Whitefish Lake Campground

Well, it’s been a long time coming, but here we are with the last of our reviews of the Highway 60 campgrounds in Algonquin Provincial Park.

It’s only been like 4 months since we visited, and this campground closed for the season a few weeks ago, but hey... better late than never, right?

Anyway, today we’re looking at Whitefish Lake Campground, the only campground in Algonquin Park that’s dedicated exclusively to group campsites.

Open from late April to the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend in October, it’s a popular destination for large families, groups of friends, youth groups, and really anyone else that needs to host a larger group of campers on a single site.

We decided to check it out on a couple of occasions during our summer stay at Mew Lake Campground, and now we can tell you all about it!

The Basics:

Campground Name: Whitefish Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Address: Hwy 60 P.O. Box 219 Whitney, ON K0J 2M0
Website: https://www.ontarioparks.ca/park/algonquin/whitefishlake
Price: Ontario Provincial Parks uses a pricing matrix across all their parks. See 2024 Camping Fees for more details.
Reservations: Ontario Parks Reservations
Park Classification: Natural Environment
Season: May 10, 2024 to October 14, 2024

Logistics

Some of the basic information that will help you plan your stay at Whitefish Lake Campground in Algonquin Provincial Park:

Registration and Check In

Algonquin Provincial Park now operates as a paperless permit park - if you do your pre-registration online, there’s no real need to check in when you get to the park.

If you DO need to access a campground office - either because you didn’t check in, need a map, want to buy firewood or whatever - you’ll be doing so at the Pog Lake Campground office.

Conveniently, you’ll drive right past it to get to Whitefish Lake Campground.

Maps and Signage

The smallest and most straightforward of the campgrounds in Algonquin Provincial Park, you don’t really need much in the way of a signage or map.

The signage needed to get TO the campground - in the Pog Lake area - is clear and easy to read, and getting around Whitefish Lake Campground itself is easy.

The map itself is a small section of a page in the larger, park-wide newspaper publication. We found it to be pretty accurate for this campground, but again... there’s not really much to document!

Waste and Water Services

There is a decent sized garbage and recycling depot in Whitefish Lake Campground, right before the campsites start.

There are also a fair number of potable water taps throughout the campground - about 7 of them, for 18 campsites.

There’s no trailer sanitation station for the campground, but then again... I don’t think you’re supposed to bring trailers into those sites anyway. If you DO need to visit the Poop Loop, it’s just a few km west on Highway 60.

Connectivity

We had pretty spotty reception during our visits to Whitefish Lake Campground - on Rogers Wireless. The best reception we could get was down on the beach.

Accessibility

While it’s the only group campground in Algonquin Provincial Park... it’s not a great option if any member of your group is a wheelchair user.

There is no comfort station in the campground, and none of the vault toilets are designated as being accessible.

The only real attraction in the campground - the beach - is down a steep hill, and doesn’t have any wheelchair accommodations in place.

Pets

Pets seem to be allowed in the campground in general, with all the normal rules applying.

That is, they must be leashed at all times, prevented from harassing other campers and animals / making excessive noise, and must be picked up after.

They’re prohibited from being on the beach, though, and there aren’t any dog-friendly exercise areas in the campground.

Lake of Two Rivers Campground is the nearest dog beach.

Parking

The parking situation is a little odd. The camp sites accommodate between 10-40 campers each, but have a blanket policy of 1 vehicle on each campsite.

Up to 3 additional vehicles can be parked adjacent to the campsite, but other vehicles in your party have to be parked in onto of the additional vehicle parking areas.

There are two overflow parking lots, in addition to a third lot next to the beach.

Miscellaneous

Whitefish Lake Campground is in an area of extremely low light pollution, so it’s great for night sky viewing in general.

The beach is facing directly south, though. Great for sunrise and sunset, not so great for Aurora Hunting.

If you happen to have auroral activity during your stay, going across the highway to Kearney Lake Campground’s beach is probably your best bet.

Campground Amenities & Info

Whitefish Lake Campground is the least appointed campground in Algonquin Provincial Park (well, at least the Highway 60 corridor), so you’ll want to plan accordingly.

