Murphys Point Provincial Park is a fantastic campground in eastern Ontario. Here's everything you need to know about camping there!
We’d spent a little time in southeastern Ontario - at Bon Echo Provincial Park, Bonnechere Provincial Park, Ferris Provincial Park, Presqu'ile Provincial Park, Sandbanks Provincial Park, and Silent Lake Provincial Park... but aside from a not-great stay at Rideau River Provincial Park, we hadn’t really been EAST in Ontario.
So we started our little expedition of new-to-us parks at Charleston Lake Provincial Park - which we loved! - before heading on to Murphys Point Provincial Park.
1. It’s known for snakes. Lots of snakes, some of them very BIG snakes.
2. The only mentions - aside from snakes - that we’ve seen of it in camping groups is about how hilly the campground roads and campsites are, and how tight the turns are.
As it turns out, #1 wasn’t an issue during our stay - I was almost disappointed, even though I hate snakes!
#2 ended up seeming like a bit of exaggeration there. Yes, it’s hilly, but the RV section doesn’t really have tight turns... and we lucked into a pretty flat site!
Anyway, we had a great time at Murphys Point - let us tell you all about it!
As a note... The park’s name is “Murphys Point Provincial Park”, not “Murphy’s Point Provincial Park”.
Right up until the time we arrived and saw the sign, I thought it was with the possessive apostrophe! It looks weird, I know - but it’s not on me!
The Basics:
Campground Name: Murphys Point Provincial Park
Address: 2243 Elmgrove Road, R.R. 5 Perth, ON K7H 3C7
Website: https://www.ontarioparks.ca/park/murphyspoint
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: Natural Environment
Season: May 8, 2026 to October 13, 2026 for camping, December 11, 2026 to March 14, 2027 Day use only.
Park Warden Cell: 613 812-3978
Logistics
Before even getting into the campground specific logistics, we should talk about an issue we ran into, on the way in.
We were traveling from Charleston Lake Provincial Park, to Murphys Point. Google directions took us through Crosby, to a bridge with a load limit of 5 tonnes - our RV was overweight.
We were stuck there for a minute, frantically Googling for an alternate route to the park.
Long story short, if you’re taking the same route and will also be over the weight limit for that bridge, adding Lombardy as a stop along the route will avoid that issue - you’ll just stay on 15, before taking Rideau Ferry Rd / County Road 1 to 21.
Anyway, with that out of the way, let’s look at some basic information to help you plan your stay at Murphys Point Provincial Park.
Registration and Check In
We booked our site 5 months in advance, as usual.
As it turns out, that was completely unnecessary - we were arriving on a weekday, during the first week the campground was open... and it was blissfully mostly empty!
I forgot to do the morning-of check in online, so we did it in person when we arrived. Check in was handled via window service, and was quick, friendly, and easy service, as always.
Maps and Signage
Some information about finding your way around Murphys Point Provincial Park:
Park Map
For a smallish park, I was surprised, impressed, and a little intimidated by the amount of map type literature we were given upon registration!
First, there was an 11 x 17", full colour and glossy handout with trail information, and the Murphys Point Provincial Park Overview Map, with a focus on the trails. It’s essentially a Trail Map, but also serves as the overview of the whole park area.
Then, there was a second 11 x 17 sheet for the Murphys Point Provincial Park Campground Map, with some additional information about the park.
My husband also bought two trail brouchures, for $1 each.
It was a handful of information, and I LOVE it!
Note: the Ontario Parks website also has a Murphys Point Provincial Park Winter Trails Map, though it definitely wasn’t applicable in mid May!
Anyway, as far as the maps go, they were good. Lots of colour/symbol coded information, everything seemed pretty accurate to reality, and accessible facilities were also indicated!
Signage
Directional signage at Murphys Point was generally decent. Most main road signage was large, high contrast, and well placed. Some of the campground signage appeared to be older - the brown/yellow signage.
They could probably use a bit more / larger / more modern signs in the actual campground areas, but getting around the park itself is easy enough.
