Burnt Beach Recreation Site

Burnt Beach Recreation Site is the first managed campground past Loveland Bay Provincial Park on the Campbell Main road. It is a smaller campground with 6 campsites, pit toilets, picnic tables and fire rings. There is no boat launch but a car topper can be carried to the lake’s shore with care.

Most of the campsites are in the forest with some beach access via a trail. The campsite at the end of the road is next to the beach and has the easiest access to the water.

Three of the campsites are next to each other which makes it better for a family group to be close to each other. The pit toilet is right across from them also. The first campsite you see on the way in is isolated from the rest of them. So if you are seeking some privacy and quiet than this is the campsite for you. The trail to the lake is a short one that leads to the bay.

How to Get to Burnt Beach Campground

Drive to Campbell River on Vancouver Island. Follow the signs to Sayward, along the way you will see signs that say “Alternate Route to Loveland Bay”. Turn left at the Duncan Bay road. Duncan Bay Road will become Gordon Road and eventually Brewster Road. Follow the road for about 10 km until you see the signs that say “Loveland Bay” and turn right at that junction.

Immediately after turning right you will see a big sign with distances to some of the more popular recreation sites on Campbell Lake. Drive for another 10-11 km and turn left on to the Campbell Lake road. From there it is another 2-3km to the Burnt Beach Recreation Site turnoff on the left. The drive into the campground is short.

Another route you can take is about 2km past the Duncan Bay Rd turnoff. Make a left onto Iron River Road and follow this road for 4 kilometres then turn right onto Snowden Forest Road. Stay on this route for about 9 to 10 kilometres until you arrive at the Loveland Bay and Brewster Road junction, where it transitions into Campbell Lake Main. Continue to 2.25km and take the left-hand turn. You will see the Burnt Beach sign on a tree at the entrance.

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Fishing at Burnt Beach Campground

As with the other campgrounds around Campbell Lake fishing is also good at Burnt Beach Recreation Site. If you can use a float tube, canoe, small car top boat or other smaller watercraft, fishing is a lot better off shore.

The water close to the shoreline like most of the other campgrounds around Campbell Lake is shallow and fish seem to hold off shore in the deeper waters. The only exception is if a creek enters the lake or early morning and dusk as the fish come in closer to shore.

I usually like to troll a worm behind a gang troll rig but I have had success with spinners and lure also. If you can find a secluded bay near a creek a fly pattern will work also when the timing is right.

I like to use my float tube when I can (weather permitting) as I am able to cover more ground close to the shoreline without worrying about stumps or other hazards. This is when I mostly fly fish as I am able to get to the fish that are rising without spooking them.

Summing Up The Burnt Beach Recreation Site

Burnt Beach Recreation Site is a great place to camp with family and friends. During the summer months the campground is popular and getting a site is hit or miss depending on your choice of arrival time. It isn’t very friendly to larger motor homes or trailers when the site is full as turning around space is limited.

I find it better to park on the Campbell Lake road and walk the short distance in first to determine whether I want to venture in with my unit. If it is full there are many other local campgrounds in the area to choose from.

Campgrounds like Gosling Bay, Petite Gosling, Fir Grove, Dogwood Bay, Loon Bay and Fry Lake are all within a few km of each other. Travel time is usually 20 minutes or less to Fry Lake (12km mark) the furthest from Burnt Beach.

If one is full you can always travel to the next one in line and probably find a spot that is open. All of them are located on Lower Campbell Lake except for Fry Lake Campgrounds which are located on Fry Lake which is a small lake joined to Campbell Lake by a narrow channel.

And there are numerous other lakes to choose from in the vicinity as well. The beauty of this area is that the main roads (Campbell Lake, Snowden FSR and Menzies FSR) will run east and west with adjoining roads (Brewster Main, Boot Main, Gosling Main, etc) running north and south. If you get lost all you have to do is figure out which direction you are travelling (north, south, east or west) and you’ll eventually come to another road. The bottom line is that you want to be heading east to get back to the highway.

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