Sharbot Lake Provincial Park

During a recent stay at Murphys Point Provincial Park, we decided to take advantage of the nice weather - and early-season lack of crowds! - to check out Sharbot Lake Provincial Park.

(We also checked out Silent Lake Provincial Park - just a short drive down the Trans-Canada Highway from Sharbot - but we’ll address that in a future post!)

As it was our first time there, we had absolutely no idea what to expect. Much like the last few new-to-us parks, we just don’t hear much about Sharbot Lake Provincial Park in any of the camping groups we’re in!

Interestingly, the bulk of the campground, the day use area, and both beaches are all on Black Lake, rather than Sharbot Lake.

Sharbot Lake is on the property, but it just kind of borders a ridge of land along the southern edge of the park. Weird!

Anyway, random trivia aside, we’ve got LOTS to discuss, so let’s just get right to it!

The Basics:

Campground Name: Sharbot Lake Provincial Park
Address: Civic # 25467 Hwy 7, R.R.#2 Sharbot Lake, Ontario K0H 2P0
Website: https://www.ontarioparks.ca/park/sharbotlake
Price: Ontario Provincial Parks uses a pricing matrix across all their parks. See 2026 Camping Fees for more details.
Reservations: Ontario Parks Reservations
Park Classification: Recreational
Season: May 8, 2026 to October 19, 2026
Park Warden Cell: 613 449-6487

Logistics

Some basic information to help you plan your stay at Sharbot Lake Provincial Park.

Registration and Check In

As we were already staying at Murphy’s Point Provincial Park, we did not book our visit online.

Ontario Provincial Parks have a reciprocity agreement in place - If you’ve got a current, valid camping permit at one park, you can (usually!) visit other Provincial Parks and use that camping permit as a day pass.

Anyway, we showed up slightly after 8 am, which was the park’s opening time... but the gatehouse was closed. We waited around for 10 minutes, then just went in.

The friendly staff had arrived by the time we were leaving, so we signed in - well, out - at that point.

Maps and Signage

Some information about finding your way around Sharbot Lake Provincial Park:

Park Map

I’ve got to say - Sharbot Lake Provincial Park is a LOT bigger than I anticipated, based on looking at the map.

Not sure if it’s a scale issue or what - but there isn’t a scale ON the map, so that probably didn’t help with my earlier perception!

Overall - lack of scale notwithstanding - it’s a decent map. There are different symbols for electrical vs non-electrical sites, the main points of interest are all represented, and MOST of the accessibility information is right there on the map.

I also like that the map differentiates between the compost toilets at the day use, and the regular outhouses. The compost toilet building is one thing - I’m not a fan of the outhouses, LOL.

It could definitely use some information about directionality on the one-way roads, though.

Anyway, there is an online PDF version of the Sharbot Lake Provincial Park Map on the park’s website.

Signage

I guess I’d sum up the signage situation at Sharbot Lake Provincial Park by saying that the directional signage isn’t great - and REALLY lacking in a few cases - but the informational signage is great.

The park is weirdly difficult to find your way around in, in certain places. This is mostly around the Maple Grove Campground area, where we got turned around even with one of us navigating, map in hand.

There are places that really aren’t signed well, or the signage is placed in such a way that it’s a little ambiguous about which road it’s pointing down.

That area of the campground is kind of a mess of little loops, though. The map looks less chaotic than it feels in reality, too.

Beyond that, there’s a section that we missed a couple times because we never did find any signage pointing us down the entrance of it.

In terms of the informational signage, there were at least a couple sections of campground that were clearly marked with size restrictions on the trailers.

Love that - It's always nice to have a warning when a road's not going to be passable!

There’s also a section of road - down to the dog beach and boat launch - that is clearly marked with a steep grade warning sign. Always appreciate the heads up!

Water & Waste Services

The dump station is located kind of ... well, right in the middle of a campground. It’s technically right near the entrance, which is usually great, but you have to loop through the Maple Grove Campground to get to it.

Anyway, it’s a basic trailer sanitation station - two lanes, no bypass lane for either of them.

It starts out with 2 dump platforms, one on each lane, driver’s side.