That said, there’s an area near the park entrance - kind of a mutant roundabout situation involving the day use area, gatehouse, park store, and dump station - that is definitely easier to find your way around if you have someone navigating.
Of course, if you’re using the area like a normal person, that may not be the case for you.
We went around and around a few times, getting the video and photos for this blog and our Youtube - and ended up turned around at one point!
Water & Waste Services
The Trailer Sanitation Station is located off that aforementioned roundabout situation, and is definitely situated such that it’s meant to be accessed on the way out of the park.
The plus side of that whole roundabout thing is that it’s easy enough to loop back into the campground area, you’ll just have to go by the gatehouse again.
There is a single fill station and a single dump platform, with a single lane on either side of them - so there’s essentially a bypass lane.
The hose on the fill platform is threaded, and there are a few garbage and recycling cans - not the big bins - next to the dump platform.
On that note, most outhouses have a small garbage can - and usually a recycling can - next to them.
Both of the comfort stations are where the larger, dumpster-style garbage and recycling bins are located. Also, there were at least a couple of campsite cleaning stations that we saw, with a rake and a shovel.
Connectivity
Connectivity was fairly hit and miss for us, throughout the campground. In some areas, we had pretty good reception.
In others - like at our campsite in the Hogg Bay Campground - we had very spotty service.
There was definitely enough to check the weather from time to time, but I wouldn’t plan on streaming a show or anything.
We’re on Rogers Wireless - your mileage may vary on other providers.
Accessibility
While there was good accessibility information on the map, the park’s website didn’t offer a ton of information - just that there’s a barrier free campsite, and barrier free access at both comfort stations.
To expand on that:
Barrier-Free Camping
The barrier-free campsite is #154, which is the only electrical site in an otherwise entirely non-electrical campground.
It’s also a campground that is REALLY not great for driving an RV around in, so definitely keep that in mind.
I assume it’s located in that campground so that it can be actually next to a comfort station - the other comfort station isn’t located in a campground, but is across the main campground road.
Anyway, the barrier-free site has a regular picnic table - not a wheelchair accessible style one - and a regular (rather than vaulted) fire pit. It also has a functioning water tap, right in the site.
There’s a short path leading directly from the site to the comfort station parking lot, so you don’t even have to go out on the road to get there.
Good thing - those roads are in pretty awful shape, and are definitely not wheelchair friendly!
Barrier-Free Facilities
The gatehouse offers window service, the park store involves 3 steps up to get into it.
As mentioned previously, both comfort stations offer barrier free access:
The Fallows Campground comfort station has a single barrier-free shower, but it’s not marked on the door. It’s the one that’s second from the left.
The Rideau Comfort Station also has a single barrier-free shower - and it’s the largest one I’ve ever seen in a Provincial Park campground!
The path up to the Rideau comfort station isn’t the most wheelchair friendly, though. It’s fairly steep, but paved... and you have to get up over a bit of a curb to get to the sidewalk.
Neither barrier-free shower is the kind that has a toilet in the same stall, so you’ll have to go around to another side of the comfort station and use the main washroom.
Neither washroom was marked as having an accessible stall, but the Fallows comfort station appeared to have one.
(I forgot to specifically look for it, and it’s hard to tell if the Rideau one has an accessible stall, from the photo I took!)
None of the outhouses we saw appeared to be wheelchair accessible in either design, or approach to the building.
Row 2: Path to the Amphitheatre, Campfire Circle
Barrier-Free Activities
The day use beach is about 300 metres from the parking lot, down a wide, well packed trail - but there’s a fairly steep, sustained decline to get down there.
The main beach is only about 150 metres from the parking lot, and it’s a lot easier to get to - another wide, flat, well-packed trail, until it gets you to the lawn area before the beach. You’re on your own at that point - and neither beach had a MobiMat at the time of our visit.
Beyond that, the boat launch was a regular style one, and did not have one of those accessible style canoe launches or anything.
