Ruckle Park (sites 1–14, G1–G3)
Ruckle Provincial Park, British Columbia · campground
Booking Ruckle Park on Salt Spring Island: which sites we watch, BC Parks' 3-month 7am PT window, 12-month group sites, refund cutoffs and cancellations.
Availability on 24 Oct 2026
- 48 open nights
- 0 of the next 180 nights fully booked (0%)
- Next open night: 24 Oct 2026
How booking works here
- Campsites and backcountry sites open on a 3-month rolling window at 7am Pacific on the matching date. Group sites open 12 months ahead.
- Berg Lake opens its whole peak season on one day at 7am Pacific.
- Cancelling more than 7 days out is refunded in full (14 days for Berg Lake), so nights come back just before those cut-offs.
- Bookings are made on BC Parks; we never book, hold or resell sites.
Official booking page
About
Ruckle Provincial Park covers the southeast tip of Salt Spring Island in the southern Gulf Islands, with seven kilometres of shoreline and more than 15 km of trails. The campground sits on a grassy meadow above Swanson Channel, where you can watch the ferries thread through the islands. The park also keeps a working heritage farm: the old farm buildings are still in use, the big orchard barn opens to visitors on a posted schedule, and the active farm itself is closed to the public.
The park is 10 km from the Fulford Harbour ferry terminal along Beaver Point Road. Cyclists must walk their bikes into the main campground area. There's no designated swimming area and no lifeguards, and the water system is shut down from November 1 to March 15.
Source: BC Parks: Ruckle Park. Last checked: October 2026.
The sites
Our Ruckle watch covers one part of the campground only: the section the BC Parks booking map labels "Sites 1–14, G1–G3". That's individual campsites 1 to 14 plus the three group sites G1, G2 and G3. The RV sites and other areas of the campground aren't part of this watch.
A night counts as open when any of those 14 campsites or 3 group sites is free. If you only want a group site, keep in mind an alert may be for one of the individual sites, and the other way round. Check what's free when you open the booking site.
How booking works
Book on camping.bcparks.ca or call 1-800-689-9025 (7am to 7pm PT, $5 phone fee).
- Individual sites: up to three months before arrival, with new dates at 7am Pacific Time daily (BC Parks frontcountry camping). Long weekends open on separate, earlier dates with a three-night minimum.
- Group sites G1–G3: up to 12 months before arrival, paid in full at booking (BC Parks group camping).
- The maximum is 14 nights per person per calendar year across BC Parks.
- Online booking at most parks stops at 8pm two days before arrival.
Last checked: October 2026. 2027 long-weekend release dates aren't out yet; expect them to follow 2026.
When it sells out
Ruckle is the only provincial park campground on Salt Spring, and a meadow tent site by the sea within a ferry ride of Victoria and Vancouver is an easy sell. Summer weekends and long weekends usually go soon after they open. Because the ferry adds planning, many people book early and then cancel when their plans or sailings change, which helps anyone watching.
How to get a cancellation
From BC Parks' cancellation windows:
- Campsites: full refund of camping fees more than 7 days before arrival; one night's fee deducted within 7 days; two nights' fees deducted on the arrival date.
- Group sites: full refund of camping fees more than 28 days before arrival; no refund within 28 days.
So individual sites tend to come back just before the 7-day mark, and the group sites just before the 28-day mark.
Watch Ruckle Park on Canada Camp Alerts and we'll alert you when a sold-out night opens in that section. Alerts are per night: we don't match the same site across nights, the size of your group or your vehicle, and we don't hold or book anything. The free plan covers one watch with email alerts 15 minutes after we see the opening. The season pass (C$25 once, 12 months, no auto-renew) gives up to 10 watches and instant alerts by email, Telegram or web push.
Tips
- Book your ferry once the site is confirmed, not before. Summer sailings to Fulford Harbour can fill too.
- Bring water in the off-season, when the water system is off.
- Dogs are allowed on leash in the lower day-use and campground areas only.
- For a group trip, watch well ahead: a 12-month window means the group sites can be taken long before summer.
Nearby alternatives
Questions
Which Ruckle sites does the watch cover?
Only the section the BC Parks booking map labels Sites 1–14, G1–G3: campsites 1 to 14 and group sites G1, G2 and G3. Other parts of the campground aren't included.
How far ahead can I book Ruckle?
Individual campsites open three months before arrival at 7am Pacific Time. The group sites can be booked up to 12 months ahead.
When do group-site cancellations show up?
Group bookings get a full refund of camping fees only if cancelled more than 28 days before arrival, so cancellations tend to appear just before that mark.
How do I get to Ruckle Park?
It's 10 km from the Fulford Harbour ferry terminal along Beaver Point Road on Salt Spring Island. BC Ferries serves the island from Swartz Bay, Crofton and Tsawwassen.
Nearby places we watch
Set a watch on Ruckle Park (sites 1–14, G1–G3)
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