That’s followed up with 3 threaded fill platforms - one on each side of the two lanes, then one right in the centre.

Not a fan of the “dump first” model, personally. Who knows how many people aren’t washing their hands between platforms, ew.

There are also drinking water taps throughout the park, and garbage bins.

We didn't see any kind of central garbage and recycling depot and there doesn't seem to be one on the map; there isn't even an icon for recycling.

Connectivity

We had really good cell phone reception in the park on Rogers.

Accessibility

Sharbot Lake Provincial Park is pretty hit and miss in terms of accessibility. Some aspects are quite accessible, others are not:

Accessible Facilities

First of all, their comfort station was a SHOCK on the accessibility front.

The comfort station is REALLY accessible.

The two gendered, multi-stall washrooms do not have wheelchair accessible stalls, but there are multiple wheelchair accessible single-stall washrooms.

Two are non-gendered stalls that also have baby changing stations (one on either side of the comfort station), and the third is a LARGE wheelchair accessible washroom that doesn’t have a changing table.

That third one is on the front end of the comfort station, and also has an adult changing table - something I haven’t seen in ANY Provincial Park washroom.

Finally, the laundry room has a press button to open the door and it's marked accessible.

Aside from the comfort station, there’s also a single accessible parking spot next to the composting toilets building at the day use area, where there is a single barrier-free stall.

Beyond that, none of the outhouses we saw appeared to be wheelchair accessible. That’s not to say there definitely aren’t any, though - we didn’t see every last one, and the accessibility of the composting toilet was not marked on the map.

So, theoretically, there could be a wheelchair accessible outhouse somewhere.

Barrier-Free Campsites

There are two accessible campsites, both are right next to the comfort station.

Number 65 is a little bit smaller and down a slight incline from the comfort station, while 95 is right across from the comfort station with no hill at all.

95 also seems to be a little bit bigger - if you've got a longer trailer I think 95's a little bit better.

Anyway, both of them have the wheelchair accessible picnic table, and fire pits that have higher sides than normal, but aren’t the usual vaulted style.

Barrier-Free Activities

Neither of the trails are wheelchair accessible, or really suitable for those with mobility issues.

Really, the beaches are the only activity - beyond birding - at the park that’s at all accessible, and we’re being generous there.

First of all, the day use beach:

This one has a single designated parking spot, as well as the wheelchair accessible stall in the vault toilet building, as previously mentioned.

From there, it’s a fairly steep trail down to the beach, which did not have a Mobimat at the time of our visit.

If you’re not going down to the beach - but over to the picnic area - that’s a bit more accessible. Overall, it’s not super wheelchair friendly, but should be more or less doable with other mobility issues.

In terms of the other beach, there are two paths down to it, and neither was particularly friendly for mobility issues.

One way was a set of stairs, the other was a fairly steep trail of well-packed gravel.

The trail is possibly wheelchair accessible (you might need help), but could be difficult for other mobility issues. With my foot tendon issues, it was a bit much!

There was no MobiMat at this beach, either.

If you can find your way down to the beach, things are easier. It was the flat, somewhat wet, hard packed sand that’s easy to walk on - at least at the time of our visit.

Obviously sand conditions can change with weather and season!

Pets

All of the usual Ontario Parks rules apply - your dogs have to be leashed at all times, picked up after, and prevented from making excessive noise or harassing other people / animals.

Sharbot Lake Provincial Park’s map handout specifically mentions that they will fine owners for letting their dogs in the beach areas - including the grassy areas adjacent to the beach - or off leash. It’s actually more aggressive wording than I’ve seen anywhere else!

Anyway, that blurb says that the only off-leash area in the park is “clearly marked” near the Sharbot Lake boat launch... I’m assuming they mean the dog beach, which is around the corner from that boat launch.

It’s cute - a very short walk down from the parking area, to a gravel beach with really clean water. It has a few picnic tables and a really nice view of the area.

There are no poop baggie dispensers, but there is a garbage bin in the parking lot there.

Parking

Overall, there's not a ton of parking at any of the main attractions - especially so with the trails. The trails have maybe 2-3 spots each - not super convenient, especially given the location.

