1 > Camp Doggie ‘George’
Please do not feed George no matter how cute he is and how much he acts as though he has not eaten anything for months. George is very allergic to many foods and is on an “all he can eat” special diet. He becomes very ill from food off his regular diet. So remember – do not feed George (or Ingo) no matter how much they beg.
2 > Campground Speed Limit
The new, wide, smooth road into the resort may seem like a highway to you after the bumps you have experienced the past few years, but please keep your speed down to 10km/hr anywhere in the camp resort from the gate to the lake. The entire resort is a playground zone. Children may just run out in front of you chasing after a ball, people are walking their dogs along the road, our lama and alpaca are disturbed by speeding vehicles and dust, and the dust also bothers all our campers. Let’s take a deep breath, slow down, and leave the rat race outside our gates!!!
3 > After Hours Vehicle Traffic
Please be considerate of your neighbours and the campground quiet time. Please park near the exit / entrance if you must enter the campground after 11:00pm or leave before 8:00am, so the noise of driving in or starting your vehicle and driving out doesn’t wake up everybody close to your campsite.
4 > Spring site clean-up
You are welcome to use our utility trailer to dispose of your site leaves and natural debris. Just rake everything into piles instead of using garbage bags and we will help you load it up….just to be on the ‘eco’ side of things.
5 > Recycling
Take advantage of our recycling program. Please clean and sort your recyclables and place them in the marked bins located in the club house porch area. Our recycling space is limited; it would be better if you could recycle the large purchase packaging materials at your home base and take any other large items (such as bicycles, old toys, etc.) to the local waste transfer site (where some local kids might just recycle them!).
6 > Garbage Disposal
Please place tied garbage bags in the garbage cans provided at various locations around the campground. Some campers are placing their garbage on top of the cans (instead of inside the cans) enticing the mice, squirrels, skunks, crows and magpies to zoom on in and have a ‘make a big mess’ party. They are really good at this kind of party. The birds especially are very smart, they instantly spot an unprotected garbage bag and flock to it. Please do not place any garbage or food in your fire pit or spill grey or cooking water on your site. These practices are very unhealthy for people and their pets, they attract unwanted wildlife and they make for a messy campsite after you leave.
* Burning plastic is extremely hard on our ozone, please do not burn any unnatural materials at our eco-camp resort.
7 > Cigarette Butts
Please ensure cigarette butts are out and properly disposed of. Continuously picking up cigarette butts is a real bummer for those of us trying to keep our resort as beautiful, natural and litter free as possible. Cigarette filters have a half life of hundreds of years, and they make an unbelievable mess when the lawn mower hits them and spreads them around. The toxins in cigarette filters also have an incredible negative impact on marine life, birds, small animals, anything that eats them, including small children. Just Google “half life of cigarette filters” for a real eye-opener.
8 > Sunflower seeds & Peanut shells
Sunflower seed and peanut shells are organic, but they seem to take forever to break down, leave the place looking very messy, and are impossible to rake up. Please use a container for your “ spits” and shells.
9 > Cabin Fever
We all know it has been a long winter and all of us are very excited that warmer weather has finally arrived so we can get out and play. However, please ensure your children are aware of the camp rules and are given a bit of a pep talk before releasing them to go wild at DeGraff’s. There have been a number of incidents and complaints so far this weekend such as: Kids shooting BB Guns at other campers, kids throwing rocks off the big gravel piles at passing people + vehicles, a major water fight in the washrooms, bullying at the trampolines and on the playgrounds, kids moving the picnic tables and jumping off of them onto the trampolines, kids roaming around making a lot of racket after 11pm quiet time, broken windows at the club house, kids tampering with camp equipment and climbing on buildings and a lot of garbage thrown around the grounds. These are just a few of the incidents, let’s all work together to keep this a happy, safe and clean place for everyone to enjoy.
10 > Electric cars for kids
We have received concerns about the dangers of kids with electric cars on the roads. Please ensure your child is playing in a safe area, not on the public roads, to avoid accidents.
