Shannon’s Saco River Sanctuary

My boyfriend and I went camping and canoeing at Shannon’s ⁸⁄₁₇ — 19. We had a blast!!! Jason and Tori are very accommodating, with excellent senses of humor.
The campsite we stayed at was well maintained and private. They transported us and the canoes to the river, then we enjoyed our canoe voyage down the river to the campground.
I highly recommend the stay at Shannon’s Sanctuary !!

A group of 8 friends just got back from Shannon’s Sanctuary. We had an awesome time! The owners, Jason and Tori, purchased the campground less than a month ago but are already running it like veterans.
The campground is very clean and reasonably priced. We stayed in a «Riverfront Group Site» and had plenty of room for all of us. In fact there was plenty of room for additional people. There are washrooms and showers in the main building. Both were clean and well appreciated!
We purchased firewood from the Campground and they delivered it directly to our firepit. Jason also stopped by several times during the weekend to make sure that everything was going right and to see if their was anything they could do.
We brought our own kayaks/​canoes up to Saco. Shannon’s Sanctuary ferried our own equipment up river (for a reasonable fee). Unfortunately one of our canoes began taking on water when we were about an hour into our 6 hour trip. We called the Campground from the River and they offered to meet us at the next pick-​up point. They brought us two of their own kayaks and took our damaged canoe back to the campground. They really saved the day and allowed us to continue our trip down-​river. It was amazing customer service, well beyond the call of duty. We truly appreciated their help.
We cant wait to book our trip for next year. We look forward to seeing Jason and Tori and making this an annual trip!

Jason and his wife were wonderfully friendly and helpful and accommodated our large group effortlessly. The tubing was superb and easy. Highly recommend it! The camping sites were all very private and there is a fun central field for games. The river was awesome! Great new ownership!

Absolutely one of the best camping spots ever! Have traveled and canoes in many locations through the years… for Saco River camping with children, this place takes the cake! We stayed on the ‘Shallow’ site, which was on the river, it was extremely spacious and so clean! We knew ahead of time we would not have electricity being on the water, and to be honest we loved just being unplugged from the rest of he world! When we needed/​wanted Wi-​if we went to the main office building and connected. Tori and Jason the new owners of only a week were so very helpful and kind. They even had tube rentals for $ 10 and it includes two shuttles up the river! This place is a hidden gem and we already reserved a whole week for next summer!

Under NEW ownership! Tori and Jason just recently purchased Shannon’s last week. They are a fantastic couple, welcoming, sweet, and accommodating.
Our site was large, grassy, and well kept with easy access to the Saco river.
We were a group of 12 ranging from 25 – 35 and we were all very comfortable sharing one of their 10+ sites.
They delivered firewood directly to our site, shuttled us with tubes for a small fee up the river to float, and if you want to go again they’ll take you for free.
Overall we had a super experience and we’ve already booked for next year!

This past weekend we held our annual Saco river camping trip and stayed here (about 12 of us ages 25 – 35). I was VERY concerned since some of the past reviews noted the owners were unreasonable and rude about late night hours and lets face it… it’s camping and we came to have a good time! We had no real problems at all. The campground was very well maintained and gorgeous.
Our site was right on the river and away from everyone so we instantly loved it. It held about 7 tents comfortably and could’ve easily held several more. The facilities were great — flush toilets, decent hot showers and a porta-​potty right at our site for the night time. We had 2 picnic tables as well to utilize. There was a lovely field (great for star gazing) and it was very convenient that they had canoes/​shuttles right at the front office.
In regards to the reviews that state they are unreasonable, I could see that they may be if you fight with them about it. For each night we were there, a gentleman came to our campground right at 11 PM to tell us it was quiet hours HOWEVER this guy was on autopilot. He said it and walked away. I know he couldn’t hear us because I went to the entrance to our site and couldn’t hear a peep… so my assessment is yea… they’ll come by but just say «No problem! We’ll pipe down» and he’ll just leave. I felt that if we argued, then yes, we would’ve had a problem. My only concern was that when he did come by, he brought his German Shepard with him. I do not like the attempt at intimidation — and that type of approach makes them look like they want us to fight or challenge them but again this guy was totally on auto pilot so just roll with it. Other than that, this place is perfect. Marsha is wonderful and I have ZERO complaints. I would recommend this place to anyone who isn’t looking for a frat-​rager type place with a little disclaimer about the old man from Scooby Doo and his pup. Enjoy!