The beaches are pretty centrally located to most of the campgrounds though, so an easy walk for anyone able bodied.

Miscellaneous

1. The park is south of the highway, with the village of Sharbot Lake to the North. While we weren’t there at night, we can say that it’s probably not the ideal place for seeing the Northern Lights.

Some of the north facing campsites in Ridge View might have a good sightline, but I’d expect a fair amount of light pollution from the rest of the park.

2. The campground roads are REALLY bad in places.

There's a lot of high centering - long piles of gravel, as if they were aiming for good drainage and just took it way too far. It’s also very hilly and twisty in places, so plan to take your time and drive carefully!

3. There's an EV charging station at the comfort station. It has two ports, so two vehicles can be charging at the same time. According to the park’s website, it’s an EVR-Green 4000 Leviton EV Charging, Level 2 Networked Public use charging station.

Campground Amenities & Info

We visited during the off season - on a weekday, the first week of operations - so our experience isn’t necessarily what things will be like during the main camping season

Here’s some basic information, though:

Creature Comforts

There is a single comfort station at the park, and it’s really nice!

The washrooms and showers were in great condition, the accessible facilities were STELLAR - seriously, beyond anything we’ve seen in 99% of Ontario Parks - and the laundry machines looked pretty new.

In terms of the washrooms, there were a bunch of options:

1. 2 multi-stalled gendered washrooms with a changing table in each - and this was marked on the door. I was actually surprised to see it on the men’s washroom door, but Porter tells me that a lot of mens rooms have changing tables.

2. 2 single-stall, non-gendered washrooms with a changing table in each.

3. A single non-gendered, wheelchair accessible washroom.

Beyond that, there are seven showers - one of which is barrier free and huge!

There’s also a washroom building next to the day use area that LOOKS like a comfort station.

It’s actually a set of composting style toilets. Those washrooms are WAY nicer than the usual outhouses, though.

All of the other washrooms in the park are actual vault toilets / outhouses.

Visitor Centre

There is no visitor centre at Sharbot Lake Provincial Park.

Park Store

For being such a small park, the Sharbot Lake Provincial Park store actually had a really great selection of goods for sale.

Aside from the usual firewood, ice, park patches, Ontario Parks souvenirs, etc, they had a fair amount of clothing, snack items - including a freezer of ice cream snacks - and a coffee bar!

Day Use Area

The main day-use area at Sharbot Lake is SPRAWLING!

We started out near the playground and picnic shelter, and wandered down to the beach from there.

Continuing past the beach and up hill, we came to a shaded area with picnic tables everywhere, as well as a some hibachi grills scattered around.

As a note - you can rent the picnic shelter for the day if you’re looking to do a scheduled event, but it’s available for free use by campers when it’s not booked.

Rentals

Sharbot Lake Provincial Park has a few racks of canoes, kayaks, and stand-up paddleboards available for rent.

Interestingly, they even have a few tents for rent, available upon request. I don’t think I’ve seen that option before!

You can also borrow Personal Floatation Devices (PFDs) - with a refundable $25 deposit.

Campsite Details

There are 150 campsites across 4 campgrounds at Sharbot Lake Provincial Park.

From north to south, these campgrounds are Beach Front Campground, Maple Grove Campground, The Point Campground, and Ridge View Campground.

Camp sites for trailers are mostly in the Maple Grove and Beach Front campgrounds, with a lot of the rest of the part off limits to any trailer longer than 16'.

These two campgrounds are also where all of the electrical sites are, and they’re both easy walking distance from the day use area.

Note: Campsite #93 in Maple Grove has a weird maintenance shed or something in it. Weird vibe, I’d avoid it!

Anyway, the REALLY stellar sites are in the other two campgrounds, where most of the really nice waterfront sites, or vaulted sites, etc are located.

(The very north end of Beach Front Campground has some cool ones - non-electric and size restricted as well).

The campsites in the southern half of the park are generally woodsier and more private than those in the Beach Front and Maple Grove campgrounds.

A few are semi walk-in style - not really a hike or anything, just a matter of parking above and walking down a short trail, etc.

