Hike the Clifftop Trail in Bon Echo Provincial Park

Bon Echo is well-known for its deep, clear lake and the native pictographs that adorn the sheer cliff on the north shore. It is a well-sized park with 400 car-accessible campsites in Mazinaw Campground that are walking distance from the lake.

Your first step is to reserve your site on Ontario Parks. Bon Echo is open for day use and camping from mid-May to mid-October, with skiing or snowshoeing into the park permitted throughout the winter season. 

As you can see on Google Maps, Mazinaw Lake is broken into Upper Mazinaw and Lower Mazinaw, with a shallow narrow waterway called The Narrows in between. The start of Clifftop Trail is on the west side of the lake, south of The Narrows. To get there, I recommend bringing a canoe or renting one from Bon Echo Outfitters, a rental company situated within the park. Canoeing or kayaking means you can explore the base of the cliff (and the pictographs) at your own pace and interest. However, if you don't want to canoe you can take a fee-based ferry operated by Friends of Bon Echo Provincial Park.

Once you reach the dock south of The Narrows, it is easy to follow Clifftop Trail. The first several hundred metres have stairs that zigzag up the cliff, after which you'll come to the first lookout. After taking in the view across Lower Mazinaw Lake, keep exploring the tops of the cliffs as far as you want.  It truly is a spectacular sight.