August 2008– If you plan on visiting this campground with a large group of people I recommend finding somewhere else to stay. My husband and I recently stayed with a group of friends and had a horrible experience. The owners were rude, unreasonable, condescending and literally shouted obscenities at us when our group did not immediately get in our tents during their quiet hours. I have never been treated so rudely in my adult life and will never return. The majority of our group left a day early rather than let the owners continue to be confrontational. I am very disappointed. We camped here in a Tent.

In theory this place is great. Large, grassy area, plenty of room for kids to play, close to the river for swimming and playing, nice staff. But in practice, this place is a little bit nightmarish. Early morning to early afternoon was idyllic, relaxing and quiet, but once the large groups of hungover party people woke up and started drinking again everything took a giant nosedive. THIS PLACE IS NOT FAMILY FRIENDLY. Lude, drunk people walk around everywhere screaming obscenities. This is obviously a popular party spot… not the place to go for a quiet family getaway. Our first night there was completely disturbed by loud parties in every corner of the campground that continued until 4 am with no intervention by the campground staff or «security.» Stay away unless you’re looking to party all night long. Again, this is not a family friendly location!

Never been so happy to be home in my life! At first glance Shannon’s Sanctuary appears peaceful, well maintained, and friendly. That all changes once the owners and staff reveal their true colors. I feel as though I lived in a horror movie this weekend — a disturbing mix of «Wrong Turn», «Evil Dead», and «Deliverance». We reserved a spot at Shannon’s after learning our usual camping spot, as well as others in the area, were all booked. The owner, Marsha, seemed so sweet and welcoming upon arrival. Her attitude took a dramatic turn once we announced members of our party would most likely be arriving after 10pm due to a late start and heavy traffic up from Boston.
The campground rules state that the gate is locked at 10pm. My friend and I arrived at 5pm and we informed the owner that our husbands were running late. They were driving in our RV and the owners knew we were alone waiting at the site without accommodations. Marsha became extremely unreasonable and told us the gate would lock at 10pm and our guys would have to camp outside on the road. Another RV was let through at 10:15, but once ours came to the gate at 10:30pm it was locked and the owners refused to open it. We politely asked for an exception, but Marsha and her husband became quite enraged and very condescending. They yelled at us as though we were children, accusing us of not abiding to the campground rules by arriving too late. We felt punished for simply trying to enjoy our vacation. A man who appeared very drunk and/​or under the influence of other substances staggered besides the owners and introduced himself as «Security». It was at this point I began to feel somewhat frightened by his unpleasant demeanor and attitude. He slurred many nasty words at us and appeared very confrontational. Once the staff finally backed off, we spent the night at the side of the road on the other side of the locked gate together in the RV.
The Brownfield police made a visit to the campground sometime after 11pm. We found it odd they never questioned our RV parked on the road, but spent a long time chatting with the owners leading me to believe they had some sort of connection. The policy of locking people inside (or out in our case) for the night does not seem legal. I fear in an emergency valuable time would be wasted tracking down staff and a key to open the gate to let a vehicle in or out.
The next morning did not shed much light on the situation. The gate was open and our RV was finally allowed in, but the attitudes from staff continued to be harsh and inappropriate. We noticed staff members seemed to be poking around trees almost as though they were spying on campers. Their behavior seemed creepy. The staff drove in an old red truck which would appear suddenly out of nowhere and we always felt a bit unsettled as it approached. I do understand the importance of rules — rules are set to keep everyone safe. However, I do believe it is acceptable to make logical exceptions as necessary. These people are completely unreasonable.
I also want to note we are a mature group of adults in our late thirties. We did not come to the campground to party or misbehave and do not feel we provoked the staff in anyway. We were just looking for a fun weekend getaway to the Saco. Yes, a few members of our group were late, but we feel it was within a reasonable amount of time.
It may appear beautiful, but the strange behavior of staff makes me wonder what else is going on here besides camping. Stay far away from this place!!!