Creature Comforts

There’s no comfort station in Whitefish Lake Campground, just a LOT of vault toilets.

During the time of our visit, though, multiple outhouses were out of order.

If you’re looking for showers or laundry facilities, you’ll want to head over to Pog Lake Campground. It’s not really walkable, but it’s a short enough drive away.

Park Store

Firewood and ice can be purchased at the Pog Lake Campground office - the firewood sales operate on a voucher system.

Beyond that, the Lake of Two Rivers store is the closest option for shopping. It’s got souvenirs, groceries, camping supplies, snacks, and even a little restaurant / snack bar - Two Rivers Café & Grill.

Visitor Centre

There are 3 attractions that basically serve the purpose of a Visitor Center in Algonquin Provincial Park:

We covered the actual Visitor Centre and Logging Museum in our Canisbay Lake Campground Review, so be sure to check out that post for full details and photos.

Beyond those, there’s the Art Centre - we haven’t been able to make the timing work out to visit that one yet, though.

Day Use Area

There’s a small day use area around the Whitefish Lake Campground Beach - mostly just some sprawling grassy area and benches. I didn’t notice any picnic tables.

If you’re looking for picnic areas, you’ll probably want to head to the Lake of Two Rivers Campground area.

There’s a big picnic area - with parking - on the side of the highway. There’s also a picnic shelter available for rent in the East Beach section of that lake.

Campsite Details

Whitefish Lake Campground is made up of 18 campsites. All are non-electric and can host between 10-40 people (capacity limits are noted on the map, earlier in this post.)

Interestingly, the map has information about eligibility to stay in the campground, which makes it sound like organized youth and "Special Groups" are the only ones able to rent.

It goes into details about supervisors, non-profit status, etc... but then further goes on to include "adult groups" - mentioning family reunions and clubs.

So basically, it sounds like anyone with a minimum of 10 people can book... it just takes a bit to get to that point, for some reason.

Anyway, based on what I’ve seen in camping groups, actually booking one of these sites in the summer can be pretty difficult... so be prepared to book at 7 am, 5 months before the date you want to arrive.

Entertainment and Activity

Looking to get away from your group and check out the recreational activities that exist outside of the campsite itself? There are a few options to choose from, both in and around the Whitefish Lake Campground itself, and the park at large:

Hiking

There are a bunch of hiking trails throughout the Algonquin Provincial Park main corridor - Too many to get into here.

So, let’s look at the 5 trails that are located closest to the group campsites:

Big Pines Trail, 2.9 km, Moderate. This trail takes you through old grown white pine forest, to see the remains of an 1880's logging camp.

Booth’s Rock Trail, 5.1 km, Moderate. This one is accessed via a parking lot near the Rock Lake Dog Beach. It takes you along an abandoned railway, to see two lakes and a lookout.

At the time of our visit - and continuing at least a couple weeks later- a portion of this trail was closed, on account of a bridge replacement.

Centennial Ridges Trail, 10 km, Difficult. This one takes you along two ridges, and is known to have some fantastic views - We haven’t done this trail yet.

Lookout Trail, 1.9 km, Moderate. Another one we haven’t done yet, this trail is supposed to be pretty steep, but “worth it” for the views from the namesake lookout.

Spruce Bog Boardwalk, 1.5 km, Easy. One of two wheelchair accessible trails in the park, this one is a favourite of ours - regardless of season. It’s great as a walking trail, AND for winter snowshoeing. See photos on our reviews of Canisbay Lake Campground and Mew Lake Campground.

Biking

There’s not really much in the way of cycling in the Whitefish Lake Campground itself - narrow road, not much of it, and with parking spillover (at least during our visits).

That said, if you can get over to the Pog Lake Campground, you’ll be able to access the Old Railway Bike Trail.

This is a wide, flat, well-maintained old rail bed that serves as an easy walking and biking trail between Rock lake Campground and Mew Lake Campground, with several access points along the way.

