Where is the Best Place to Camp Around Lesser Slave Lake

LBZ

Active VIP Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2010
Messages
3,068
Reaction score
3,651
Location
Central Alberta
Looking for a good place to camp around Lesser Slave Lake. Plan to do a little mid week fishing and camping in July up there.
I was thinking about Hilliards Bay provincial campground. Sites are big, tree'd and nicely spaced out. Plus I can reserve two sites side by side in advance for me and my brother. Just wondering if anyone else has stayed there recently.

I looked at Shaw's but you can't reserve, their website doesn't even show a site map and they want $10 a day to use the launch so not going there.

Any other recommendations on where to camp? Or fish?
 

m1000db

Active member
Joined
Oct 23, 2009
Messages
123
Reaction score
32
Location
Vermilion ab
Looking for a good place to camp around Lesser Slave Lake. Plan to do a little mid week fishing and camping in July up there.
I was thinking about Hilliards Bay provincial campground. Sites are big, tree'd and nicely spaced out. Plus I can reserve two sites side by side in advance for me and my brother. Just wondering if anyone else has stayed there recently.

I looked at Shaw's but you can't reserve, their website doesn't even show a site map and they want $10 a day to use the launch so not going there.

Any other recommendations on where to camp? Or fish?
My favorite was always Spruce point because of the great marina which last time I was there was $17 per day.. but totally worth being able to walk to your boat and go.. if your coming from Edmonton or anywhere south spruce point is also a lot closer than Hillards Bay or Shaws point. There is great fishing very close to the campground as well and you figure out where the fishing is in a hurry by following the boats.. My favorite spot to fish was the drop off which if you head north and slightly west (turn right)when you get out of the Marina and head out about 3.5miles.. when you see the line up of boats out there..just get in their line and you will be on the drop off. There is also pretty good fishing in 10ft of water out in front of the white cabin which you will find if you follow the shoreline north out of the marina a few miles.. My favorite bait was a med sized black Jig head and a minnow..I went there 15 years in a row...but ended this string of 2 wk holidays there in 2011 because I was fed up with their booking system which they seemed to change every year.. Wrote on my comment card that it was very frustrating that they would not allow booking a specific site nor confirm which site you had until you arrived...I guess when you have people lined up to get in there you can afford to loose a few customers as long as it makes it easier for the staff...
 

snochuk

Active VIP Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2006
Messages
6,193
Reaction score
20,176
Location
Edmonton
We usually go to spruce point also. Marina is excellent but when there two years ago after the flooding the marina shore was all blue algae with no postings anywhere of the danger and they had no intention of posting and did not for the 6 days we were there. Kids did no swimming in the area.
Martin Mountain provincial park has a nice beach for kids, go out 150' and still only 2.5' deep. Good finshing right off shore at the drop off which can be seen from the lookout at the top of Martin Mountain. No marina and about 20K to town. Burned lots of gas in boat running back and forth every day as I will not leave boat anchored overnight do to pounding that beach takes in a storm and there are surface rocks on beach. Drove all the way to town in 6' waves once and that was enough for me, if it gets stormy I get off the lake as 6' is really not that big for the lake, makes the marinas on the lake nicer places to stay if you havea boat.
Hillards is nice also but can be a very busy marina. Most activities for kids I would say is Hillards but Spruce point has a good playground and minnie golf.
Try them all and see what you like, one year each. There are other campgrounds but I have not stayed in them so can't comment.
Hillards Bay at shallower part of lake and gets more algae than Martin Mountain end of the lake.
 
Last edited:
Top Bottom