Spreading our Wings

If you have driven past the campground lately, you may be wondering what going on. Well here’s the scoop….

There will be lots of changes happening at Rubber Ducky this year – We are expanding! The construction is already under way on a second pool and hot tub. The proposed opening date is July Long weekend, just in time for our campers to enjoy the great Manitoba summer by the pool. This new pool and hot tub will both be larger than our current ones. There is also going to be some fun features like a water umbrella, a spray tree and even a couple benches for relaxing. It’s definately gonna be a popular place on a long hot summer day.

The next phase of campsites will be located between the existing campground and Scrapyard Paintball. This area will also include 2 man made lakes which will be perfect for paddle boats, rowboats and other floating objects. Some of the seasonal campsites will even be waterfront lots along the shores of the lakes.  The plans also include some pull through and back in sites for daily, weekly or monthly sites.  We are expecting that these sites will also be ready to go sometime in early July.

Despite the construction the fun times at the duck will still continue. Our activity schedule has most weekends filled in now and I still have some things in the works. One of which is a grand opening weekend for the expansion which is going to include a time capsule. Everyone who is camping that weekend will have the opportunity to place a small item, note or picture in the capsule. It will then be buried deep in the ground where it will remain until the reopening time. Traditionally time capsules seem to be left for 20-25 years, but I can’t wait that long. My plan is to only wait 5 years then do it all over again. Hopefully a lot of the same campers will join us again on the 5 year anniversary to relive through the memories. I am still working on the date and final details of this event, so stay tuned. As you probably noticed from previous posts the existing pool is being enjoyed by everyone and is unaffected by the installation of the second pool. It is actual quite interesting to see the construction progress from bare ground to finished pool. 2012 will be an exciting year at Rubber Ducky. We hope you and your family will enjoy the improvements and upgrades.

Our future plans also include replacing the existing picnic shelter with a screened in addition to our Rec Building.

If anyone is interested in seasonal camping, we are now accepting deposits for these new seasonal campsites. If you would like more information contact me by phone 1-866-254-7636 or 204-322-5286. Or by email at info@rubberduckyresort.com.

Of course I have some pictures to share. Here’s a few.

Before construction

Taken this past weekend.

Step # 1 in construction. First you make a big mess. This is the beginning of one of the lakes

Then you clean it up. This is the view from the hill looking down on one of the lakes. Not quite full yet, but it is coming along nicely.

As the weeks progress I will be posting pictures and updates so be sure to watch our blog and follow us on Facebook.

New and Improving

Spring is always a time of new beginnings and upgrades. We have been taking care of a few minor tweaks around the campground lately. We have some comfy, new patio sets around the pool area.

One of our employees has spent many hours splashing some paint around on posts, signs and the play structure. It’s not quite completed yet, but we are in the process of constructing a second play structure to the North of the parking area. (pictures will follow)

The mini golf is receiving a major tweak thanks to one of our VERY talented employees. Considering I have absolutely no artistic talent whatsoever this completely amazes me. We printed out some black and white templates and she turned them into this

 

Some holes also have some new obstacles

There are still a few more changes and upgrades coming this year. Stay tuned for more information….

Does this picture look familiar to anyone? Yep that’s our pond and some of our campers. We were fortunate enough to have our campground chosen to be on the front cover of the 2012 Interlake Tourism Guide.

You can view the full guide at www.interlaketourism.com.

The photo was taken by J.B Photography from Woodlands.

A great start to the season

It is hard to believe that this is only the first week of May. With such an early start to camping it seems like it should be much later. But, don’t get me wrong I am certainly not complaining. We have had many of our seasonals out and about relaxing at their campers. Quite a few have commented how nice it has been to slowly get things ready for May Long and not be rushed at the last minute.  There have also been a number of weekend campers out as well. We even had a birthday party here last weekend.

The rain we have gotten this week has been a welcome relief. It was certainly getting very, very dry.  We have spent the past few weeks transplanting trees and planting grass, so it was a huge relief for us to have this moisture. You could almost hear the trees sighing as the rain started.  This has been pretty much the perfect week for grass growing with a little rain, then a little sun it should be sprouting in no time.  According to the forecast this should be our last dreary day, then back to sunshine for the weekend.

This weekend is our Pick Your Ducky Discount. When campers register they will pluck a duck and win a discount of up to 50%.  It usually brings a few laughs since I have a game where the ducks quack and swim around as you pluck them. Also this weekend we will be having our Welcome Back Potluck. Enjoying some good food is always a good excuse to get together for some good times with fellow campers. Anyone that is interested can bring a dish to share to the Rec Building for 5:00 on Saturday afternoon.

Don’t forget that even if you are not quite ready to start camping yet, you can still come out for the day. Bring the kids for a swim and spend the day poolside.

This is some of our happy campers from last weekend. (They are blackberry pictures so I apologize for the quality). As always the pool is the place to be on a Saturday afternoon at the Duck.

Only at the Duck

I have unconfirmed reports that Rubber Ducky Resort is the only campground in Manitoba with a heated pool now open.  Today is the day that swimming season officially begins. The pool temperature is sitting at 80F right now and it will keep climbing a few more degrees over the next few days. Now I know what you are thinking – yes it is going to be chilly when you get out. So you finish your swim with a dip in the hot tub to warm up, then throw on a sweater and make a mad dash back to the camper.  It does seem to help if you are under 14 years old. Somehow the kids just don’t seem to feel the cold and will have fun in the pool anyway.

DuckyFest 2012

It’s that time of year to start planning ahead for our annual Duckyfest fundraiser. We have decided to make a significant change to the event this year. In the past we have raised funds for the Children’s Wish Foundation; while we still feel this is an extremely worthwhile cause we are changing our charity. In the past year or so some of our Rubber Ducky campers have had their families affected by Cancer. So at this time we feel it is important to do what we can to support CancerCare Manitoba and the families affected.

We are still in the process of finalizing the events and activities for this year’s Fundraiser.  We are planning bring back the dunk tank, wet n wacky train rides, silent auction, kids games, and Circuit Breaker in 2012.  I am always looking for new ideas for activities so if anyone has some suggestions please let me know.  Last year’s schedule is on our website and we are planning on running a similar event this year. I will be updating the DuckyFest page as we get closer to July so be sure to check back often.

A Record Breaker

Today we are breaking a Rubber Ducky Record – SMASHING it in fact.  It is March 29 and  we are starting Operation Pool.  Our tentative pool opening date has been set as Friday April 20.  And yes I know what some are you are thinking… it was snowing yesterday and here we are working on the swimming pool. We are only slightly crazy. And we also know how short our summers can be so we put pool opening high on our priority list. More swimming days equals more happy campers. The forecast has taken a turn for the better and it is looking to be a fairly sunny, nice weekend. The sun shines and double digits will continue throughout the week. I am cautiously optimistic that they are right.

This is the last weekend for our $10 camping special.  We are offering our 30 amp electrical campsites for only $10/night. (Seasonal campers is $5 per night for early power)

Most of our facilities are now open:

•  Rec Building is open 24 hours as always. This area includes air hockey, foosball, pinball machines, open seating area, satellite tv, wifi. Washrooms, free showers and laundry facilities are also open
• Mini golf, playground, sand volleyball, horseshoes are open
• RDR Grill and Concession is operating on off season hours

Don’t forget Scrapyard Paintball opens for the season on Saturday. Give Blair a call at 461-0749. If you are looking for a great price on some paintballing this summer check out the deal at dealfind.com. But be quick, you only have 21 hours to take advantage of the special offer.

Happy Friday. Have a great weekend.