Killbear Provincial Park

Killbear occupies a peninsula on Georgian Bay where the Canadian Shield meets the water in smooth pink granite scoured by glaciers, with white pines bent permanently landward by the prevailing wind. This is the country the Group of Seven painted, and one particular leaning pine on the point has been photographed so often it has become a symbol of Ontario. The park has beaches, warm shallow bays and rock the water polished. It also holds a significant population of eastern massasauga rattlesnakes, Ontario's only venomous snake and a threatened species, with a research and education programme run in the park.

History

The park lies on Killbear Point, within what is now the Georgian Bay Littoral biosphere reserve; the land was logged extensively for about 20 years from 1900, and the Ontario government then expropriated it and made it a provincial park in 1960 (Wikipedia, Killbear Provincial Park).

What's there

• The pink granite - glacier-smoothed Shield rock meeting the bay.
• The windswept pines - trees bent landward, including the famous leaning pine.
• The massasauga rattlesnakes - a threatened species studied in the park.
• The beaches - shallow warm bays between granite points.

When to go

June to September; the park is very busy in July and August and camping books out months ahead. Autumn is quieter with strong colour. The park closes for winter.

Good to know

Camping reservations open five months ahead and prime sites go within minutes. Massasaugas are present and rare bites happen; the park briefs on it. Day-use fills on hot weekends.

Nearby

Parry Sound lies east; the French River is north.

Key facts