One site in particular stood out - #176.

Right at the beginning of the Discovery Trail, it’s a beautifully located campsite for anyone into canoeing.

Not only is the site itself cute - with its own wooden deck and all - it’s adjacent to a portage and little dock!

Entertainment and Activity

Sharbot Lake Provincial Park is a relatively small park, but there are a few different recreational activities you can engage in.

Here’s what you need to know about the outdoor activities available:

Hiking

There are two hiking trails at Sharbot Lake Provincial Park - a short distance if you’re staying in the Ridge View Campground, not so much if you’re in the other end of the park!

On that note, the two trails have VERY limited parking - maybe 3-ish spots each? (They’re not marked, I’m guesstimating).

Anyway, Porter did these trails by himself, here’s what he had to say about them:

Discovery Trail: 1.2 km Loop, Moderate

“Immediately I love this trail!

You follow along the shoreline - not just with good views of the water, but literally less than a meter from the water's edge. This goes on for quite a distance. I love trails that follow on the water.

This is definitely a moderate difficulty trail. The beginning part is quite steep, but becomes more manageable pretty quickly.

There is rough footing and some significant but fairly short elevation changes. As the trail veers away from the water you walk through the forest in what seems to be the bottom of a dry ravine or something.

There are large hills on both sides and this is a really cool viewpoint that you don't really get very often.”

“Later, the trail moves into a younger forest area with a narrow path through grassy forest floor.

There's a short side route to an overlook, it's a lovely view but there are a lot of small trees in the way, so you don't get a stunning panoramic view like you would hope.

You proceed to descend down next to a boulder wall which is really nice, and then you're back going back up a hill again.

Overall there's a lot of elevation change on this trail.

I might actually rate this trail as difficult just due to the quantity of time spent rapidly ascending or descending, even though each particular hill section is pretty short.

I clocked this as 1.9 km but I did explore the side views and portages a little bit.”

Ridgeview Trail 0.5 km Return, Easy to Moderate

“You walk up a very steep climb at first and then it's mostly flat but winding along a grassy ridge. There are nice enough views to the side, but it's mostly obscured by small trees.

I kept expecting an opening with a big panoramic view, but you never really get it. The trail abruptly ends at a sign stating as such. It's just a cute view the whole way, nothing amazing.

Based on the trail description, I’d been expecting an incredible view from the top of the ridges!

I clocked this as a quarter kilometer in one direction, which agrees with the map that it would be a half kilometer return.”

Biking

There aren’t any bike trails at Sharbot Lake Provincial Park - and neither of the hiking trails are suitable for bikes - but the park invites campers to bike on campground roads.

Note: Most of the roads in the actual campground areas are in terrible condition - the main road through the park seems much safer and more pleasant for cycling on!

Swimming

There are two sandy beaches at Sharbot Lake Provincial Park: a large public beach in the day use area, and a smaller - slightly more secluded -
swimming area further into the campground area.

Both are located on Black Lake - Sharbot Lake Provincial Park doesn’t actually have a beach on Sharbot Lake itself!

Anyway, the beach at the day use area is actually pretty nice for an inland lake.

There was a fair amount of plant debris along the shore at the time of our visit, but the water was very clean and clear.

The beach itself was mostly sand, but there was some gravel in there. There was also some runoff from the day use area above that was cutting through the beach.

Not the prettiest beach ever, but definitely decent!

The second beach is just down from the comfort station.

It’s large, and more sandy than the first beach. Still some plant debris along the shore, but again - clean water.

I don’t know how to explain this, but the in-water area at the second beach gave me the vibe of a dog beach. (Dogs aren’t allowed on either of these beaches, BTW).

Birding, Wildlife, and Nature

The park’s website mentions Eastern Phoebes, Scarlet Tanagers, Barred Owls and Red-Shouldered Hawks... of those, we only saw Eastern Phoebes. We had really been hoping to see some Tanagers and Owls!

Anyway, we didn’t have GREAT luck for birding - we heard more than we saw, and we saw more than we were able to get even a decent photo of!