There’s an extension that goes from Mew Lake to the Track and Tower Trail, so you can even cycle your way to a longer hike, should you so desire.

Swimming

Whitefish Lake Campground has a small swimming beach for its guests.

It’s centrally located, sandy-ish (it’s got that weird sandy that doesn’t seem to JUST be sandy, but doesn’t necessarily seem to be mud, either?), and has a buoyed off swimming area.

We didn’t see anyone actually swimming there during our stay, but it had a nice view of the surrounding area... and seemed to be popular as a canoe launch.

Birding, Wildlife, and Nature

During our July visits, the only birds we saw or heard in the Whitefish Lake Campground were a bunch of Red-Eyed Vireo and American Robins.

As with most of the smaller campgrounds, though, there’s not really a lot of quiet space for birding in the campground itself.

You’re best off to hit the trails, or visit the Visitor Centre parking lot. For some reason, that’s been a FANTASTIC hotbed of bird activity every time we’ve been to Algonquin, regardless of the season.

Boating

Unlike some of the other lakes in Algonquin Provincial park, motor boats ARE allowed on Whitefish Lake - as long as they’re under 20 Horsepower.

That said, there’s no boat launch in the campground, and I’m not sure where you’d launch a motorboat on that lake. For some reason, boat launches aren’t listed on the overall Algonquin Provincial Park map.

That said, I know there’s a nice boat launch in the Rock Lake Campground, so that seems like a good starting place.

Beyond that, canoeing and kayaking are always popular - and you can launch right onto Whitefish Lake from the campground beach.

Fishing

Algonquin Provincial Park is famous for its fishing - trout fishing in particular.

That said, don’t expect a lot of luck right on Whitefish Lake - general consensus seems to be that each of the lakes that have a campground attached tend to be overfished.

(The park says that Whitefish Lake has excellent Bass Fishing.)

A lot of the lakes along the highway are stocked (Splake), though, and the fishing is supposed to get really good, the further away from the campgrounds you can get.

Niantic Games

As mentioned, our internet was pretty spotty during our visits to Whitefish Lake Campground, so we weren’t able to even open our Pokemon Go app.

That said, the Ingress Intel map shows a single Portal / Pokestop basically at the entrance of the group camping area - and that’s it.

If you’re camping during an event, your best bet is to head to the Visitor Centre parking lot.

Good cell phone connectivity, plenty of Portals/Pokestops/Gyms, etc.

Discovery Program

Algonquin Provincial Park hosts a robust schedule of educational programming and entertainment throughout the summer months - late June, until Labour Day.

The programming tuns the gamut from guided hikes and wildlife demonstrations, to theatre shows and mini concerts.

The venues vary, with a lot of the programming happening either at the outdoor theatre (East Beach area), or the Visitor Centre.

Schedules are posted at least weekly, during the appropriate season. Check the bulletin board near the day use area to see what’s up during your stay.

Final Thoughts

This is the only campground in Algonquin that we visited, knowing full well that there’s no way we’d ever camp there.

We’re hermits, not really fans of people or groups in general. The friends that we’d want to camp with are either thousands of kilometres away and in another country, or have no interest in camping.

So... a group-campsite-only campground really isn’t our bag.

If you’re more of an extrovert, though, I can totally see this campground being fun.

I do like the idea of having the group campsites all way off on their own, away from the regular campsites.

Not only is that a better experience for those who don’t want to be next to crowds, I’d imagine it’s better for those IN the groups - probably less pressure to tone things down, etc.

They could definitely do better on the maintenance, though. WAY too many busted toilets for the number of campers it can accommodate!

More Algonquin Provincial Park Campground Reviews

Want to read some more of what we have to say about the campgrounds and attractions in Algonquin Park? Here are some more reviews!

Canisbay Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Kearney Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Lake of Two Rivers Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Mew Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Pog Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Provoking Falls, Algonquin Provincial Park
Raccoon Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Rock Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park
Tea Lake Campground, Algonquin Provincial Park

Interested in seeing our other Provincial Park reviews? We've got a huge - and ever-growing! - list of them here: 2 Nerds in a Truck Campground Reviews