Bruce Peninsula National Park

Maps and Signage

While Bruce Peninsula National Park is HUGE, the private campgrounds section of the park is relatively small, simple, and self contained.

Park Map

The park map is done up in a booklet format campground guide. Their maps are clear and concise, and the park layout is relatively simple and straight forward.

There is a separate day use guide, same sort of thing, just with info and maps for other sections of the park, instead of the campground specifically. This booklet is where you’ll find information on places like Singing Sands, Halfway Log Dump, etc.

Both publications are available for download as in a .pdf format, from the Parks Canada website:

Cyprus Lake Campground Guide
Bruce Peninsula National Park and Fathom Five National Marine Park Day-Use Guide

Signage

Overall, the signage has been improving since our first stay.

At that time, the signage was decent. Mostly good, but lacking a bit of clarity in the area of the dump station, and around the center area of the Birches campground area, where we stayed.

In May 2025 we noticed that the dump station signage was updated at some point since our last visit - looking good!

The center of the Birches campground still isn’t great for signage, but it’s a relatively simple layout, so getting by with the signage as-is works just fine after you’ve been through it a couple times.

The trail signage - as tends to be the case in Canadian National Parks - is fantastic. Clear, concise, accurate, well-placed, and multilingual. Can’t ask for much more!

Waste and Water Services

None of the over 200 camp sites at the Cyprus Lake Campground are serviced sites.

Potable water taps are available at the dump station, which is located *before* the campground office - on the way in. There are also taps throughout the campgrounds.

There was one fill station and one dump platform in this park’s poop loop, along with several garbage and recycling bins, and a giant pile of wood.

The layout in the trailer sanitation station area is kind of weird, so it can be awkward to try and pull up to the dump platform. Also, I imagine that single dump station gets super busy after long weekends, so plan accordingly.

The fill platform is actually across the space from the dump platform, in kind of a sheltered hut situation. There’s also a canoe washing rack right there.

Anyway, there were also several signs that said there was a bear in the area - apparently that wasn’t about one specific bear, just a general warning.

Honestly, there’s been a lot of logistical weirdness during this trip. It’s not a new park, I have no idea why things are such a mess this year. It’s not like they didn’t know when opening day was!

Connectivity

Cellphone reception - on Rogers Wireless - has pretty hit-and-miss, across all of our visits. It tends to be fine at the campground office, at our camp site, and close to the lake, but REALLY spotty everywhere else.

Bruce Peninsula National Park does offer Wifi, at the “Campground Hub” - basically a comfort station, playground, and amphitheatre rolled into one - but we haven’t had a ton of luck with connecting to it!

Accessibility

Overall, I was really impressed with how accessible the Bruce Peninsula National Park is.

The Cyprus Lake Campground is about as accessible as you can expect - there are accessible flush toilets and shower facilities in the campground hub.

They even have a yurt (Yurt #1) with a wheelchair ramp!

In terms of parking, there are accessible parking spots at all of the main parking lots we’ve been to - The Grotto, the visitor center, Halfway Log Dump, Singing Sands, etc.

Visitor Centre Accessibility

As far as the Visitor Centre goes, the center itself is wheelchair accessible - with ramps throughout - and it has a wheelchair accessible trail to Little Dunks Bay.

Additionally, the theatre show has subtitles - always happy to see that!

Accessible Hiking

In terms of the trails, some of the trails in the campground - Cyprus Lake (along the camp sites anyway), and the Georgian Bay Trail from the parking lot to the Grotto turn off - are MOSTLY wheelchair accessible.

The trails are generally flat, wide, and smoothish, but there are a few spots with roots or rocks that could be difficult to navigate over.

Also: There are a LOT of benches along the trails! Really nice to see.

While the Georgian Bay Trail to the Indian Head Cove / Grotto is mostly accessible, seeing those two areas is really.. Not. You really have to get into some actual hiking trail to get to the views.

That said, Singing Sands is a lot more accessible.

The views aren’t as amazing, but there’s an accessible boardwalk overlooking the beach and a marshy area.

Pets

Pets are welcome, but must be picked up after and leashed at all times.

You’re also not allowed to leave your pets unattended in campsites or in vehicles, and owners are expected to pick up after their pets.

