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Sunbathers and
Snowshoers at Sandbanks Provincial Park
Inevitably, eyes widen when they first
catch sight of the wide, sandy beaches and
majestic sand dunes of Sandbanks Provincial
Park, near Picton in Prince Edward County
just 2 hours east of Toronto. At the height
of summer, swimmers and sunbathers flock
to Outlet Beach, Sandbanks Beach and Dunes
Beach, and sailors and windsurfers take
advantage of brisk Lake Ontario breezes.
The Park features 4 popular campgrounds;
book well ahead if you are planning a mid-summer
visit, and plan to spend some time touring
the heritage sites, galleries, wineries,
and colourful villages of Lake Ontario's
Loyalist county.
If you're a cross-country skier, or a snowshoer,
keep the Sandbanks in mind when the snow
flies. Groomed trails offer gentle slopes
and curves, and after a bracing run, you
can warm yourself by the fire in the Sandbanks
Ski Chalet.
More Beaches and
Bluffs: Beach-goers in the know head
to North Beach Provincial Park, on the northwest
side of Prince Edward County, near the village
of Consecon. "North" admirers
claim that waves are bigger, and crowds
are fewer, on this 1.2 kilometre sandy stretch.
Hikers and sightseers will enjoy the view
of Prince Edward Bay from the 18 metre-high
limestone cliffs of Little Bluff Conservation
Area, on the County's eastern shore, and
the 14 kilometres of wooded trails at Massassauga
Point bordering the Bay of Quinte to the
north
Toronto's Urban
Beach Scene
For Torontonians, or their visitors, the
city's fortuitous lakeshore location means
that sunbathing, beach volleyball, and boardwalk
strolls are only a subway or streetcar ride
away:
• In "The Beaches"
on the city's east side, the boutiques,
clubs and cafés of Queen Street East
give way to tree-lined residential streets
that lead to Woodbine Beach, Kew Beach
and Balmy Beach.
• Further west, south of an inner-city
industrial area, the more secluded Cherry
Beach is a quiet, low-key enclave
of sand and trails.
• On weekends, walkers, joggers,
cyclists and in-line skaters spill out through
Tommy Thompson Park along the man-made Leslie
Street Spit.
• At the height of summer, sun-seekers
head for the rugged, wave-swept beaches
of the Toronto Islands.
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