11 > B-B Guns
No guns whatsoever are allowed on site except for water guns, and those must be kept away from buildings.
12 > Boat Parking
Boat parking seems to be an ongoing controversy. Please continue to use your ‘regular’ boat parking spot, and we will assist the newcomers to find a spot. We have opened the field east of the boat parking to ensure there is enough space for everyone.
13 > Vehicle Parking
Wherever possible, please park your vehicle directly in front of or behind your site. The green spaces are for playing, not for parking. We know parking is tight in some sites, but it should suffice for one vehicle. Please try to travel to the resort in one vehicle wherever possible, so as to minimize your impact on the environment and to help alleviate some of our parking issues.
14 > Winter Storage Fee
There is a $150 winter storage fee for your camper unit every year. Degraff’s Eco-Camp Resort has chosen to waive this fee if you arrange payment of your site rental fee for the following season by April 1 of each year, but you are responsible for this winter storage fee if your payment is late or if you decide not to return to camp with us the following season.
15 > DeGraff’s & Wild By Nature Release Form
The DeGraff’s and Wild By Nature Adventures camp programs / special events and recreational equipment including playgrounds, the dock and trampolines are a definite highlight for our campers and their guests. Please ensure your family and any of your visitors sign a waiver form at the camp office prior to participating in any of the camp programs / special events and before using any camp amenities. You cannot use any of our facilities or equipment, or participate in any activities before filling out and signing a waiver form. You may fill out only one form per family for all activities at DeGraff’s Resort, as long as all of the participants’ names are included. If you have signed a waiver in the past, it will suffice. Please call us if you have questions regarding this form (403-782-2193).
16 > Trampolines
We are leaving it up to the parents to supervise their children to ensure their safety on the trampolines. Parents should be aware that a lot of “social interaction” between children and teens takes place at the trampolines…most of it good, but sometimes altercations do arise. We will of course take care of any issues we observe, but we cannot constantly be monitoring the use of the trampolines and they are in constant use, from early morning to late evening. Only one person is actually allowed on the trampoline at a time….we will leave this to the parents to enforce as well. More people on the tramps at one time sooner or later results in someone being hurt, and too many people at once also stretch the springs and mats beyond repair. No shoes, bikes, sharp objects or any foreign objects….only people with bare or socked feet are allowed on the trampolines. Let’s all do what we can to keep these unbelievably popular trampolines as safe and in as good a condition as possible, given the incredible amount they are used. Anyone abusing their ‘trampoline privileges’ will have their privileges revoked and will not be allowed to use the trampolines until further notice from the camp managers. If problems continue and these conditions are not respected, the trampolines will have to be removed.
17 > Boats
Please do not leave unattended boats tied to the docks, especially on the launch (north) side. It is unfair to others trying to find enough room to launch and to dock their boats, and both the boat and the dock could be damaged with the slightest wind. Also be aware that the wind changes direction very quickly, and that our protected campsites can give you a false sense of security. A slight breeze at the campsite can be a wind whipping up 2 or 3 foot waves on the lake, and it can be coming from a different direction on the lake than it is in the campground. We have seen lots of beautiful boats damaged by their owner’s negligence. We would hate to see your great day at the lake ruined by a damaged boat, and we would also have to add insult to injury by charging for the repair of the dock if a boat damages it.
18 > Sudden Storms
This lake is a wonderful place to play, but it can go from dead calm to 3 foot waves in two minutes or less, and to five or six foot waves in five minutes. Ingo grew up on this lake, and he has seen unbelievable storms blow up so quickly that even attended boats are at risk….often everybody has to work together to help each other get their boats onto the trailers and out of the water. Some boats have filled up with water while they are on the trailer, boats on boat lifts have been pummeled by 6 or seven foot waves until they were pushed right through the boat lifts, sail boats securely anchored in deep water have been beaten up by huge waves until they broke apart and sank. Enjoy all our beautiful Gull Lake has to offer, but please be aware that there is absolutely no shelter on our side of the lake, and keep an eye out for changing weather. It is great to see the force of nature, but it can be very dangerous to anyone caught out in it.