Overnight Camping Prohibited at Indian Fields Park Reserve

Overnight camping is being prohibited at Indian Fields provincial park reserve.

The 1,600-hectare park reserve borders the southwestern boundary of the Tobeatic Wilderness Area in Shelburne and Yarmouth counties. It encompasses most of Clamshell and West Horseshoe lakes, borders five other lakes, and sections of the Roseway and Clyde rivers.

It contains several high-quality, fresh-water beaches and has been a popular area for outdoor recreation activities like canoeing, fishing and hiking.

In recent years, as many as 100 recreational vehicles have settled in the area for long periods each summer. But the park reserve does not have water or sewage services to properly accommodate overnight campers.

Makeshift facilities at the site cannot properly protect the waterways, watershed and wildlife habitat and do not adequately ensure the health and well-being of campers and others using the area. There were also concerns that partying campers sometimes discouraged people from using the area for traditional recreational pursuits like fishing and canoeing.

To make it clear that the area is for day use only, no-camping signs have been erected and barriers are being put in place.

Overnight campers face fines of $215 under the Crown Lands Act.

A review of the park reserve is expected to be undertaken within the next two years to determine what outdoor recreational opportunities may be developed.

A park reserve is an area of Crown land that has been set aside for potential development and management as a provincial park.