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love the Binbrook Conservation Area.

“When you’re here, you feel like you’re ‘out’; there’s nothing to tell you you’re this close to the city,” Kelly said.

Mike agrees.

“For us, it’s a nice getaway place.”

Two of the biggest draws for the couple are the nature trails and Lake Niapenco, where they can take out their kayaks.

“We have used the other amenities,” Kelly said, including the FunSplash Sports Park and wakeboarding.

“I would love to do the Treetop Trekking.”

Each year, they buy a season’s pass; as Mike said, they live nearby and “It’s cheap.”

When asked how often they come out to the park, Kelly said with a laugh, “Typically, not often enough.

“We aim for almost every weekend to kayak. It’s better first thing in the morning; it’s a little more peaceful. Not that seeing all these people isn’t enjoyable.”

Mike Boyko, the park’s supervisor, can certainly attest to the fact that it’s been a very popular spot for visitors this year.

In the early days of the pandemic, “We really weren’t sure what to expect,” he said.

Normally, the park opens the front gates on May 1. This year, that didn’t happen until the Friday before Father’s Day, putting them behind schedule with things like hiring and training summer staff, making sure the water treatment system for the splash pad was up and running, etc.

Then, of course, the pandemic has brought in a whole new set of protocols that staff need to be trained on and follow.

“Since we’ve been open, it’s been non-stop,” Boyko said.

It’s not just keeping up with park maintenance and a higher level of cleaning practices, though; the crowds have been coming out in droves.

“Every day is like Saturday,” Boyko said.

In the early days of the pandemic, they weren’t sure how it would impact their visitor numbers. On the one hand, many people would now have more flexible schedules, whether working from home, or being out of work.

However, if it was the latter, those guests might not have the disposable income available to pay the gate fees; furthermore, they might not want to be out in public because of potential health risks.

But, with travel opportunities limited, some entertainment facilities still closed, and many events cancelled, “We’re kind of the only game in town,” Boyko said.

Not only that, but it’s also been regularly sunny and hot so far this summer.

“It’s kind of the perfect storm,” he said. “Until things reopen, I think we’re going to be ‘that place.’”

Last year was record-setting for the Binbrook Conservation Area in terms of profit, and already this year is on pace to match or surpass the 2019 numbers, even with the late opening.

“The first three, four weeks we’ve been collecting revenue, they rival any of our best weeks from last year,” Boyko said, noting that’s even with the park not having all of its amenities available to guests — in particular, pavilions and group picnic rentals, which are significant sources of income for the park.

However, larger crowds and the pandemic do mean additional costs — things like personal protection equipment items for staff, renting portalets and allocating more staff time to cleaning facilities like the washrooms.

“It’s made the cost of doing business rise,” Boyko said.

He’s hopeful that the larger crowds will translate to more revenue, and more money in next year’s budget.

In the meantime, Boyko and his staff keep on scrambling to keep up with the larger crowds and greater demands behind the scenes.

“We’re doing the best we can.”

When asked whether he thought the park’s surge in popularity not only this year, but also in the recent past, was part of an ongoing trend, Boyko said, “We certainly hope so.”

Abha Pruthi from Brantford was recently there for the first time with her family.

“We’ve discovered all of the Grand River, so we’re trying to go outside there now,” she said, adding that their inaugural visit was good.

Pruthi added that they’d originally come to check out the Treetop Trekking, but hadn’t been able to get a spot that day, so would be back another time to check it out.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: With families looking to have some summer fun out of the house despite the pandemic, we wanted to know it was impacting the Binbrook Conservation Area.