What is Fry Lake Campground
Fry Lake Campground is a series of campgrounds with many campsites for campers to enjoy. Two are free and one requires a fee to camp. They are all classified as “first come first served“. In total between all three campgrounds there are 23 campsites with room for others without picnic tables or fire rings. There is natural boat launches at two of them and easy access for a car topper at the other.
The campgrounds are located Northwest of Campbell River on Lower Campbell Lake on Vancouver Island. The first one is just off Campbell Road at km 12.5 (basic campground) and the Fry Trestle Recreation Site about 1/2 km further (km 13). The Orchard Meadow Recreation Site is located at km 13.5 after crossing the bridge (stay to your left).
Winter Camping At Fry Lake
My trip to Fry Lake Campground was a long time coming. I have tried multiple times to find a spot there over the years with no luck. This campground is a very popular place to camp for the locals and lucky tourists who manage to get a campsite. Its popularity stems from the outstanding fishing at the lake.
For me I had to choose an off season time to get a campsite. But it was worth the wait. Fry Lake Campground (Peninsula) is a rustic basic campsite that looks like it originally was a gravel pit at one time. Lots of sand and gravel everywhere.
Of course this makes for great swimming opportunities however, it was too cold for me to take a dip. I can only imagine how much fun adults and kids have during the summer months here.
It truly is a basic campground with only one picnic table in rough shape, fire rings and the two pit toilets I seen were in poor shape but still doing what they were built to do. If you want a more amenity based campground than Fry Lake Peninsula isn’t the place for you. Try Fry Trestle or Orchard Meadow. But if roughing it and great fishing/swimming opportunities are what you seek, then by all means stop by.
I arrived in February 15, 2026 and I was the only one there other than the multiple quads that were taking advantage of the many quad trails in the area. The road from Loveland Bay was very rough with many large potholes and my speed was down to 10-20 km/hr to save my equipment.
This is to be expected during the rainy/winter season especially if no logging is happening. If they are logging in the area the road usually gets graded occasionally but don’t get your hopes up. It also doesn’t help that both the John Hart Dam and Strathcona Dam are under construction as of this writing and road access across them is closed.
Hopefully when the construction ends at both dams they will continue to allow traffic through as it save a lot of time and wear and tear on your vehicle. Especially when you have stayed at Upper Campbell Reservoir Campground and want to go to Fry Lake via the Strathcona Dam road off of hwy 28 .
Fry Trestle Recreation Site
Fry Trestle Recreation Site is just about 1/2 km NW of the basic campground (what I call the Peninsula Campground) where I first stayed. It is a nicer campground but small in size. There are only two distinct campsites but there are a couple of wider spots where campers have set up.
Each campsite has picnic table and fire ring. No boat launch but a car topper could be placed in the lake with a little effort. There is a pit toilet also.
My first night staying at Fry Trestle Recreation Site was very comfortable. I arrived there at 9:00 am and had sun all day long. I chose the campsite on the east end of the campground as it was closer to the lake. The other campsite is situated on the bay where the creek enters.
There is a trail that leads from this campsite to the basic campground where I stayed when I arrived. I walked it and found a nice area with a deeper place to fish. Took me roughly 10 minutes to walk to the other campground.
The wooden trestle that gives this campground its name is in rough shape and looks like campers have added to it over the years so they could walk on it. I did try to walk on it and it seemed stable enough but at my age I decided not to stay there for long.
Orchard Meadow Recreation Site
Another 1/4 to 1/2 km west is Orchard Meadow Recreation Site. This is a much nicer campground with 14 campsites, picnic tables, fire rings, pit toilets and two boat launches.
Orchard Meadow is closed for campers from Sept to May every year. There is an exception if you want to pay a large fee to camp there during the off season. I imagine it would be for a larger group maybe hunters or workers in the area. There is a locked gate at the entrance.
Orchard Meadow is a fee based campground when open. The fee at the time of this writing was $18 per night. I didn’t see any indication whether there was a seniors rate or not. Check out Sites and Trails BC for more information.
I would have like to stay to see how it fairs to the other two but it was closed while I was there. Those of you familiar with the campground I’m sure you appreciate the nicer campsites and two boat launches that provide access to the lake.
Where is Fry Lake Campground
To find these three outstanding campgrounds, you must first find your way to Vancouver Island BC Canada. Then make your way up island to Campbell River. From there follow the highway north (7-8km) towards Sayward until you come to Duncan Bay Rd and take a left. Follow it and it eventually becomes Gordon Road.
Follow the “Alternate Route” signs to Loveland Bay. Eventually the asphalt will change to gravel and you will turn right onto Loveland Road. Go 11km and turn left onto Campbell Road. Then go to km 12.5 and turn into Fry Lake Peninsula. Or continue on for 3/4 km to Fry Trestle and 1 km to Orchard Meadow.
Use the form below to find out how to get to the campground from your starting point using Google Maps.
Tidbits
Fishing at Fry Lake Campground
Fishing at Fry Lake is one of the popular past times for locals and others who come to the campgrounds. The lake is known for its larger fish and during the summer months it can get crowded.
I fished it pretty hard from shore but without a boat and being winter I didn’t have any luck. However, Bud Logan states he’s caught fish around 2 + kgs. See his blog Go Hiking for more details.
My first night at Fry Trestle Recreation Site I saw my first signs of trout. They were surfacing off shore about 100 feet. Looked like they were slurping flies or chironomids as there were just rings and no splashes. Wish I had bought some worms.
I decided to try and dig up some worms and low and behold I found some. But alas except for one bite that sunk my bobber once before I could get to the rod I still got skunked. Oh well that is why it is called fishing and not catching.
One sunny afternoon I was fortunate enough to watch an Eagle dive bombing the Mergansers further out in the lake. He must have dove upon them 5 or 6 six times before he got an obviously very tired Merganser. Mother Nature at her finest.
On my last day there two larger boats arrived via the channel that connects Fry Lake to Lower Campbell Lake. It was a sight to say the least. One was a 23-26 foot sailboat towing a rubber boat behind it. The other was a 16-18 foot fiberglass boat and he stopped off at the trestle so I asked how deep the lake was. I was told roughly 30+ but lower during the summer months.
Summing Up Fry Lake Campgrounds
Overall I really enjoyed my stay at Fry Lake Peninsula Campground and also at Fry Trestle Recreation Site. The scenery is extraordinary and I took a lot of photos and shot a few videos.
I did hear some noise echo across the lake from those working at the Strathcona Dam I assume. But it wasn’t annoying and it didn’t run continuously so that was nice. I managed block it out pretty easily. The traffic on the Campbell Road by Fry Trestle and Orchard Meadow was noticeable but not at Fry Lake Peninsula.
The wildlife in the area is diverse. I seen a large family of Mergansers working the shoreline and two Canada Geese made their presence known also. Both geese were very cautious when in my vicinity and getting photos was not that easy. I also seen ravens, swans flying overhead, deer and cougar tracks but no cat. Heard a couple Kingfishers working the shoreline and a Woodpecker off in the distance also. No sign of any bears but they could be hibernating.
At one point a squirrel dropped by to check me out than took off when I made eye contact. Also there were Robins, Varied Thrushes and a pretty gray bird about the size of a Robin that kept eyeing me up and singing every morning.
If you are lucky enough to get a campsite during the summer season I hope you will come back here and let me know how you did fishing. Maybe if I am in the area I may just try my luck also.
I definitely recommend this superb campground with 3 choices to choose from for all types of campers.
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