Parking

As I mentioned earlier, the park permit situation is different from all of the Ontario Provincial Parks in that EVERYTHING is separate.

Your online booking is for the campsite only and does not cover YOUR entry to the park. Your camping permit also doesn’t allow you to park anywhere but your campsite - all the parking areas are handled and charged separately.

So, when we show up, we also have to pay a DAILY fee for the duration of our stay.

It was $8.50 per person, per day - my husband was allowed in free the first few visits, on account of being a recent immigrant. (Including the first time he ever used the Canoo app!).

After that first year, we started buying the Parks Canada Discovery Pass for the both of us. Given how much camping we do - between Bruce Peninsula and Pukaskwa National Park, and visiting Point Pelee National Park whenever we're staying at Wheatley Provincial Park... it pays for itself pretty quickly!

Anyway, the entry permit covers you to be in Bruce Peninsula National Park, Fathom Five National Marine Park, Flowerpot Island, Singing Sands Beach, the Visitor Centre, and the trails over there.

Parking fees for the Grotto Parking lot, Halfway Log Dump, etc - and diver registration, if applicable - are separate.

During the summer months, Indian Head Cove can be an absolute zoo, so you need to book Grotto parking in advance, if you’re planning to park there.

So they won’t sell you a ticket any earlier than 15 minutes before your allotted time, but you might end up with one an hour early anyway? So weird.

Miscellaneous

A few things to note:

1. Quiet hours are actually posted and enforced - 10 pm to 7 am - though excessive noise is banned at all times.

There is also a ban on alcohol and cannabis consumption during the same hours.

Additionally, no visitors are allowed on sites after 10 pm, you’re not allowed to maintain fires after 11pm, and all campfires have to be extinguished by midnight.

2. Generators are allowed in the Cyprus Lake campgrounds. Generator use is limited to being only for short periods and is prohibited between with 10pm and 8am, or 10 pm and 7 am, depending on which park information you’re reading.

That said, when the sky was clear - you could see all the stars easily, over Cyprus Lake. The view of the lake is basically to the north west, from the Birches Campground.

While there would be amazing north-facing views from Indian Head Cove / the Grotto area, that area of the park closes at 10 pm.

Walking via the trails may be doable, but it’s fairly long - maybe 2 km from the campground. It’s a mostly wide, smooth trail, but with the risk of running into black bears?

Personally, I’d think twice before hauling a bunch of gear 2 km for the possibility of northern lights there.

Campground Amenities & Info

Some basic information on the amenities offered at Cyprus Lake Campground:

Creature Comforts

The comfort station was called a “campground hub”, and it was actually really cool. It was a gorgeous large building, with beautiful paneling and big, open spaces.

While they did have showers and washroom facilities - it really felt like more of an activity centre or meeting place than “here’s the showers and bathrooms”.

It also had a large fire pit, an amphitheatre, a playground, some kind of table tennis or pingpong type tables, and even a rock structure for kids to play on.

It was also the place to go to access the wifi, though we weren’t able to connect when we tried.

I don’t think I’d trust kids climbing on rocks at the Lake Huron shoreline, but it was nice they had a bit of an option to do something similar, just... safer.

I am NOT an outhouse person, so seeing modern looking washroom facilities out on trailheads makes me happy!

We had to laugh at the signs for “High Dump Site” pointing at a small building with vaulted toilets, well up off the ground.

Deep down, we are 12 years old.

Camp Store

The camp store was relatively small in comparison with most of the provincial park campgrounds we’ve been to - mostly just Parks Canada souvenirs.

We didn’t notice the normal snacks, camping items, etc - mostly just swag.

There’s also a small shop in the visitor center.

Firewood

The firewood situation is something that’s been evolving in the short amount of time we’ve been camping at Cyprus Lake Campground.

Initially, you had to pay a fee for firewood. To be honest, I can’t even remember if that was optional, or just automatically tacked on.

Then - last year - they changed it so that firewood was included, and you’d just go take what you needed from a massive pile of it in the garbage / recycling / trailer sanitation area.

They also randomly delivered some to our site on a few occasions last year, which was nice. A park employee was just driving around asking if we needed any wood, then unloading it from her vehicle

As of May 2025, there’s still some firewood piled up in the garbage area, but the main pile has been moved to the P2 parking lot. (After check in, you’d turn left towards the yurts area, rather than turning right towards the campground entrances).

