WATERTON LAKES NATIONAL PARK - Canadian Rockies: Including Banff and Jasper National Parks - page 425

Belly River Campground (mid-May-early Sept., $17 per site), 26 kilometers (16
miles) from the town site along Chief Mountain International Highway, is the smallest (24
sites) and most primitive of the park's developed campgrounds. Located beside a shallow,
slow-moving body of water, facilities are limited to pit toilets, a kitchen shelter, and drink-
ing water.
Campfires are not allowed at the Townsite Campground, but at the other two facilities,
an $8 fire permit includes unlimited wood.
Waterton also holds 12 backcountry campgrounds. Each has pit toilets, a cook shelter,
and a water supply. Open fires are discouraged and are prohibited during periods of high
fire danger; check with a warden. If you are planning to camp in the backcountry, you must
obtain a Wilderness Use Permit from the Waterton Visitor Centre or the administration of-
fice. Permits are $10 per person per night. Half of all sites can be reserved in advance. If
your planned backcountry itinerary takes you over the border, ask at the information center
about border-crossing regulations.
Commercial Campgrounds
You're a little way from the action at the commercial campgrounds outside the park, but
the wider range of facilities (especially if you have a young family) and the peace of mind
in being able to reserve a site with hookups make them a viable alternative.
Waterton Springs Campground (3 km/1.9 mi north of the park gate on Hwy. 6, 403/
859-2247 or 866/859-2247, www.watertonspringscamping.com , late May-Sept., tent sites
$18, hookups $20-35) centers around a large facility building holding modern bathrooms,
a lounge, a general store, and a laundry room. Also on-site is a playground and a fishing
pond stocked with rainbow trout. Some sites are a fair walk from the main bathrooms.
On Highway 5, six kilometers (3.7 miles) east of the park gate, is Crooked Creek
Campground (403/653-1100, May-Sept., $25-29), operated by the not-for-profit Waterton
Natural History Association. The sites are close together, so it's best suited to RVs.
Family fun is the order of the day at the M Great Canadian Barn Dance Camp-
ground (Wynder Rd., Hill Spring, 403/626-3407 or 866/626-3407,
www.greatcanadianbarndance.com , May-Oct., unserviced sites $28, hookups $32-38), a
converted farm lying 40 minutes along rural roads from the park. As the name suggests,
the action revolves around a Saturday evening barn dance, held in an authentic barn. A
casual roast beef dinner is included in the admission of adult $42, child $12.50. Although
the facility is busiest on weekends, you can camp through the week, with activities such as
swimming and canoeing to keep the young ones happy. To get there from Waterton, head