We have stayed at Camp Foley group site a couple of times and had very different experiences. This is a small 4 site private group campground located on paved road, with a large common area in the middle to play games or park extra vehicles (that space also makes it very easy to back in your trailers.) The campground is located on the banks of the Chilliwack River, Chilliwack Lake Road runs above the site but you can still hear and see the traffic, which is a little loud at times.
One morning we watched and cheered on a race of marathoners! The site is visible from the road so keeping your belonging secure is necessary if you are leaving for any length of time. The site opens for booking early in the year and all that year’s dates are then available. It is a group site so the entire site has to be booked.
Our Trips
Our first trip to Camp Foley was in 2019 with our daughter’s Australian friends. The weather was warm so we spent time in the river, played games and enjoyed the sunshine. It is great to have all 4 individual sites face the common area in the middle. It gave everyone lots of room and allowed the sunshine into the common area of the site.
Jump ahead to our 2nd visit, August 2023. The area had drastically changed, and that year there was a terrible issue with mice (due to the forest fires the year before.) Reports of mice in all the Chilliwack campgrounds were plentiful but until you experience the impact of these rodents you might not take the stories and warning seriously. That was us!!!
After arriving and setting up, we all gathered for an evening fire. There was a meteor shower that night, and being far from city lights, we enjoyed nature’s wonderful show from this campground. We had had snacks around the fire and empty bowls were left out overnight. As we emerged the next morning one of our group noticed mice droppings on her picnic table. That prompted us to each check our tables and surfaces, sure enough there was evidence of mice droppings everywhere. After cleaning up outside, I headed inside the trailer only to find a bowl of trail mix I had left out to be surrounded by mouse evidence. This was the start of one of my worst camping trips ever.
With clear evidence the mice had made their way into the trailer we were now on a mission, I cleaned and Blair tried to find the entry point(s). These mice are vey small so the entry point would become the challenge.
A smart camper might have just packed up and headed home but we were encouraged by our friends to stay and everyone seemed keen to help solve the problem. As experienced campers we were able to combine enough steel wool, mouse traps, and mouse repellant to believe we were secure from these intruders.
We continued to enjoy the day, playing games, enjoying the river and rehashing the mice wars. That evening we lit our propane fire and settled in for a night with friends. One of our group set a motion detector light under their trailer to see if any mice were roaming around. Well it was a light show! The mice were EVERYWHERE, you could see them moving under all the trailers and around the vehicles. It was like being in a horror movie! We were all careful to put snacks away and keep our trailer doors shut.
As we headed to bed that night, Blair set two mouse traps on the chance some of the entry points had been missed. That began the night of horrors! Our mouse traps went off all night long, as fast as Blair could empty them, they would be triggered again.
The next morning we emerged defeated and exhausted after catching 13 mice. We also checked the vehicles and truck beds, it was clear the mice were winning this war. Mice were under the truck hoods, and in truck beds where they chewed through garbage bags. Sane people would have gone home, but no one has ever called us sane! Instead, off to the hardware store and to re-disinfect the trailer for another evening battle. Our friends helped us caulk all possible access points. We successfully used GreatStuff Pest Block, which is an expandable foam. We sprayed it along the gaps of the ‘winter’ insulation lining under our trailer. That night we ‘only’ caught 3 more mice which were likely still in the trailer from the night before all the sealing was complete.
The memories of that trip still haunt me. Although there have not been mass reports of mice in the Chilliwack area I have yet to return to Camp Foley and will likely avoid it until the end of time.
Campground Details:
This is a group campsite and the entire area must book be booked as one through on line booking. There are 4 individual sites that make a semi circle around the common area, each with its own fire pit and picnic table. The booking site does offer photos of each of the 4 sties.
The group booking allows for a maximum 24 people, 6 per site and if you have more than 4 vehicles you will pay for the extra ones. Key pick up and drop off are all done at the Chipmunk Peninsula cam ground just a short drive down the road. The campground does have a single pit toilet but it does not have any garbage cans and campers are expect to take out any garbage they created.
Pros:
- The site is set up with 4 individual sites facing a common area
- The common area is not treed so it provides a nice sun-lit plaza
- Each site has its own picnic table and fire pit
- Next to Chilliwack River with a rocky shore to sit at while enjoying the river
- Large common area that makes parking and maneuvering trailers easy (the largest trailer one of our group had was 27 feet and they had not problem parking it)
- Pit toilet on site
- Plenty of hikes and walks nearby
- Gated entry to close to discourage uninvited visitors
Cons:
- No grass area
- Just off a semi-busy road
- Only a single pit toilet
- Keys need to be pick up and dropped off at Chipmunk Peninsula campground
- No Cell service at the site, it is about a 10 minute drive to access cell service.
- No garbage cans, the site works on a pack in/pack out policy.
- Mice, or at least there were plenty in 2023
Links
Tea Pot Hill hike
Loop the Vedder race
This post has been updated to correct the campground name.
Camp That Site: Enjoy BC with the right site the first time 
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