Wi-Fi in the Woods

 

Want to keep up-to-date with your work email on your next camping trip? No, us neither. But Parks Canada is looking to add Wi-Fi to as many as 50 of its parks this year, and it expects to eventually triple that number.

In a tender posted Monday, the agency requested proposals from contractors to install Internet access points at 150 locations over the next three years.

The Associated Press reported that Parks Canada says visitors want to be able to stay in touch with work, friends and family, stay up to date on the news and connect with social media while visiting the sites and campgrounds, whether it’s for an afternoon or a few days. They’re also hoping to engage a younger audience.

It’s not yet clear which national sites will offer Wi-Fi access, though the document lists 125 Parks Canada sites where Wi-Fi service could be offered. The 26 national parks listed include Gwaii Haanas, Banff, Jasper, Kootenay, Yoho, Wood Buffalo, Waterton Lakes, Nahanni, St. Lawrence Islands, Fundy, Cape Breton Highlands and Labrador’s Torngat Mountains.

About 20 million people a year visit Parks Canada’s 44 national parks, 167 national historic sites and four marine conservation areas. In many of those locations, 3G and 4G cell coverage is partial or non-existent, which leaves many disconnected.

Is disconnecting part of the reason you head to the woods? Share your thoughts below!

 

(The above photo is provided by Flickr user hatchard.)

 

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