With an abundance of beautiful lakes and some of the most beautiful scenery in Ontario, Frontenac County is a great place to enjoy an authentic Canadian experience. Read on to discover the best ways to explore Frontenac County this summer!
1. Drop Your Line And See What You Find
Anglers flock to this area each year to take in the world-class bass, walleye, pike, and crappie fishing that the 5,000 lakes in and around this area has to offer.
Try your hand at kayak fishing. The calm, clear lakes of Frontenac Provincial Park provide the perfect environment for kayak fishing. Rental shops like Frontenac Outfitters and The Kayak Barn can set you up with a kayak and all the fishing gear you need. Glide through the water while angling for smallmouth bass, lake trout, perch and pike.
Experience nature up close and personal, by walking trails among rock, trees and wildlife. Frontenac Provincial Park provides extensive hiking and paddling routes, through more than 100 km of looped backpacking and hiking trails, and 22 lakes! This is where backcountry recreation comes alive as avid hikers can explore the Canadian Shield and lush green wilderness. Frontenac Provincial Park’s 5,355 hectares even offer 48 interior campsites, so excursions don’t have to end at dusk.
3. Canoe Keep Up?
What better way to reconnect with nature than getting on the water! Get in some quality water time with one of Frontenac Outfitter’s kayaking courses! No matter your skill level, there is a course available for you to learn what it takes to kayak safely but still have fun. Choose from a ½ day to full-day training, then join them for a level 1 or level 2 course for longer experiences!
Gould Lake Conservation Area located just outside of Sydenham in Frontenac County is a natural summer haven. This area begs to be discovered with more than 20 km of trails across rolling and rugged terrain. The wetland, woods and shoreline are perfect for wildlife viewing along the way. Another neat feature is the throwback to another time when mica mines operated near Gould Lake.
5. Learn Something New
Join owners Mark and Becky of Maple Ridge Farms to get a real working farm experience with hands-on learning about what it takes to make a farm run smoothly. From checking out the inside of their beehives, to collecting eggs from hens or exploring the stunning fields of flowers to build your own bouquet. Choose from one of their wonderful experiences including learning beekeeping, the bee or flower experience and our personal favourite, the farm animal experience!
6. Take A Cooking Class
You won’t find food more fresh than a farm, so what better place to experience a cooking class? Located in Murvale, just north of Kingston, Long Road Eco Farm offers Farm Sum, which is a Chinese peasant food typically made with organic pork and veggies. Join your loved ones and friends for cooking classes led and influenced by Long Road Eco Farm owners Xiaobing Shen and Jonathan Davies. Learn how to make steamed buns, Chinese-style vegetables and dumplings and take home some new skills and yummy food!
Tucked away in the Wolfe Island Community Hall is a home for fine art, crafts, and creations from the artists on the island in Frontenac County. The Wolfe Island Gallery is located in Marysville on Wolfe Island, and allows local creativeness to bloom by giving it a collective space in the historic hall with a community-minded approach.
The Frontenac K&P Trail is part of a larger 180-km multi-use recreational trail that essentially connects Renfrew with downtown Kingston. However, Frontenac County owns and operates the 90-km stretch from Kingston to Wilbur. The Frontenac K&P Trail is a proudly developed stone dust rail trail with small communities highlighted along the way so cyclists can enjoy stopping to explore villages and hamlets. The trail is popular for cyclists in the summer months – be sure to look at the trail maps before heading out to get insider knowledge of the trail!
Known for its sweet treats, perfectly-dressed burgers, and also for gluten-free, vegan and plant-based options, Lavallee’s Cookery has a loyal following of raving fans. Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner meals to go, the food is prepped fresh daily by the chefs. Stop by for some good food, served by good people – and pick up a few to-go meals for those surprisingly hot spring days when cooking at home feels wrong.
The likeness of a tropical island right in Frontenac County! Big Sandy Bay is known as extraordinarily beautiful and an ecological jewel with white sand dunes and clear blue water of Lake Ontario out to the open horizon. A long secluded beach on Wolfe Island perfect for spending the day. Please remember that there is a cash only entrance fee required for visiting the beach – and there is a 1.3 km walking trail from the parking lot to get to the beach itself. Keep an eye out for birds and wildlife, here too – Big Sandy Bay Conservation Area is also home to nationally vulnerable species.
