Having hunted big game animals in Africa, the next great adventure for Dennis and Julie Hilling will see them operate a unique campground on their farm east of Moose Jaw.
Bin There Campground is expected to be ready for occupants by the end of June, although it is now booking into 2020 and 2021. What makes this campground different is the fact many former farm buildings have been converted to accommodate tenters, RVers and those who like to stay in cabins.
Six grain bins have been turned into insulated cabins with air conditioning, heat, and queen-sized beds on two levels.
A former seed cleaning plant 90 square metres (1,000 square feet) in size has been turned into a large hall. The building has two attached wings; one wing contains a kitchen with fridges, stoves, deep freezer, sinks and cabinets, plus a washer, dryer, utility sink and bathrooms, while the second wing is an outdoor cooking area with two gas barbecues and six picnic tables.
There are 13 RV sites, six grain bin cabins and three sites for tents, all of which can accommodate up to 75 people.
Both Hillings say they are excited for this new adventure.
“I’m happy we can offer something to (the) Moose Jaw area that was not here before,” said Mrs. Hilling, 67, “because a lot of people were saying, ‘What a great idea. We’ve been thinking of having a family reunion and didn’t have any idea of where we could get a place that would work.’”
It’s roughing it in nature even though it isn’t real rough, Mrs. Hilling noted. Since this is Saskatchewan, the campground is also agriculturally minded due to the converted grain bins.
“I’m overwhelmed,” Mr. Hilling said about the media attention.
“We did not expect this response at all,” added Mrs. Hilling.
Three people have already visited the farm to inquire about weddings, said Mr. Hilling, 71. Complete strangers have also driven in from hundreds of kilometres away, looked around, and asked when they can use the campground.
“I want to see (the campground succeed) … ,” he said. “It’s another adventure, sort of thing.”
The Hilling family has owned the farm since 1960, explained Mr. Hilling, who was 12 years old when his family moved there. He later bought the farm in 1978, and over the years, he and his wife added to the property.
In 2015 they both retired and sold off most of their machinery; they kept their main farm yard while they rented out their land.
However, they couldn’t sell the six grain bins since those were cemented into place, said Mrs. Hilling. No one was willing to chip them out, so they stayed there in the yard.
Mrs. Hilling was content in retirement since she liked to garden and manage the books. However, she teased her husband, who was quickly becoming hooked on watching Judge Judy.
“This certainly kept us busy,” he remarked.
Neither is sure who suggested opening a campground, but the Hillings agree the idea was tossed around during informal conversations in 2016. That idea then took off and they began planning how the campground would look and began buying materials.
It was a challenge to convert the grain bins into cabins. The Hillings found pictures online of converted bins, but were unable to locate building plans. It turned into a bit of trial and error.
“We ended up being two-and-a-half times over budget,” said Mrs. Hilling.
She pointed out group camping can be a problem, since large groups usually can’t stay together at provincial parks. On their farm, however, groups can remain together and share the same buildings without worrying if strangers will walk through.
“We stumbled into a niche,” she added. “There was a need.”
Mrs. Hilling is looking after all the bookings and the calls from interested campers and from the media. Mr. Hilling is managing the maintenance of the property.
For more information, call 306-693-2506 or visit their Facebook page.
