Top 6 things to do in Georgian Bay Islands National Park

Georgian Bay Islands National Park protects 63 small islands and shoals in the southeast of Georgian Bay, on Lake Huron, near the village of Honey Harbour in Ontario. It lies in the Thirty Thousand Islands, the world’s largest freshwater archipelago, where the bare pink granite of the Canadian Shield meets the hardwood forests of the south, and windswept white pines lean over the water, the landscape painted by the Group of Seven. The park is reached only by boat; most visitors come to Beausoleil Island, the largest, on the park’s own boat. These are the six outings we would put first. The order starts with what the park is known for, then goes by what an outing gives back for the time and effort it takes. Distances are approximate; times are our estimates and do not include stops.

The island is home to the eastern massasauga, Ontario’s only venomous snake, which is shy and rarely bites: watch where you step and put your hands, stay on the trails, and give any snake room. Wind can raise rough water on the bay quickly, so paddlers should stay near shore and wear a life jacket. Black bears visit the island, so store food properly when you camp.

1. Take the boat to Beausoleil Island

The park’s own boat, the DayTripper, carries visitors from Honey Harbour across a channel to Beausoleil Island, a short crossing among the islands. On the island you can walk its trails, swim from its beaches and rocky points, and picnic by the water, then catch the boat back in the afternoon. It is the easiest way to see the park without a boat of your own.

• Allow: half a day
• Start: Honey Harbour, on the park boat; book ahead
• When: late spring to early fall
• Suits: everyone

2. Hike the Cambrian Trail across the rock barrens

On the northern part of Beausoleil Island, the forest gives way to open, rolling barrens of bare, glacier-scoured granite, with small wetlands in the hollows and gnarled white pines bent by the wind. The Cambrian Trail crosses this landscape, the classic scenery of Georgian Bay, and the Georgian Trail follows the shore with views out over the bay and its islands.

• Allow: 2 to 3 hours
• Start: the northern docks of Beausoleil Island, by your own boat or the park boat
• When: late spring to early fall
• Suits: most walkers

3. Walk around Fairy Lake

In the middle of Beausoleil Island, a trail circles Fairy Lake, a small inland lake over Canadian Shield rock, through mixed forest of maple, oak and pine. It is a quiet walk, and a good place to see the island’s turtles, frogs and birds.

• Distance: about 1.6 miles (2.5 km) loop
• Allow: 1 hour
• Start: the Fairy Lake trailhead on Beausoleil Island
• When: late spring to early fall
• Suits: most walkers

4. Paddle among the islands

The park is best seen from a kayak or canoe, threading among the rocky islands and shoals of the Thirty Thousand Islands, past windswept pines and quiet coves where loons, herons and turtles are common. Outfitters near Honey Harbour rent boats and run guided trips, and paddlers can camp at the park’s island campsites.

• Allow: half a day to several days
• Start: Honey Harbour
• When: June to September; stay in sheltered water when the wind is up
• Suits: everyone who can paddle

5. Stay in a cabin or campsite on Beausoleil Island

Beausoleil Island has campsites, cabins and oTENTiks, roofed tent-cabins, and spending a night on the island lets you see the sunset over Georgian Bay and hear the loons after the day visitors have gone. Book well ahead, and plan your crossing with the park boat, a water taxi or your own boat.

• Allow: a night or more
• Start: Honey Harbour, by park boat, water taxi or your own boat
• When: late spring to early fall
• Suits: everyone

6. Swim at Christian Beach and visit Beausoleil Point

On the west side of Beausoleil Island, Christian Beach is a sandy beach with warm, shallow water in summer, a good place for a swim. At the island’s southern tip, Beausoleil Point is named for Louis Beausoleil, a Métis settler whose homestead stood here from 1819, and the island’s history goes back much further, to the Anishinaabe who have lived on these shores for thousands of years.

• Allow: half a day
• Start: Beausoleil Island
• When: July and August for swimming
• Suits: everyone

Before you go

This list covers what stays the same from year to year. Closures, boat schedules and campsite reservations change, and Parks Canada posts them on its own site. The link is on our Georgian Bay Islands National Park guide, with the map and how to get there.