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Eastern Ontario Tourism: Bon Echo Provincial Park

© Van Waffle

Bon Echo Provincial Park is located in Eastern Ontario within a 3-hour drive from both Toronto and Ottawa. Situated on the Canadian Shield, it is dominated by mixed deciduous and coniferous forest.

Bon Echo offers excellent camping in a range of styles up to rugged campsites that can only be reached with several hours of hiking.

Bon Echo Rock and Mazinaw Lake

The park's most notable feature is Bon Echo rock, a huge granite cliff rising 90 metres above the 140-foot deep Mazinaw Lake, the deepest lake in Ontario (apart from the Great Lakes).

A favourite destination of artists and poets for over a century, Bon Echo rock bears a memorial to Walt Whitman, along with Native pictographs. The rock was raised by seismic activity over the past 60 million years, and extends even further into the depths of the lake.

The rock can be reached by ferry shuttle or canoe. A climb to the top is well worth the effort for its excellent views of the lake and surrounding forest. The cliff top has been designated a nature reserve. Park staff and literature make considerable effort to restrict visitors to the designated paths.

Other Activities at Bon Echo Provincial Park

The park has much more to offer, including numerous hiking trails. Mazinaw Lake provides opportunities for canoeing and swimming. The park is home to a large population of deer, which has grown accustomed to having people around.

For more information visit the web pages for Bon Echo Provincial Park at the Ontario Parks web site.

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