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It was a camping trip that turned ugly overnight.
Thousands of campers in Jasper National Park were forced to pack up and leave due to a handful of wildfires that took a turn for the worst Monday night.
Kregg Ochitwa and his wife from Saskatoon were camping in the park when they got the news.
“There were people with megaphones going around the park telling us that we had to leave immediately,” he said.
“It took us four hours to get out of our campsite itself and another just over two hours to get to Valemount which is not that far out but the traffic was so slow,” said Ochitwa. (Kregg Ochitwa/submitted)
Ochitwa said the park staff seemed to remove everyone in sections. He heard the news late Monday night.
“It was just after 10:00 p.m. so right when you’re trying to settle down for the night and we had to pack up,” he said.
“Fortunately there was still some daylight left. You’re taking the air out of your mattresses and folding down your tent as quickly as you can. Our section was probably the last section to clear, so we were there for four hours but it is what it is and everyone got out safe.”
Ochitwa and his wife could see nothing by smoke.
“It was actually quite hazy out too,” he said. “It was kind of raining ash. Ash was all over our vehicles and stuff.”
He said it took hours to get to safety.
Multiple wildfires in Jasper National Park flared up with a vengeance late Monday night, forcing all park visitors along with the 4,700 residents of the Jasper townsite to flee west with little notice over mountain roads through darkness, soot and ash according to the Canadian Press. (Kregg Ochitwa/submitted)
“It took us four hours to get out of our campsite itself and another just over two hours to get to Valemount which is not that far out but the traffic was so slow,” he said.
The pair arrived at the golf course in Valemount at 5:00 a.m.
“There were tons of vehicles there,” he said. “So we’re pretty fortunate that they allowed people to park on their driving ranges and wherever we could park. All along the highway anytime there was a turn off there were tons of vehicles just camping there for the night.”
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The small town of Valemount with just over 1000 people was filled with thousands of campers.
“The Tim Horton’s and the gas bars are a huge lineup,” Ochitwa said. “No one knows what’s going on. There’s just a big lineup of vehicles. It’s kind of like driving home from a Rider game it’s just car after car after car all the way to Kamloops and really no traffic going the other way.”
Ochitwa and his wife have a long detour ahead of them.
Jasper National Park wildfire at around 9 p.m. (Kregg Ochitwa/submitted)
“We’re just trying to cancel our hotel reservation in Edmonton and looking for new campsites and new hotels from Kamloops to Saskatoon,” he said.
“But it’s actually kind of hard because there’s not very good cell service between Jasper and Kamloops. It’s kind of spotty. We don’t even know what the updates are or the road closures or trying to book something, it’s super challenging.
But they’re trying to make the most out of the trip.
“It’s kind of a choose your own adventure and see what opens up and try to make the best of it,” he said.
-with files from 980 CJME’S Abby Zieverink