Pinehurst Lake Conservation Area
July 2009
468 Pinehurst Rd., RR 3
Ayr, ON N0B 1E0
Approximate latitude 43° 16' 3" N
Approximate longitude 80° 23' 39" W
WEB: http://www.grandriver.ca
Park review: I give this park a 4 out of 5.
This campground has great treed lots but some sites - like the one we got can be pretty small. Some have uneven slopes, or your tent has to fit on those tent pads. We had to squeeze our tent and dining room on this site and we were constantly tripping over pegs. Our van barely fit on our site and even hit a tree one day trying to fit it in. If you look at the sites on their web site and it says poor drainage - expect to have your tent in a lake after a rain fall. The electrical sites were large and had plenty of trees. Even though a road runs along the side of the park - I didn't notice any excessive car noise.Pinehurst has 230 campsites in four camping areas, of which 166 are serviced with hydro and water. Quiet Hour in the campground is 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. and ALL camping areas are radio-free. Up to six people are permitted per campsite. Check in is after 2 p.m. and check out is before noon.
We had no problems with animals getting into our stuff, except one critter who took a bite into 6 juice boxes then made a tee pee with them in front of our tent door lol. We did hear racoons in the dumpsters at night fighting over food. This park has Towering pines, lots of wildlife and neat little trails to explore. The park is kept very clean. This park enforces a strict 11pm quiet time and is radio free - we had a problem one night with a couple fighting - cops were called and they were removed from the park. It has a large man made pond with a nice big beach for swimming, beach in clean and has a concession booth open Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. during May and June starting the May long weekend. In July and August, it is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., but hours are subject to change. Generally it offers french fries, onion rings, ice cream and refreshments.. You can also rent paddle boats and canoes for $12 an hour. The beach also has a play park for kids. Just off to the side of the beach are some docks - you will find the largest dragon flies I have ever seen down there, and you can see the fish swimming right up to the shore!
The only down fall I found was the beach is not really within walking distance from the camping area if you have small children, it's a 4 min drive into the day use area of the beach.The park also has a small pond filled with lily pads - which the kids loved to explore. As well as another park inside the camping area. Another bonus to this campground is a private store that you can get to from the park that offers anything camping related, firewood (buy it here not the front gate - bigger bag and only $8) ,gas , as well as ice cream. This campground also offers online booking which can be done through the grand river web site. Just a heads up that all showers through the grand river conservation area are $0.25 so make sure you pack quarters. There is also only one flush toilet station in the park this also houses the showers - from most campsites it's a one minute walk. All other toilets in the area are out houses.
The town of Paris is a 5min drive down the road which has a grocery store,McDonald's,Timmies, and some spectacular views that are worth the trip to see.
Cost: $28/n unserviced 7 days a week Location: Ayr ON 2 hours from Sarnia
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