The Amphitheatre is about 60 metres from the parking lot, on a “wheelchair accessible but not 100% wheelchair friendly trail. It’s MOSTLY flat, wide, and well-packed, but there were some small branches, a few rocks and stuff. Nothing major though.
The side branch trail from there down to the Campfire Circle was much more rough and not wheelchair accessible, but should be doable if you’ve got other mobility issues.
In terms of the hiking trails, none are designated wheelchair accessible - I’ll give other accessibility / difficulty specifics in the hiking section, further down in this post.
Pets
Between the park’s website, the various handouts, and signage at the park ... there’s not a lot of information about dogs!
A sign near the front says that they have to be leashed at all times, and signage at the beaches indicate that they’re not allowed on the beach. That’s it.
We didn’t see any indication of any dog beach or dog exercise area at all, no poop baggie dispensers, etc.
So, it’s safe to assume that all the usual rules apply - leashed at all times, not to be left unattended at any time, and must be picked up after.
Parking
In general, there is a TON of parking at Murphys Point Provincial Park.
The beaches both have larger parking lots than the areas seem to really need. To be fair though, the day-use parking lot also serves as trailhead parking.
Aside from the Loon Lake Trail / McParlan House Trail, the trails all have decent to large parking areas at the trail heads.
Loon Lake / McParlan house share limited parking near campsite #45 in the Hogg Bay Campground.
One thing to note, though: The trailhead parking for the Point Trail also seems to serve as parking for the boat launch. Spots aren’t marked or signed, it’s a bit of a free-for-all ... so parking a boat trailer may get iffy, if the trail gets busy!
Miscellaneous
The only random information I have to note for this park is with regard to light pollution, northern lights, and stargazing.
The park is in an area of overall low light pollution, per the light pollution map.
That said, the campgrounds themselves are fairly heavily treed, so you’re going to need to move to one of the outer areas - beaches, boat launch, etc - for an open sky view.
The best easy-access north view is at the Day Use Beach, but it looks like the tip of Sylvan Point also has a north facing view.
The only problem is that there are cabins on that lake, so you may need to deal with nearby light pollution.
Campground Amenities & Info
Here’s some info on the amenities at Murphys Point Provincial Park:
Creature Comforts
There are two comfort stations at Murphys Point PP - one in the Fallows Campground, and another along the main campground road, across from the Hogg Bay Campground,
The Fallows Campground Comfort Station is one of the smallest full comfort stations I’ve seen. There was a small washroom on either side - one male, one female, each with a few stalls - and then just a handful of showers.
The building is very small, the bathroom looks to be from the 1980s, but everything seems to be in decent shape. It took a few minutes for the shower to warm up in the morning, but I think that’s pretty typical.
The laundry machines weren’t actually hooked up at the beginning of our stay, but were set up a few days later.
We did a few loads - we love the outdoor ones, being able to enjoy the outdoors while doing chores is always nice!
The machines were pretty cheap at only $2/load, and the dryer was HUGE!
Row 3: Fallows Comfort Station
Row 4: Fallows Comfort Station, Random Outhouse
Visitor Centre
There is no Visitor Centre at Murphys Point Provincial Park.
Park Store
The Park Store at Murphys Point is FANTASTIC! Such a great selection of stuff - aside from the firewood, ice, and usual Ontario Parks Souvenirs, they have a decent selection of groceries, a coffee bar, a great selection of ice cream by the scoop, and more!
Day Use Area
The day use area is located up a fairly long road that starts out near the gatehouse.
Once you reach the parking lot, it’s about 300 m down to the beach - and I do mean DOWN.
A lot of that distance is a fairly steep and sustained downhill walk...not so bad, until you realize you have to walk back UP it, at the end of the day!
Anyway, there are also trails there from the Fallows Campground, or you can hike in from the far end of the park, via the Point and Sylvan Trail.
It’s a pretty small day use area - a couple picnic tables and a bench, with a very small beach - we’ll talk about the beach a bit later, though!
