In last week’s post, I wrote about our detour to the Great Sand Hills during a camping trip through southwest Saskatchewan. Facilitating this detour required an overnight stay in an area of the province that’s not exactly brimming with accommodation options. Campgrounds are limited to small, community/club run operations in equally small, rural towns. While practical, they’re rarely glamorous though they do sometimes toss an interesting curveball your way. I chose Sceptre Campground for our purposes and, oh boy, did it fulfill that latter prediction.
Sceptre is a former village in the southwest of the province. It’s located on Highway 32, twenty kilometres east of Leader and one hundred thirty-four kilometres northwest of Swift Current. The land in these parts is everything you envision when thinking of Saskatchewan. Populations are sparse and grain farms are big.
Sceptre Campground Layout
The Sceptre Campground is small even by small town Saskatchewan standards. There are six campsites on a rectangular, gravel pad although nothing differentiates individual sites. The campground could hold more than six campers (or fewer) depending on everyone’s comfort level with space. The magic number six appears to be related only to the number of electrical outlets available.
Yes, this little campground has electricity “on site”. It’s regular 15 amp receptacle service, so don’t expect to run your a/c. But it’s electricity nonetheless, a convenience that’s appreciated even on simple, overnight stays like ours.
Other services are nonexistent “on site”. There is no water to hook your RV up to nor is there sewer service or even a dump station. None of this is unexpected.
Potable water, clean-up, and waste removal all occur in and around the unisex shower house on premises. This metal clad shed-like structure isn’t pretty, but it meets basic needs. A hose outside provides access to fresh water. Inside, there is a sink, toilet, and shower stall. It’s roomy for one person. I do not know what the remainder of the structure is used for, but campers don’t have access to any of it.
With our limited stay, we didn’t use these facilities for anything beyond the toilet and teeth brushing. I can’t comment on the shower quality, although I suspect it has hot water and that you are able to adjust the temperature at will. That’s a perk that’s not offered at many larger, popular campgrounds.
Also on the gravel pad are a couple blue, wood and metal picnic tables as well as a large, steel fire pit. Neither are available in numbers sufficient for each of six campsites to have their own. I highly doubt this campground is ever “full” but if it were, you’d need to share these amenities. A fire ban during our stay eliminated the need for the firepit anyway. And as you’ll eventually read, we sure as heck weren’t going to be eating outside.
What Makes Sceptre Campground Unique?
There are two peculiarities worth noting about Sceptre Campground. First, there is a permanent/seasonal camper on site. Someone is living there or was in the summer of 2025, a surprise to say the least.
This trailer is parked at the far end of the campground, so it’s out of the way as much as possible in such a small place. There are two vehicles out front of it, stacked wood behind it, and a deck attached to the side. Oh, and a man going about his business. He keeps to himself, mostly, but he also has personal items left in the bathroom and shower. Curveballs.
The second oddity is the lack of an entrance or exit road to the campground. It is literally a gravel pad surrounded by grass with a treed windbreak along the west side. You are required to back your trailer into place by reversing over the grass island separating the campground pad from the neighbouring community hall parking lot.
I realize this is a small campground, but what a strange layout imho. The place can’t be too busy or that grass would be obliterated in no time.
Rain also proves problematic, as we found out. The grass is slightly sloped upwards towards the community hall. When wet, a heavy trailer and tow vehicle can make quite a rut in the grass. Curveballs.
That about sums up Sceptre Campground. There is no store or playground. There’s no host or attendant to collect your fees and sell you firewood. Payment can be made at the village office or the Great Sand Hills Museum on the highway ($20/night in 2025). It’s nothing more than a spot to park your RV or set up your tent.
All About the Village of Sceptre
Even the village of Sceptre has minimal to offer. The 2021 census lists a population of 78, which is less than half of what it was in 1981. Sceptre’s glory days are undoubtedly long behind it, but it is not a ghost town. There is life there, still. And purpose.
A modern community library and new firehall attest to that. There’s also a playground on the west end of town. Known as Wheatland Heritage Park, it’s a mishmash of vintage and modern playground equipment in a fenced-in grassy space. There are also benches and a covered picnic shelter. All are within walking distance of the Sceptre Campground.
The remainder of the town is mostly residential. All streets are gravel, a throwback to a bygone area. I desperately wanted a horse and carriage to come clopping past us on main street, but to no avail.
Various types of artwork are on display which add some colour to the place. Quirky fire hydrants can be found on various streets and are fun to seek out. The world’s largest wheat sheath resides here, a notable addition to the “world’s largest” something-or-other tradition on the Prairies. And large murals depicting rural life can be found on several buildings and signs. They’re faded, betraying their age, but remain appealing.
None of this, however, is the most memorable thing about our stay at Sceptre Campground. No, what we will remember most from our brief sojourn is the massive rain, hail, and thunderstorm that bombarded us early that evening.
The Scary Storm!
After we had set up our trailer, we left to explore the Great Sand Hills Museum. We would visit the Great Sand Hills themselves the next morning, so the evening offered us some down time to eat and play a board game.
As we prepared our food, a storm began brewing to the south. It was clearly visible from the campground and heading our way.
Thunderstorms on the Prairies are hardly a novelty in the summer. Saskatchewan calls itself the Land of Living Skies for a reason. We’ve endured a handful during our camping adventures over the years. Most have provided an exciting light show along with wind and rain, but never have I been legitimately scared. This one was different.
The storm, which we later learned had tracked from Alberta leaving damage in its wake, passed directly overhead. And I do mean, directly overhead. We were square in the eye of this storm and it was a mean son of a bitch.
The wind was blowing broadside on our trailer, and I was seriously concerned it might tumble over onto its side. The pounding rain turned to hail and back a few times, pummeling our Geo Pro and Pathfinder. Tornadoes are obviously the biggest fear with storms like this, thankfully, none formed, but it sure felt like one was imminent the entire time.
We stayed inside the trailer for its duration wondering why we hadn’t left for safer shelter. Not that we had any idea where such shelter could have been found. Short of knocking on a stranger’s door and asking to come inside, we had no option but to wait it out in the trailer.
Eventually, the storm moved on to terrify others. Our mighty trailer remained upright although the skylight in our bathroom was cracked. We soon discovered myriad small chips in the pain of our SUV which is unfortunate. That could have been far worse had the hail been bigger in size. We got lucky.
Portions of the town were flooded, including parts of Sceptre Campground. We were able to get in and out of our trailer fine, as most of the campground flooding was along the back windbreak. The other side of this windbreak, however, was significantly impacted by pooled water. A nearby homeowner soon had a sump pump and generator running, no doubt trying to remove this newly created lake from their yard (and basement?).
It was undoubtedly an exciting experience. I usually love thunderstorms. Even in tents, I love them. But this one was worrisome. It could have gone all kinds of wrong for us. And THAT is what I’ll remember most about our stay at Sceptre Campground.
Is It Worth Staying at Sceptre Campground?
I’ll be honest, Sceptre Campground and Sceptre itself are not must-see destinations. You won’t find them on anyone’s bucket list. The town’s artwork is fun and quirky, and the museum is interesting in a small town museum kind of way. The Great Sand Hills are worth visiting but even they aren’t going to be the centrepiece of a lengthy vacation.
Still, it was an enjoyable detour on our camping trip, and I have no regrets including in our itinerary. Storm or no storm. For providing us with basics for a one-night camping spot, I’ll give Sceptre Campground 2.5 Baby Dill Pickles out of 5. Look, it’s not a fantastic campground but then it doesn’t have to be. It has electricity, a flush toilet, and a shower. That suited us just fine.