bon echo provincial park

This is a large park with most of the campsites and all of the activities around Masinaw Lake. On one side of the lake there is a huge rock formation (about 300 ft above the water line) with ancient native pictographs. It is a great place to canoe or kayak. There are many good hiking paths in the park with varying levels of difficulty but the insects made it hard to enjoy the hikes. There is a 45 minute narrated boat ride around the lake for $10. There is also a ferry that crosses the lake over to the huge rock for hiking. It is also very easy to canoe to the rock. The beach is clean and supervised. The water is shallow so good for young children or non swimmers. The water was quite cold even in August. They had lots of canoes, kayaks, paddle boards and pedal boats. The cost was $20 for 4 hours and you didn't have to stick with one watercraft.The hardwood hills campsite has minimal amenities. The deer flies, mosquitos, horse flies made it difficult to enjoy the time outside of the tent. The worse part about this campsite was the dirt road that you had to take each time you want to go down to the lake. It was a 20 minute drive and very bumpy and dusty. With one vehicle it made it difficult to accommodate different agendas. This campsite is more private but too isolated and not close to the water.

I stayed at the Hardwood Hills campground from August 1st-5th, 2014. Although our campsite was very private, it was very hard to get to. About a 15 minute drive from the park entrance to our campsite. Not to mention that the roads were unpaved and extremely dirty and dusty. Are car is filthy now and needs a wash. The walk to the comfort station was very long from our site, about 5-10 minutes each time, and there was no direct path to it. You literally had to walk through someone's campground to access it. The comfort station itself was dirty. Never saw one park staff cleaning it. It was full of bugs. And you know how most comfort stations in Ontario Parks have individual showers separated from the bathrooms? Not in Hardwood Hills. The showers were built into the washrooms. The shower doors were like the cubicles used in the washrooms. Not to mention they were very dirty. And the water wasn't warm either. If another person was using one of the only two showers that were offered to you, you would be stuck with cold water. And the water pressure changed each time someone flushed a toilet. Very gross. When I stayed at Hardwood Hills, it had TONS of mosquitos, deer flies, horse flies, daddy long legs, slugs, etc. I came home with about 40 bug bites. Hardwood Hills is right beside several swamps so I wouldn't recommend going there. Sawmill Bay is a much better campground. I hated the showers so much, I actually drove 20 minutes to Sawmill Bay to use their proper showers that you would expect from any other comfort station in any Ontario Parks. The park itself (Masinaw Lake; Masinaw Rock) is simply beautiful! The Wanderer Too'r (a boat tour) is very informative and interesting. The main beach (located on Masinaw Lake) is very nice. The water seems very cold at first but you get used to it very quick. Butbe prepared for a chill afterwards. The water is quite shallow, even far past the swim barriers, so it's great for the little ones. And they have picnic tables which are perfect for a BBQ. As you may know, most Ontario Parks have shows at their theatres for park goers to enjoy. I attended one with my little cousins (aged 5 and 7). I enjoyed the show, but my cousins were upset that they weren't picked as volunteers. I literally started singing Shakira's "La La La" to get their attention so they could pick them, but they didn't. Anyway, overall Bon Echo was a very fun vacation and a beautiful park with sandy beaches and beautiful sites to see, I just wish that park staff put more effort into the Hardwood Hills campground, and that there were less bugs. But mainly if you are an Ontario Parks staff and are reading this, please put better roads that go through the park, and please clean the comfort station more at Hardwood Hills. But don't get me wrong. Bon Echo is a beautiful park.

we rented a cabin for 5 and it was great, everything an older camper (who doesn't want to sleep in a tent or on the ground) would want, quiet, clean and in one of the most beautiful provincial parks in Ontario. Lots of choice for activities (canoe rental, fishing, rock climbing, paddle boats, hiking), beaches and very cheerful knowledgeable staff.

We are so lucky to have such marvelous scenary up in canada! It was my first time camping in Ontario, and thanks to the great reviews on this park , we had a lovely stay. Worth going ! Many washrooms nearby, lots of stops to go shower... Not many mosquitos ! We were in the Sawmill section where we are allowed to bring our radio. I love the fact that the ontariopark website has many photos of the site and camping spot #. In Quebec , this is a detail that we lack on our website !! There were two beaches, one that had many kids and that was bigger, and a nice little beach where you have a view on the rocks and forest, which is more quiet and in my opinion, much more beautiful than the popular beach ! :) Had a blast !

I'm kind of in love with Bon Echo. It's a beautiful park that honestly has something for every kind of camper. There are a varitey of sites and grounds that cater to campers of all experience levels, lots of trails and activities and so much to see and do. I loved renting a canoe and paddling along Mazinaw Rock before hiking the Cliff Top trail. Things to keep in mind: Every ground expect Mazinaw (the most family-friendly) is at least a 10 minute drive by car and the road is a tad rough so go easy. The signage around the store and visitor centre is a bit confusing - you can't drive up to it, you need to walk a trail. You can get wood at the gatehouse but ice is only available offsite. I wrote a more detailed article about the park here if anyone is interested in learning more: http://theletsgoladies.com/memories-bon-echo-provincial-park/