Devonshire Beach, Alberta

Lets face it, when trying to go on holidays with family this year, a lot of people will forego the expensive trips to Disney World and DL, the all-inclusive resorts, and focus on cheaper versions that are just as much fun but with a natural focus and slower pace. Fishing is coming up as the new past-time for a lot of folks with less money to spend and/or more time on their hands after being laid-off. For some, it is a way to have a good time with their kids yet spend much less. Great idea, because at Devonshire Beach, which is 7 kilometres of white sand beach in Lesser Slave Lake Provincial Park, Alberta, you’ll find yourself in the location of one of the best beaches in Canada. There is an annual fishing competition and the rewards are very worthwhile for those netting the biggest fish – 50,000.00 Canadian last year. There are various other fishing derbies around the lake during the summer from different marinas. The quota for fishing is definitely monitored by Fish and Wildlife, and it would be good not to ruin a lovely vacation by a hefty, and I mean hefty fine. There is a sand building competition in mid-July, a song bird festival. Devonshire beach is five minutes from the town of Slave Lake, with good swimming and fishing for rainbow trout, walleye, northern pike, and burbot. Slave Lake is 2.5 hours from Edmonton by vehicle. And for the golfers in the family, there is an 18-hole course ten minutes north of Slave Lake at Gilwood Golf and Country Club. There is a day camp at Devonshire Beach, and many motels/hotels along the front of town close to McDonalds and across from Walmart. With the U.S. dollar and GBP being what they are, if you’re traveling from out of Canada, you’ll have a very good return on your dollar/pound if things keep going as they are. One sweet bonus with Devonshire Beach is its clean water. There are not industrial facilities pumping into the water, last I heard, and what more can one ask for a good day at the beach besides warm sunny weather to top it off?