There’s also a beach, small picnic shelter - with a few more picnic tables, and a kid’s playground.
This can be accessed via the Hogg Bay Campground, or via the Main Beach parking lot - it’s about 150 metres, and not anywhere near as steep as the day-use area.
Be forewarned - that grassy area was FULL of goose poop. Watch your step!
Aside from these main areas, there are also mini day use areas - with picnic tables - located at the Lally Homestead, McParlan House, and the Silver Queen Mine site, along with at the walk-in beach on the Point Trail.
Row 1: Lally Homestead
Row 2: Silver Queen Mine, Boat Launch
Row 3: Walk-In Beach
Row 4: McParlan House
Rentals
The park offers canoes and kayaks for rent - these can be arranged through the park store, and picked up either there, at the administration dock on Noble Bay, or at the Main Beach on Hogg Bay.
Personal Floatation Devices (PFDs) are available to borrow, with a $25 refundable deposit required.
Finally, the park is part of the Tackleshare Program, and offers fishing gear to loan - free of charge. This can also be arranged at the Park Store.
Campsite Details
There are a few different ways you can camp at Murphys Point Provincial Park: Car Camping, Group Camping, and renting one of their Roofed Accommodation offerings.
Car Camping
There are 2 named campgrounds at Murphys Point Provincial Park, with each having a couple distinct camping areas within it.
Fallows Campground is almost entirely a non-electrical campground, with the exception of the barrier-free site in there. (The only in the park).
There are two distinct loops to this campground - the one off to the right as you enter it is bigger and has the comfort station (Stone Road and Forest Road), while the one to the left (Hardwood Drive) is smaller, a bit more rustic, and seems to be tent-only.
I wouldn’t want to take our RV (28') through the Fallows Campground at all, but we saw some smaller trailers in there, on that right loop.
Hogg Bay Campground is mostly electric sites - with a handful of exceptions - and two distinct sections.
One is a set of pull-through sites that stretches across two long, 2-row areas, the other is a figure 8 loop of regular sites - Ash Hill. The pull-through sites section kind of borders the regular sites section.
There are SO MANY cute sites in this park. It’s very hilly, but those hills give really cool views over the surrounding areas with ravines and marshy areas sprinkled throughout.
Our favourite site in the park was #141 - SUPER CUTE. It had a slight drive down from the main road, to what was almost like a pad of meadow with a marsh forest type area behind it.
It was a really great spot for birding, if you’re looking for that!
Anyway, as a heads up - you’re going to want to bring ALL of your levelling blocks... and consider maybe buying or borrowing some extras.
While the hills and twists make for a gorgeous campground, it also makes for an... interesting... time setting up.
We saw some pretty wild set ups, you have to get pretty creative to deal with the slopes in some of these sites - especially in the pull-through areas!
Anyway, as usual each site comes with a picnic table and fire pit.
Group Camping
The Group Camping Area at Murphys Point can be accessed via a road (outside of the main campground area, just beyond the Silver Queen Mine Trail parking area), or hiked into if you’re looking for more of a backcountry camping experience.
There are 3 group campsites of varying sizes and vibes, holding from 12-50 people each.
#301 #302 are pretty basic group camping sites. #302 is situated such that anyone staying in #303 has to drive along the length of it - it’ll feel like people are driving through your campground.
#303 is.. Wild. We couldn’t tell exactly where you’re supposed to camp, it was very ... rustic.
It also had an easy trail down to Round Lake, with a dock down there. Gorgeous view!
Anyway, there are a few water taps and vault toilets in the area, as well.
Row 3 & 4: Site #303
Roofed Accommodation
There are two different kinds of roofed accommodation rentals in Murphys Point Provincial Park, and they’re both located among the pull-through sites in Hoggs Bay Campground.
For the first few days of our camping trip, the cabin was boarded up, and the soft-sided shelter... was just a wooden platform. By the end of our visit, they had opened up the cabin and set up the tent - they were cute!