This is really nice, as it’s under a huge canopy to keep it relatively dry.

The Visitor Centre

On our first visit to Bruce Peninsula National Park, we were utterly unprepared for the extent of this visitor center. It was very TARDIS - we have NO idea how they crammed so much into what looked to be a small building. It seemed to go on and on - and not at all crowded feeling.

Other places will have nice little displays, even collections of displays. This was a FULL OUT MUSEUM. A small museum, sure - but they really threw everything at those displays.

The staff were nice and informative, we loved that there was a wall of “pro tips” from the staff members, listing their favourite things about the park.

Also: They had a different map booklet from the one we got at the campground. Very similar, but one was geared to the campground specifically, while the one from the visitor center was about the rest of the park.

Observation Tower

Outside of the Visitor Center, there’s a lookout tower. It’s a short walk from the parking lot, and was a weird one for my husband (I skipped it).

Says he:

“Because you can see through the stairs - and with their general design and layout - the steps kind of visually disappear out from underneath you.

It reminded me of that scene in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, where he was stepping out on the camouflaged plank as a ‘leap of faith’. This effect was even more pronounced on the way back down.”

The top of the platform gave a great panoramic view of the surrounding area. He was only up there for a few minutes, on account of rain - Looking forward to seeing it on a sunny day!

Day Use Area

There are picnic areas at Head of Trails, Singing Sands, and the Hub. All three have nice washrooms available.

IMHO, Singing Sands is the nicest. The Hub is closest to the campground - and probably best for those with kids. (Playground area).

Head of Trails is most convenient for those going out to hike the trails, but it’s also the least scenic - literally just picnic tables around the parking lot.

Campsite Details

The campsites were HUGE! We tend to stay in the Birches campground section, which ended up being pull-through sites - a happy surprise, I guess I hadn’t been paying attention when I’d booked.

The weird thing was that the drive-in campsites were situated with a LARGE expanse of area between each couple of sites, alternating, as the fire pits / picnic area.

But communally - the fire pits and picnic tables for two sites would share a HUGE area.

So it’s a good idea to pay attention to what side of the camper your door is on, and which direction you want to approach the drive-in sites from, with that in mind.

The site we booked actually had a HUGE slope, and it was in a bad direction for us - to have our door facing our picnic table and fire pit, our heads would be WAY back when sleeping - even after using leveling blocks.

Luckily, there were literally only 2 other campers in the entire section of the campground, so we were able to change our spot to the one right next to us - which was almost perfectly level.

The sites along the lake in our campgound all had really easy access to the Cyprus Lake trail. The sites shown as being along the lake in the next campground - Poplars - over did NOT. We really chose well!

Not great privacy - the trees were fairly sparse, so you could see through to many campsites.

In our case - at that time of year - this was fine, We could see clear through the entire length of sites to revel in how empty it was!

Anyway, there are a total of 232 campsites. Birches looked to be the only area with drive-through sites - most/all of them. Tamarack is a radio free campsite.

Roofed Accommodations

There are 10 yurts available for Yurt Camping. Unlike Pukaskwa National Park, and Point Pelee National Park, they don’t do the oTENTik thing at Bruce Peninsula.

The yurts they have look a lot like the ones at the Ontario Provincial Park campgrounds.

Several of the yurts are right near the shore of Cyprus Lake - I bet the views are fantastic from the attached decks on those ones.

Anyway, there are some regulations to keep in mind when booking a stay in a Cyprus Lake Yurt:

There are no pets allowed in the yurts, or on the yurt campsites at all. You’re not allowed to put up *any* other structure, so you can’t be slick and sleep a dog in a tent anyway.

That said, “other structures” also includes screen tents, dining tents, and hammocks!

In addition to being a pet-free camping area, the yurts section is also radio free and generator free.

Also, they’ll charge you a $250 cleaning fee if they determine that you’ve smoked, cooked (!!!), or had pets inside the yurt during your stay. That’s on top of any additional damages they may find.

Anyway, each yurt has a deck with a roofed cooking station and propane BBQ, and a food storage locker (it’s not chilled or temperature controlled, plan accordingly!).

