreation. However, this ecological reserve is open to the public for non-destructive activities like hiking, nature observation and photography.

Consumptive activities like hunting, fishing, camping, or foraging are prohibited. Motorized vehicles are not allowed.