In both cases, pets and smoking are prohibited. Beyond that, here’s a bit of info:
Rustic Cabin
This cabin can sleep up to 5 people, across a queen bed and a double/single bunk. It has a mini kitchen with microwave, mini fridge, and coffee maker, and there is a dining table, chairs, and propane/electric fireplace inside.
There’s also a picnic table, fire pit, and gas BBQ outside.
As with most - all? - Ontario Provincial Park roofed accommodations, you have to bring *everything* - bedding, towels, pots, pans, cutlery - everything.
Soft Sided Shelter
Across the lane from the cabin is the single soft-sided shelter in the park.
We’d assumed it was going to be the same kind of yurt we see in other parks - those round green ones with the peaked roof.
We were surprised to see park staff put up an actual tent!
They call it a “deluxe tent”, I’m assuming it’s one of those glamping options. The tent is set up on a flat wooden base, and has kind of an enclosed entryway with chairs.
According to the park’s website, they have rustic log furniture, two queen beds, a kitchenette with mini fridge, coffee maker, and counter inside!
There’s also a gas BBQ outside.
Like with the cabin, you need to bring everything you need - including dishes, pots, pans, and bedding. (There are mattresses supplied, though!).
Bottom: The Soft Sided Shelter
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Entertainment and Activity
For such a small park, there’s a good variety of activities you can engage in. Here’s what you need to know:
Hiking
There are 7 Murphys Point Provincial Park trails, with 4 in the campground area, and another 3 starting at a trailhead about 10 minutes from the campground area.
In addition to those, the 300 km long Rideau Trail cuts through the park, and can be accessed via a couple of the park trails.
As a heads up, there is a LOT of signage about ticks in the area being capable of transmitting Lyme disease.
Also, while the black flies, deer flies, and horse flies weren’t around at the time of our stay, the mosquitos DEFINITELY were, and we had to bathe ourselves in Citrobug to get by!
Definitely plan ahead for bugs!
Anyway, here’s some more specific trail information for you. The park’s info on distance and difficulty is in each header, we’ll add our own assessment in the trail descriptions.
Beaver Pond Trail: 1 km Linear Trail, Easy
Porter did this trail by himself, here’s what he had to say about it:
“This is a narrow trail with moderate difficulty due to the elevation changes and some of the rough footing you'll encounter. As as you might expect, you pass by a beaver lodge and directly next to a beaver dam. As an engineer I am always in awe of how those little beavers can make such a strong dam.
There's some really great water views along the trail. During our stay the path was flooded out in a couple of areas. It was difficult to get through that zone, hopefully the water level is just high from the spring flooding.”
The total distance from my trip doing the entire Silver Mine Trail and coming back on the Beaver Pond Trail was 2.3 km.”
Lally Homestead Trail: 900 m Loop, Easy
This trail starts out really easy, winding you past a little bit of a day use area with some ruins and remaining buildings from the homestead.
After you pass the field and head towards the buildings, the trail isn’t well marked - I ended up finding the trail again between the two buildings.
It's a nice little walk through the woods, wide well packed trail and very easy to follow after you after get into the trees.
After walking through the woods for a bit, you come to an opening over Black Creek Marsh, before heading up and out of the forest area.
Anyway, it’s not wheelchair accessible, but it’s nothing I wouldn’t have been able to do with a cane or while in a boot.
Loon Lake Trail: 1 km Loop, Easy
Loon Lake Trail is listed as being 1 km and easy.
This is one of the rare occasions where the campsite description is bang on - It was 1.00 km right from car loop all the way back up to my car.
It was really easy - wide, flat, well packed trail with very little in the way of uneven footing. There were a few gentle slopes along the way, but that’s about it. If it’s not actually wheelchair accessible it's probably fairly close.
If you have other mobility issues - like using a boot or cane you're not going to have a problem with this one.
You pass by one lake on your way in and then you pass by another lake on the side of the road on the way out.
Most of the trail is in the woods or along Loon Lake, but the end of the trail spits you out on campground road that you have to walk up to get back to the parking area.