In terms of living space, you get a double bed, a bunk bed (a double bed with a single up top), a little dinette set, and a wood stove for heating. (Again, no cooking allowed inside.) No washrooms in the yurts, but there’s a central heated comfort station in the yurts section, with flush toilets, potable water taps, and showers.

Anyway, they have lots of info about the rules, what’s included - and what’s not - etc, on their Yurt Camping at Cyprus Lake page.

Entertainment and Activity

There is SO much to do in this park! Due to the weather, season, and interests we weren’t able to experience all of the options, and it still felt like a really full, fulfilling trip.

Anyway, here’s some information on the options, in general:

Hiking

We loved how much information was available on the hiking trails. The paper maps were clear, and the signage and maps on the actual trails were good.

The thing is, the hiking trails and their descriptions / lengths on the park’s website don’t match up to the trails and lengths on the park maps or in reality!

We didn’t do all of the available trails, but here’s our notes on the ones we did:

Georgian Bay Trail

The Georgian Bay Trail is the quickest and easiest to get from the grotto parking to Indian Head Cove, and it’s the trail we’ve done most often. It’s 1.5 km from the parking lot to Indian Head Cove.

The trail starts off to the left as you enter the head of trails, with a lot of clear signage available.

It’s probably wheelchair accessible - to a point.

If mobility is an issue, it’d be disappointing to get that far, and then realize the barrier to actually seeing the coastline.

The rocky path to Indian Head Cove isn’t super difficult if you’re not encumbered, but the path to get to the grotto definitely involves actual climbing / walking up boulders - and some pretty steep walls of them, at that.

I was having a good tendon day at the time, but I definitely paid the price for it the next few days.

WORTH IT.

Cyprus Lake Trail

The full trail is marked as being 5km and of low difficulty. We only walked part of this trail along the campground.

With the weather the way it was, we had to prioritize things. The lake was nice, but compared to Indian Head Cove.. No contest!

It was a wide, open walk, with a lot of boardwalk sections - very pretty, and sections of it are particularly good for birding and wildlife viewing.

You can walk around the whole lake, or use it as access to get to the head of trails / grotto area.

Marr Lake Trail

This is an alternate path from the Grotto parking lot to the grotto area.

Weirdly, it looks to be just over 1 km, according to the distances on the map, while the website says it’s 3 km. Maybe it means there and back?

It goes around one side of Marr Lake and takes you in the direction of the Grotto - looks like you have to hook onto Bruce Trail to get there, unless the trails are overlapped.

Anyway, this trail is marked as varying between moderate and difficult, and involves crossing boulders on the shore. Porter did this trail by himself, and agrees with the difficulty rating.

He enjoyed the trail a lot, finding it “very scenic and beautiful”. He also appreciated the various different types of terrain and views - we love a good “ADD-Friendly” trail!

Horse Lake Trail

This one is another alternate way to get from the grotto parking area to Indian Head Cove. It’s marked as being 1 km - similar to Georgian Bay Trail - but of moderate difficulty.

We’re not really sure why it’s labeled as being moderate difficulty. This is a wide, flat trail with a lot of boardwalk... and not much in the way of elevation changes.

You walk along the namesake Horse Lake near the beginning of the trail, and there’s a little offshoot trail that takes you to an observation deck on the side of the lake. We saw a raccoon there, our first time - super cute!

Anyway, while Horse Lake Trail itself is easy, it doesn’t take you all the way to the Grotto area / Indian Head Cove. If you’re looking to continue on from Horse Lake Trail, you’ll turn left when you come to the rocky shoreline, where you’ll pick up the Bruce Trail.

It’s another 850 meters on the Bruce Trail before getting to the Indian Head Cove area.

And yeah... the Bruce Trail is NOT an easy trail! More on that in a minute, though!

Bruce Trail

Bruce Trail runs through Bruce Peninsula National Park (well, it runs from Tobermory all the way down to Niagara Falls!), and it is NO JOKE!

We’ve taken part of the Bruce Trail - the section that connects Horse Lake Trail to the Indian Head Cove. We’ve also done a bit of it going from there, past the Grotto, towards Overhanging Point.

Expect big inclines, some rock climbing, and all kinds of other obstacles. Extremely ADHD friendly, and definitely a workout.

