Charleston Lake Provincial Park is an out of the way destination for campers, hikers, canoers and nature lovers. Located north of Brockville, Ontario, the park sits on an extension of the Canadian Shield and features absolutely gorgeous trails. We hiked every trail, except the Blue Mountain Trail, at least once during our stay. Several of the trails we went on two or three times!
Enjoy a relaxing hike along Charleston Lake’s Hemlock Ridge Trail which will take you through a stand of hemlocks, along the edge of a ridge, beside a beaver meadow and through rocky crevices and outcroppings. This trail is stunning in its beauty and diversity.
We hiked this trail several times and enjoyed all the different trees, plants and landscapes throughout it. We saw a Least Bittern playing in the reeds down by the beaver pond and heard a variety of birds singing throughout the different forests. We enjoyed marvelling over the trees that somehow found enough soil and enough ‘footing’ to thrive at the edges of the ridge and even on top of it. We particularly enjoyed exploring the crevice area and imagining what it would have been like to be there when huge sections of the rock fell off. Of course, we were glad that nothing came crashing down around us while we were there.
We can’t quite express how amazing and wonderful the natural areas of this park are and how much we wish it was closer to home. The park and trails have so much to offer people who enjoy the outdoors.