You pass by pond on the side of the road - where there were baby geese during our stay!
McParlan House Trail: 1.8 km Linear, Easy
Porter did this trail by himself, here’s what he had to say about it:
“The entire trail is easy to walk, very wide and flat. There are some very small and short inclines and declines and some small roots and rocks poking up a bit, but you could push a stroller on this trail easily.”
As you branch off from the Rideau Trail, heading to the left, there's a lovely marsh area to both sides then a cool bridge over some rapids flowing into the lake.”
There is one large building, the house, and a smaller building that must have been storage. You can enter both of these buildings and look inside, which I definitely recommend.
There are some signs and a few artifacts but it's not like a museum.”
The distance to the end of the trail was actually about 1.75 km, and since I also explored the grounds a bit my round trip distance was 3.64 km. I definitely recommend this trail as it's easy to follow with some great views and interesting artifacts at the end.”
Point Trail: 5.5 km Loop, Moderate
Porter did this trail by himself, here’s what he had to say about it:
“On the first part of the trail, which coincides with the way to the walk-in beach, it is a moderate difficulty hike. It would not be fun if you tried to bring in a lot of beach gear, like a wheeled cooler or something. I wouldn't do the hike in beach shoes or flip flops, you'll want hiking boots for this trail.
It winds through the woods until the trail branches off, the walk-in beach a short distance off the trail. The distance from the trailhead to the walk-in beach is about 900 meters.
The hike-in beach area is a cute little area. I think of it more as a picnic area that has a small strip of sand where you could go swimming if you want. It's almost like a dog beach kind of vibe because it's small, but of course it's nice and secluded.
There's a tiny little island a with a couple of trees, just a short swim out from the beach. It looks really fun to swim out to and explore, but it was too cold to swim when we visited in mid-May.”
The entire trail is a lovely walk through the woods, but mostly the same kind of view. Some short sections have some large boulders on the side which are interesting to view. If this were a short trail it would be nice, but since this is about 3.5 kilometers long, it gets really monotonous.
It is 2.5 km from the parking lot to get to the point itself. It's a nice large open flat area with only a few trees at the water's edge that obscure the view from being completely panoramic. You get a good view of the surrounding area of the lake. It's nice but to be honest it's not amazing.
After the point it's more of the same. The same kind of forest over and over. By the time the Point Trail met up with the Sylvan Trail, I was just ready for it to be done.
I would not do this trail again because the main attraction - the point - isn't that spectacular, and the long trail got pretty boring by the time I was done.”
Rideau Trail: 300 km, Varying Difficulty Levels
This was the only trail that we didn’t do.
We don’t know much about this one, other than the fact that it’s 300 km long and cuts through the park. I’m assuming it’s basically Eastern Ontario’s version of The Bruce Trail.
Silver Queen Mine Trail: 2 km Partial Loop, Easy
Porter did this trail by himself, here’s what he had to say about it:
“You're following along a set of double tracks which was clearly a road at some point. It's a gravel road, flat side-to-side with some modest hills. All along the trail there are numbered posts, but only the larger attractions have a text sign to describe what you're seeing.
0.65 km in you get to the first display. It's a display of a horse-drawn wagon, with a sign describing it and a picnic table nearby.”
It was a total of 0.85km to get to the bunkhouse area. There are several outbuildings and displays in the area, and several side paths that I didn't explore.
Once you pass the bunkhouse the trail is less of a road ,and more of a very wide, well-packed path. You could drive a vehicle on it but there aren't the obvious ruts of continuous driving use like there were before. It's still an easy walk, you could push a stroller on the path easily, for example.
You come to a display where you can see large holes in the ground where ore was removed, and I could even see snow in there in the middle of May. A fence keeps you a safe distance from the openings.”
Since there were no tours available at the time of our visit, the mine opening itself was simply a closed locked door that reminded me of a hobbit hole. The path nearby sparkled with what I have to assume is silver ore (I later learned it is actually mica), it's a really cool walk seeing all these little sparkles twinkle by. Shortly after that is another opening, a locked metal gate where you can see a short disance inside the mine.