Also: absolutely not wheelchair friendly, and you really don’t want to be doing this trail if you’re mobility impaired at all. I’ve done all kind of dumb stuff in a walking boot, and even I wouldn’t attempt Bruce Trail booted.

Multi Use Trail

Finally, there’s a 4.3 km long multi-use trail running up the length of the campground areas on beside Cyprus Lake Rd, encircling the 3 campground areas.

They don’t want you walking or running on the main road, so this is the path that you’re supposed to use for running, walking, cycling, etc.

Halfway Log Dump

This is a 1 km long trail that’s wide, well maintained, and relatively flat, but there are definitely some steep areas and a few sections of rocks / roots to get over.

As with the trail to Indian Head Cove, it’s a relatively easy walk until JUST before you get to the main attraction.

The groomed trail ends at a steep ... I guess it was a trench? Path? of rocks. You have to cross these rocks - much bigger than gravel or bedding rocks, but not larger like boulders - in order to get to any real view of the lake.

I guess the rocks were maybe softball size, irregular, and smooth. Even my husband considered them a challenge to walk over, and he wasn’t the one going through crippling tendon pain with every step.

Hobbled over to a large rock right on the water line, and soaked my poor feet for a bit before headed back - it was spa like!

More on Halfway Log Dump in a bit!

Singing Sands

There’s a cute little boardwalk trail at Singing sands - 250 m long, wheelchair accessible.

Had we gone at a different time of year, we might have seen some of the orchids and carnivorous plants we’ve read live in that particular wetland area.

Wild Garden Trail

This is a 1.3 km long trail that’s rated as being moderately difficult. It takes you along Dorcus Bay - through sand dunes and forest areas.

The focal point of this trail is an alvar habitat - an area of rock flatland with little to no soil. The vegetation is mostly moss, lichen, and certain rare flower types specific to that kind of environment.

Little Dunks Lookout

This is an easy trail that’s less than a km in length, leading out from near the observation tower at the visitor center. It takes you out to a platform overlooking Georgian Bay.

We ALMOST did this one on our first trip, but it started pouring right as we were about to go. October rain on the coast is no joke, so we went back to the camper for some hot chocolate, instead!

We did get our chance the following year, when we took a walk down to the lookout to enjoy the sunset. It was a lovely little stroll through the woods, nothing really strenuous.

Bruce Trail Burnt Point Loop

This is a 4.8 km hiking trail loop of moderate difficulty, accessed from the Visitor Centre parking area.

It’s a rough, rocky trail that takes you through cedar forests before hitting the Georgian Bay coastline halfway.

Flowerpot Island

Flowerpot Island is really only accessible for part of the year, via private boat tour companies operating out of Tobermory. Unfortunately, the season had basically ended by the time we arrived.

The island has a few hiking trails, and is a destination largely due to the unique “flowerpot” rock formations on its shore.

Definitely looking forward to visiting it some day!

Update: We visited it! See our review for all you need to know: Flowerpot Island

Scenic Attractions

There are a few key points of interest that you’ll definitely want to see, when visiting Bruce Peninsula National Park.

The Grotto

The grotto is a natural cave tucked in along the limestone cliffs on the shore of Georgian Bay.

It’s the Bruce Peninsula National Park feature that you hear most about, but honestly - it’s less spectacular than Indian Head Cove!

I wish we’d gone to the grotto first, as it was a little anticlimactic after screwing around throughout Indian Head Cove for an hour or so.

That said, it’s a really cool feature. It does take some work to get to, though.

I bet you could canoe or kayak down there on a nice day - from another place, maybe Indian Head Cove - and that would be amazing.

There are also a couple underwater entrances for divers!

Indian Head Cove

DAMN. DAAAAAMN!!

I haven’t been to Newfoundland since 2006, and this really felt like the first thing that felt similar to the gorgeous views I had when hiking there. Maybe even better!

This was wild because there were just so many vantage points, so many different views, each seemed more spectacular than the last.

... and there WILL BE future trips there, because damn.

Almost a big sponge-like appearance.

Just go. You won’t regret it!

Your camera might, though. We ended up taking something like 600 photos in just a couple hours there!

Even after ruthlessly cutting it down to just our favourites, we had far too many for this post. We’ll probably get an album up on Facebook at some point.

Just an absolutely stunning area!