Overall, we heard and/or saw:American Crow, American Goldfinch, American Redstart, American Robin, Black-Capped Chickadee, Black-Throated Green Warbler, Blue Jay, Chipping Sparrow, Common Grackle, Common Loon, Eastern Phoebe, Eastern Warbling Vireo, Hermit Thrush, Mourning Dove, Northern Cardinal, Northern Flicker, Northern Yellow Warbler, Pine Warbler, Red-Eyed Vireo, Turkey Vulture, and Yellow-Rumped Warbler.

Boating

There are two boat launches in the park - one onto Black Lake, and another onto Sharbot Lake.

The Black Lake Boat Launch is towards the north end of the park, just past the day use area.

It’s a pretty basic boat launch - a drive-in launch with a single dock ... not much to say. Apparently this one is suitable for smaller boats - not so much for larger ones.

The south end of the park is where you’ll find the second boat launch, as well as a canoe portage between the two bodies of water. (It’s on the Discovery Trail).

Anyway, this boat launch isn’t as easy access as the other one is - you have to drive around a lot of twisty road with a really steep downhill at one point, to get there.

The boat launch is straight ahead as you enter that area.

Thiis launch is in better condition than the north side / Black Lake boat launch, and seems to open out into deeper water than the other one.

There’s a dock to the left and a picnic table to the right... and no parking anywhere!

The area that looks to be a parking area is full of “No parking” signs, and appears to be more of a turnaround area for trailers. Best we can tell, you’re supposed to park at the lot uphill.

That parking lot is shared with the dog beach, though... and it’s not SUPER great for trailers.

There is - or appears to have been, at some point - a second boat launch onto Sharbot Lake, accessed via the same area as the one I just talked about.

This one is off to the right as you enter the area, and was gated at the time of our visit. It looked to be in poor condition, so I assume it was retired.

The thing is... if you go through that area, you’ll come to a nice cement pad with a few floating docks off it.

At first I thought this wrapped around to the other dock area, but it does not - you have to access it via the gated area.

Fishing

We didn’t see anyone fishing during our visit, nor did we go fishing ourselves.

Season permitting, though, you can find Lake Trout in Sharbot Lake, and Bass, Northern Pike, Perch, Sunfish, and Walleye in both Black Lake and Sharbot Lake.

Note: There's no fishing allowed from the pier in the day use area, and there are no fish cleaning stations in the park.

Discovery Program

We visited in mid May - well outside of the park’s season for their Exploration Station programming.

If you’re there in July and August, though, you can keep an eye out for the events they’ll be hosting at that time.

Also, there’s the Discovery Activity Book available all season at the campground office, should you have kids that want to do activities on their own.

Final Thoughts

This is a cute campground, and has a lot going for it... but it’s not really going to end up among our favourite destinations.

I see this as being a GREAT place for tent campers, or those with really small campers. The sites that don’t allow anything over a 16' trailer are by far the nicest in the park.

The ones that are suitable for our RV are... meh. Not scenic, not very private, just kind of there, you know?

The two trails are nice enough, but they’re also clear across the park from anywhere we’d be able to park our RV.

Not every park has to be a great fit for everyone, though - and it was fun to explore it without the “burden” of having our RV with us. I bet this is an AMAZING park for the people who are a better fit for it!

More Southeast Ontario Provincial Parks & Places to See

Want to read some more about the parks we've camped and at places we've seen in Southeastern Ontario? Here are some more posts!

Southeastern Ontario Campground Reviews:

Bon Echo Provincial Park
Bonnechere Provincial Park
Charleston Lake Provincial Park
Ferris Provincial Park
Murphys Point Provincial Park
Presqu'ile Provincial Park
Rideau River Provincial Park
Sandbanks Provincial Park
Silent Lake Provincial Park
Winter Camping at Silent Lake Provincial Park

Southeastern Ontario Places to See:

Gariepy Creek Falls
Lake on the Mountain Provincial Park
North Beach Provincial Park

Want to explore beyond Southeastern Ontario? Check out our full list of Campground Reviews, Ontario Waterfalls, and other Places to See.

We also have a ton of Camping Recipes to cook up, while on your adventures!