On the way back I decided to take the Beaver Pond Trail branch, it was 1.41 km to that split off after completing the full Silver Mine Trail loop.”
Sylvan Trail: 2.5 km Loop, Moderate
The park’s website describes this trail as showcasing the geology and ecology of the Frontenac Arch, which is the the southernmost extension of the Canadian Shield.
Porter did the trail by himself, here’s what he had to say about it:
“The Sylvan trail is moderate difficulty, with rocks and roots on the trail, and short but somewhat steep elevation changes.
It's more interesting than the Point Trail because it has more variation in the trees and the rocks but it's still in the category of a lovely walk through the forest.”
It is an educational trail with sign posts along the way, but I didn't have a trail guide with me and there are no text signs on the trail to tell you about the points of interest.
The trail follows along rolling landscapes and includes some short bridges. I like short hills to keep you interested, wondering what's over the next little peak.
Overall I walked 4.56 km on the route I took, which started on the Point Trail and turning right onto the Sylvan Trail, ending at the Sylvan trailhead. It's just another 150 meters to the day use parking area.
The Sylvan Trail is not an amazing trail, but it's a lovely hike. I would do this trail again, I look forward to seeing the other part of the loop that I missed.”
Biking
There are no dedicated bike trails at Murphys Point Provincial Park, but cycling is welcome on the McParlan House Trail, and part of the Silver Queen Mine Trail. (Just the gravel road portion).
You’re also allowed to bike on campground roads. The roads through the actual campgrounds are in rough shape, VERY hilly and probably count as actual mountain biking.
The main road through the park is in much better shape, and much more flat.
Swimming
There are two easy-ish access beach areas in the park, then a very small beach that you have to hike in to.
The day use beach is located down a long road that you access near the gatehouse. There’s a 300 metre walk - involving a steep hill down - to get to a small beach there.
That sandy beach is located on Noble Bay, where the water was very clean and clear.
This one is a much bigger, sprawling area. The beach itself isn’t huge, but seemed bigger than the day-use beach.
It’s a sandy beach - the rough and heavy kind of sand, easy to walk on. The water was very clean looking, but there was a fair amount of plant debris washed up on the shore at the time of our visit.
It was cute little secluded day-use area. Not an amazing beach itself, but a nice area to possibly get away from the more crowded beaches.
Birding, Wildlife, and Nature
Our birding experience started out absolutely WILD on the first day - seeing a Barred Owl just before getting to the gatehouse to start it all off.
The rest of the afternoon, while checking out the campground we saw a Pileated Woodpecker (one of our favourites!) being very cooperative for photos, and a huge variety of birds singing and... posing.
It was surreal, There was a great mix of wildlife habitats to explore, and it seemed like every pocket of the park had a different mix of cool birds to see.
That luck ran out by the next day and never returned, though! For the rest of the trip, we HEARD a lot of birds.... but they stayed high enough up in the tree canopy that we didn’t see much.
Well, aside from a couple of Scarlet Tanagers. They were GORGEOUS - we’d never gotten a good photo of one, and these two (on separate days and locations) stayed pretty low and close!
Row 2: Canada Goose, Downy Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe
Row 3: Great Blue Heron, Hermit Thrush, Mallard Duck
Row 4: Ovenbird, Pileated Woodpecker, Red-Eyed Vireo
Row 5: Red-Winged Blackbird, Scarlet Tanager, Yellow-Rumped Warbler
The park’s website mentions Cerulean Warblers, Goshawks, and Indigo Buntings - Porter’s favourite bird! - which we’d been hoping to see, but we did not.
I’m going to be honest, I was dreading wildlife encounters at Murphys Point. They’re especially known for their snake population - 8 or 9 different species, including the Gray Ratsnake.
You know, the largest snake in Canada? I was picturing them just hanging out of trees in the campground - I’m not a fan of snakes, LOL.