The Natural Arch

The natural arch is on the map, but you don’t really seem to hear as much about it - I can’t remember if there was even a sign pointing it out, whereas the grotto is what ALL the signage points to.

My husband is still raving about the natural arch, actually having found it more interesting than the grotto itself - it looked like something out of a movie.

Like adventure movie scenes where people have to swim in underwater caves and pop out in some remote area to find the treasure.

Anyway, yeah. Really cool.

Halfway Log Dump

I mentioned this as part of the trail description in the hiking section, but I feel like Halfway Log Dump is an attraction unto itself.

SO gorgeous. The pale colour of the water is absolutely unreal!

It was wild to be there, alone together, in October, and it looked almost tropical - just with rocks.

The beach is made of those golf-to-softball-sized rocks - it’s not a sandy beach - and the way the light works with the clear water and those white rocks is absolutely magical.

Then out to the side, the white beach rocks very suddenly changed over to these huge dark boulders, that seemed like another whole type of ... well, play area.

I could have spent a whole afternoon there - had we known what to expect, and planned a bit better.

Just a really amazing place to see. Next time!

Bouldering

The park touts itself as a destination for bouldering - a term neither of us had heard before our trip. After googling, we realized that it’s an actual term for something that we both enjoy doing!

Back when I lived in Newfoundland, I loved to climb down big boulders along the shore, going just to the point where I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to climb back out.

Then I’d have all kinds of fun “Spidermanning” myself back up those boulders, with no ropes or other equipment.

I just thought of it as “playing on the rocks”!

Anyway, bouldering is permitted at Halfway Log Dump, with some restrictions (not in the forest, not on the first 3 boulders along the shore, don’t touch the daisies)

Biking

You’ve got a few options when it comes to cycling in Bruce Peninsula National Park.

First of all - in the Cyprus Lake Campground - there’s the multi use trail. I mentioned this one in then hiking section - it’s just a fairly basic, 4.3 km long trail that runs along the main campground road.

You’re not supposed to bike on the main road, so that’s basically your only option for cycling from one end of the campground to the other. It’s one of only two trails in the campground that allow cycling - the other being the Cyprus Lake Trail.

There are bike racks at the head of trails, though... so don’t worry about having to dismount to explore the grotto and Indian Head Cove.

Anyway, outside of the campground itself, you can go biking TO Singing Sands - there are bike racks there - but I don’t think you’re supposed to bike *at* Singing Sands.

Swimming

There are several different swimming areas in Bruce Peninsula National Park.

Singing Sands Beach

Singing Sands Beach is touted as a swimming beach, but it didn’t really seem like one - that definitely could have been a seasonality thing. When we were there, it was more of a sandy marsh than a sandy beach you’d want to swim in.

That said, the area is a really cool attraction in general, with boardwalks and picnicking areas overlooking the beach, etc.

Even if the beach is relatively similar in the summer, it’d be a great place to just chill and enjoy a nice summer day.

Indian Head Cove

After visiting Indian Head Cove, we were a bit surprised to see that it was advertised as a swimming area.

We love, love, LOVE Indian Head cove, but - at least when we were there - it seemed like it would be fairly hazardous conditions for actually swimming in.

Honestly, I would have been extremely cautious if we were to even wade in - I suppose things could be wildly different on a calm lake day, though. Like most of the great lakes, Lake Huron can be a beast!

That said, I’ve seen photos of Indian Head Cove during peak season, Even if you don’t go in the water, it definitely seems like a great place to enjoy for the “lay out in the sun” aspect of beaching, anyway.

Halfway Log Dump

Halfway Log Dump is also gorgeous, and seems like a much safer beach for wading and swimming.

It’s a shallow, very rocky beach - you’ll definitely want to use water shoes - but it’s clean, clear shallower water, going pretty far out.

As it was quite cold during our stay - and I did NOT bring water shoes - I only went a couple feet from the shore.

Little Cove

Little Cove is a short drive from the campground, and is like a smaller version of halfway log dump, without the bouldering option off to the sides.

It’s also a shorter distance from the parking lot - though it’s a very steep walk.

Parking is paid and reservations are required - they are booked in 4 hour time slots.

The parking area is very small, and is apparently the limiting factor for visiting Little Cove Beach. Full parking lot = no more access to the beach.

