Truro, Nova Scotia Campground Review

Scotia Pine Campground ended up being our “home base” for a bit over a week while we saw some of the sites in central Nova Scotia. Then, after a trip over to Digby, on the western coast, we stayed again at Scotia Pine for a night on our way back up to the Amherst area.

The sites were closer together than we like, but there was adequate room between them for the slides and awnings.

The sites are somewhat narrow, so the fire pits are at one end of the site, rather than in the patio area. That didn’t leave a whole lot of room to park the tow vehicle, but we managed all right.

After we got set up, we extended our awning…for about five minutes! As we noted in our review of Loch Lomond RV Park, in Amherst, once again the Nova Scotia winds caused us to roll the awning back up. Discretion being the better part of valor, and all that!

I don’t know where this belongs in a review, but it is more of an aside for the park owners. When trying to decide between RV parks in a particular area, we always go to their website for information. Scotia Pine’s website is very limited – without a site map, or information on their rates. Also, there is a “Links” page, where prospective customers can, supposedly, check out what’s in the area for attractions. Only three of the seventeen links worked! My suggestion? If you’re going to have it, fix it.

Where is it? —

This RV park is located just a few kilometers south of Truro, NS. The town is near the Salmon River at the eastern tip of .Cobequid Bay. Geographically, Truro is pretty much in the middle of Nova Scotia and several major highways intersect there. It is called the “Hub of Nova Scotia.”

Scotia Pine Campground
1911 Highway 2
Hilden, NS B0N 1C0
1-877-893-3666
www.scotiapine.ca

Getting There —

Coming from north of Truro, take Route 104 to the junction of Route 102, then follow 102 south to exit 13. Turn left at the stop sign and then right at the second traffic light onto Route 2. Scotia Pine Campground is about 6 km (3.7 mi) south, on the left.
Coming from the south, perhaps from the Halifax area, take exit 12 off of Route 102 and turn left onto Rout 2. The park is about 4 km (2½ mi) north, on the right.

 Nearby Attractions —

• Tidal Bore viewing on the Salmon River
• Victoria Park, with its beautiful walking trails and waterfalls
• Burncoat Head Park and Lighthouse: walk on the seafloor at low tide, marvel at the “world’s highest tides,” explore the lighthouse and interpretive center. (around 62 km/38 mi from Truro)
• Five Islands Provincial Park and Five Islands Lighthouse: stroll the beach beneath 300 ft. cliffs, poke around the lighthouse. (around 80 km/50 mi from Truro)
• Glooscap Heritage Centre and Mi’kmaw Museum
• Museums
• Golf
• Shopping and dining of all sorts

The Sites —

According to the site map we received when we registered, there appear to be around 130 sites. 30 or so are primarily tent or popup/small camper sites. Around 60 appear to be seasonal sites. The rest, 40 or so, are full hookup, pull-through, transient sites.

The pull-through sites are grass and dirt, with a line of trees between them. The transient sites, at least where we were, had side-by-side hookups for water, electric, and cable. Sewer hookups all seemed to be on the same side (street-side for those pulled in the way we were).

As I noted before, the sites are a bit close together, but not too bad. We had nice neighbors on both sides, so that helped.

Amenities —

• A very sparsely stocked camp store
• A nice pool
• A playground for the kids
• One bath house/shower facility for the park
• One laundry facility
• Cable TV and a wifi hotspot for Internet

Rates —

Our cost for a full hookup pull-through site was $36.00 (Canadian) per night, plus tax.

This is a Good Sam park, so the Good Sam discount is available. However, the campground offered the seventh night free, which resulted in more of a discount.

The People —

The park employees that we dealt with were, with only one exception, friendly, helpful, and professional.

I had gone into the park office to buy a some ice and a bundle of wood, and paid for the purchase with some Canadian coins that we had accumulated. I made the comment that our bank wouldn’t convert coins back to American currency for us, as they would paper money. Wrong thing to say!

The clerk went on a rant about typical American discrimination against Canadians and Americans’ obsession with money. She said they always complain rudely because the park doesn’t adjust it’s prices with changes in the currency exchange rate. There was a bit more, but you get the idea.

I felt badly and pointed out that I had not been rude to her. Further, I had no control over my bank’s policies and I was just explaining why I was paying entirely with coins. I told her I thought the desire to save money, and even occasional rudeness, are traits not limited only to Americans.

This person was the only one during our month-long stay in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, who expressed any negative feelings toward us or toward Americans in general. During our visit to Canada, we met and talked with quite a few Canadian folks. By the time our trip was over, we felt a real warmth and kinship with the Canadian people.

What We Liked Least —

• Shame on me, but I can’t remember if there were three or four washing machines in the laundry. But, we found out one of them didn’t work only after putting money in it!
• The sites could have been a bit wider
• The side-by-side hookups for water and electric
• The sewer hook up, at least for our site, was quite a distance from the water and electric pedestal, necessitating either a long sewer hose, or a long power cable. Fortunately, we have both.
• The employee who ranted about cheap Americans. Unprofessional!

What We Liked Most —

• A park employee rode her bike from the laundry to the office and back to get money to refund what we lost in the broken washing machine. We hadn’t even asked for a refund. Great service!
• The park was clean, neat, and attractive.
• The site was very level and didn’t require us to use our leveling ramps.
• The people on either side of us. Friendly, interesting to talk with. Supports my opinion that most campers and RVers, most anywhere, are good people!
• The water pressure was good, the electrical voltage was correct and held steady (we use a meter and a surge guard), the WiFi was usable, if not super-fast.
• The roads are good, making it easy to get from the park to area attractions and shopping (with the exception of one BAD bump over railroad tracks if going between the park and Route 102 Exit 12)

Conclusions —

3½ out of 5 stars

Good Sam gives Scotia Pine campground a rating of 9, 10, 9.5. This is a bit high, in our opinion, but it’s a nice park and a very convenient base for exploring the central Nova Scotia area. We would absolutely stay here again.

This RV park review, of course, reflects our own likes and dislikes based on our years of camping and RVing. We hope you find it helpful and we welcome your comments.