We only saw one snake during our 5 day stay, and it was mercifully far away, LOL.
We did see a fair amount of deer... and a fat little groundhog!
Row 2: Northern Watersnake, White-Tailed Deer
Boating
Not having spent much time in Eastern Ontario, I was a bit surprised to hear that Big Rideau Lake is park of the part of the historic Rideau Waterway.
I knew about the Rideau Canal, but didn’t know that it connected to a bunch of waterways and locks, even this far away. Guess it makes sense, I just hadn’t considered it before!
Anyway, there’s a single boat launch at Murphys Point Provincial Park, at the far end of the park from the gate.
It’s a cute area - the launch and docks are in good condition, and the secluded little cove that it puts you into opens out into the larger lake, beyond.
If you want to explore beyond Big Rideau Lake, you can take the Narrows Locks to get to Upper Rideau Lake, or the Beveridges Locks to head towards Perth.
The park’s website also lists an easy-to-moderate, 6 km long suggested canoe route, and some suggested sites to see in the area, including more information on some of the lock systems in the area.
Fishing
We didn’t see anyone fishing at the time of our stay - it might not have been the right season? - but fishing seems to be a big attraction at Murphys Point Provincial Park.
If you’ve got a canoe or kayak, you can go fishing in Hogg Bay and Loon Lake to fish for Bass and Pike - motorboats aren’t allowed there.
Lake Trout, Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, and Smallmouth Bass can be found in Big Rideau Lake, where you CAN use a motorboat.
Discovery Program
We visited during opening week - and not over the weekend - so there wasn’t any Discovery Programming available at the time.
It sounds like their educational programming is limited to the summer months, with some events planned during fall weekends as well.
We did see the amphitheatre and campfire circle - adjacent to it - that seem well set up for some fun programming.
While they offer nature shows and kid’s programming in that area, the REAL attraction - IMHO - is the scheduled guided tours of the Silver Queen Mine - an early 1900s mica mine.
While they do have interpretive guides for that trail available year-round, you can’t tour the open pit mica mine itself, outside of the guided tours. (Hardhats are supplied by the park).
It sounds like they go all-out, too - costumed interpreters and even some nighttime tours of the mines!
Winter Activities
Murphys Point Provincial Park is one of the parks that has two separate seasons listed - the camping season, and the day-use season.
While the park is closed for a few months on either end of the camping season, they open up for a few months in the winter, offering cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.
Murphys Point PP partners with the Tay Valley Cross-Country Ski Club to offer cross-country ski trails - both classic and skate ski trails - that are said to be some of the best in the region.
There are 14 km of groomed trails for classic skiiing, 4 km of groomed trails for skate-skiing, and then another 8 km of trails for backcountry skiing.
Snowshoeing takes place on non-groomed trails, and alongside the set ski trails. There are also a couple of warm up huts available to use.
Niantic Games
There are a few Niantic game features throughout the park, but they’re few and far between. Also, the cell reception can be spotty.
You can probably do your daily tasks and whatnot, but you might want to head into Smiths Falls if game play is a priority, and you happen to be camping during an event.
Beyond that, a random note: For once, the Pokemon Go map did NOT help on the trails!
Usually it’s the best way to see where you’re going, but it didn’t have the Loon Lake Loop on there, at all!
The trail exists from the parking lot, but continues forward to the McParlan Trail - the split off to the right isn’t on the map! I wonder if it’s a newer trail?
Final Thoughts
We LOVED Murphys Point Provincial Park!
Of course, seeing a Barred Owl up close before we even got as far as the gatehouse definitely started our camping trip off on the right foot, but still!
This is a really cute campground, with a great vibe, some nice trails, and it’s just really ADHD friendly.
We love that there are so many educational opportunities, with the mine, the homestead, and the farm, all with their own history and sights to explore.
The campground itself is really cool, with the hills and turns, views out over the rest of the campground, and WILD birding opportunities.
It may not make our top 5 favourite parks, but we’re definitely looking forward to coming back!
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
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!
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