I’m guessing - if that’s followed - that the beach never gets all that crowded, but ... hard to say. People don’t tend to follow rules and guidelines!

Diving

As people who tend to prefer to keep our outdoor experience ABOVE the surface, we were both surprised to hear of the existence of a national park that’s completely underwater!

Fathom Five National Park is a marine park off the shore of Bruce Peninsula National Park, and apparently it attracts scuba divers from around the world.

... I kind of wish I was into diving. I bet that’s an INCREDIBLY cool thing to experience!

Birding, Wildlife, and Nature

As you can imagine, Bruce Peninsula National Park is a fantastic place for wildlife viewing.

We were actually sat at our Cyprus Lake Campground site - completely surrounded by what we would learn to be Black-Throated Green Warblers - when we were really inspired to get into birding.

We had NO idea what we were hearing, and decided to Google to see if there was a website or app that could help us identify bird songs. We quickly downloaded the Merlin Bird ID app ... and camping has never been the same for us, since!

Between that, the Audubon app, and Google lens, we’ve been able to identify that we’ve seen and/or heard the following birds over the course of our last couple of stays in Bruce Peninsula National Park:

American Redstart, American Crow, American Robin, American Tree Sparrow, Black-And-White Warbler, Black-Capped Chickadee, Black-Throated Green Warbler, Blue Jay, Brown Creeper, Bufflehead, Caspian Tern, Cedar Waxwing, Common Grackle, Common Loon, Common Mergansers, Common Raven, Common Yellowthroat, Dark-Eyed Junco, Downy Woodpecker, Golden-Crowned Kinglet, Great Blue Heron, Great-Crested Flycatcher, Hairy Woodpecker, Hermit Thrush, Herring Gull, Killdeer, Mallard Ducks, Merlin, Nashville Warbler, Northern Flicker, Northern Waterthrush, Peregrine Falcon, Pileated Woodpecker, Purple Finch, Red-Eyed Vireo, Red-Breasted Nuthatch, Red-Winged Blackbird, Ringed Plover, Rock Pigeons, Ring-Billed Gull, Rose-Breasted Grosbeak, Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Ruffled Grouse, Rusty Blackbird, Sandhill Crane, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Turkey Vulture, White-Crowned Sparrow, White-Throated Sparrow, Winter Wren, Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Yellow Warbler.

Bruce Penisula Flora!

During our May 2024 stay, we were treated to orchids!

I’d never actually seen a wild orchid in my life, and suddenly they were EVERYWHERE! The drive in along the main park road was lined with yellow Lady’s Slipper orchids, with more along the trails and campsites.

Then there were all kinds of other orchids along the trails, and other areas of interest in the park - Singing Sands, and on Flowerpot Island, in particular.

The park is known to be home to a bunch of different orchids - apparently we visited too early in the season for most of them, but I was pretty stoked to see the ones I did.

There were also all kinds of other interesting flowers, pretty much everywhere.

We’d been looking forward to seeing more during our May 2025 visit, but ... no dice. I’m guessing winter went a bit longer this year?

Boating

Motorboats are banned on Cyprus Lake, but you can go canoeing or kayaking on it.

I guess canoeing is a big thing in Bruce Peninsula National Park, we just didn’t see any during our trip - probably a matter of the time of year and the weather.

Weirdly, it just didn’t look like very welcoming for canoes or kayaks.

The boat launch in our campground was kind of a mess, and the canoe cleaning station on the side of the road was overgrown and looked pretty neglected. Those two things were the only exposure we had to boating as a park activity, during our stay.

It was just such a weird contrast to how new, clean, and well maintained the rest of the park facilities were.

Fishing

Fishing is allowed on Cyprus Lake, as long as you’re licensed and are observing the proper season restrictions.

The use of natural bait is banned though - you’re not even allowed to possess it within the park. This applies to live, dead, and other forms of natural fish bait - it’s a measure to prevent the spread of invasive species.

Apparently Bass, Perch, and Walleye are available in the lake, though - and at Cameron Lake, nearby.

You can also fish for Bass, Muskie, and Salmon in Lake Huron and Georgian Bay, but you’re definitely going to want more than a canoe or whatever for that. Apparently it’s more akin to fishing on an ocean, than a lake!

Bruce Peninsula Xplorers Program

Much like Ontario Provincial Parks’ Discovery Program, Parks Canada's has an “Xplorers” program for kids age 6-12.

Both of these children’s programs sound like things I would have LOVED as a kid. This one involves an activity book - you can get it at the campground office or visitor center.

It has a bunch of activities and “experiences” for kids to log.

Once they’ve completed a certain number of them, they can take the booklet into the park office to get a certificate of completion, and a park souvenir!

Niantic Games

There are several Ingress Portals / Pokestops / Gyms in the park.

A few are located along the shore of Cyprus Lake in the campground areas, with several more clustered at the Campground hub.

Wherever you are in the campground, you’re not far from one of them... and a few more are scattered at trail heads, etc.

That said, the cell phone reception was spotty enough that playing is a frustrating experience in most of the park. We basically aimed to get our daily tasks done, and that was it.

Nearby Attractions

Looking to explore beyond the confines of Bruce Peninsula National Park? Here are some attractions to consider:

Devil’s Monument

Devil’s Monument is the largest flowerpot formation on the east side of Bruce Peninsula, and is accessible via a portion of the Bruce Trail.

It’s about a 30 minute drive from the campground - more or less, depending on which parking lot you’re aiming for - and it’s a cool thing to check out.

See my post Devil's Monument Visitor Guide for everything you’ll want to know.

Spoiler: There’s some weirdness with the parking lots, and a lack of good logistics info out there. I’ve got you, though -that post has everything I wish I’d known, before our first visit!

Tobermory

The village of Tobermory is just a short drive away - maybe 20 minutes - on the northern tip of the Bruce Peninsula.

Tobermory is very touristy - which would be fun in the summer - but it has been weirdly desolate during our stays.

Most of the restaurants and such around Little Tub Harbour have been closed during our stays, or cut down to extremely limited hours on the weekends only.

That said, we have spent a little time in the town, checking out a couple sights:

The Lighthouse

Big Tub Harbour is home to the Big Tub Lighthouse, a small but fun attraction to spend some time at.

It features more of those rocks with huge holes in them, and overlooks the Tobermory Harbour. During the summer, tour boats will go in and out of that harbour to take people to see the two shipwrecks contained there.

Gorgeous views - and there’s a bench overlooking the lake, a nice place to just chill and enjoy the gorgeous views.

Paid parking is available just a short walk from the lighthouse itself. The trail is relatively flat and an easy walk.

The MS Chi-Cheemaun

I remember this ship from when I was a kid, on early camping trips with my grandparents en route to see my favourite aunt.

It’s undergone a big make over sometime in the 20+ years since I last saw it, now sporting brightly coloured native artwork.

The land acknowledgment read to passengers was broadcast loud enough that we heard it clear across the harbour, when I brought my husband to watch a boarding.

The name of the ship means “the big canoe”, so it’s nice to see them really lean into - and acknowledge - First Nations culture in multiple ways.

My ship nerd husband was thrilled to see the boarding - he’s never seen a ferry boat before, and certainly nothing that loads the way this one does.

We’ll definitely have to take a trip on it when things settle out a bit!

Final Thoughts

DAAAAAAAMN.

We’ll definitely be back. This might just be our favourite park to date - the no electricity thing is a bit of an issue, but you can’t argue with those VIEWS.

We loved the campground though - though partially because there was literally no one there. It’s a relatively easy jaunt from home, and it’s still mind blowing that we’ve got such easy access to such otherworldy gorgeous vistas!

A little frustrating that words and photos would never do the experience justice, but hey - at least it shows some degree of the awesomeness of the area.

Bring your hiking boots and a camera and have a blast!

More Campground Reviews

Want to read some more of what we have to say about the campgrounds we've stayed at? Here are some more reviews!

Bon Echo Provincial Park
Chutes Provincial Park
Conestogo Lake Conservation Area
Driftwood Provincial Park
Elora Gorge Conservation Area
Fifty Point Conservation Area
Killbear Provincial Park
Lake Superior Provincial Park
Long Point Provincial Park
MacLeod Provincial Park
Meaford Memorial Park
Neys Provincial Park
Port Burwell Provincial Park
Quetico Provincial Park
Rideau River Provincial Park
Selkirk Provincial Park
Sleeping Giant Provincial Park
Turkey Point Provincial Park
Valens Lake Conservation Area