Category: Park Stories
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What it’s like to work the front gate at a provincial park
Our front gate staff are frontline heroes of park operations. (If you’ve ever checked in at a bustling park on a busy Friday afternoon, you know exactly what we’re talking about!) Gate staff work extremely hard to get you into the park as quickly as possible, all while balancing many priorities in a hectic environment.…
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Introducing Bigwind Lake Provincial Park!
We’re absolutely over the moon to announce we are taking steps to create the first new full-service operating park in 40 years… …Bigwind Lake Provincial Park!
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Greetings, Boozhoo, Aaniin, Sekoh, Wachay, Ullakut!
National Indigenous Peoples Day invites us to learn more about Indigenous history, perspectives and culture, and helps us build stronger relationships rooted in mutual respect and understanding. We’re taking the opportunity to spotlight some of the wonderful initiatives and events shared with us by Indigenous leaders and communities across Ontario:
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"Gathering" at Rondeau
Today’s post comes from Jess Matthews, a Chief Park Naturalist at Rondeau Provincial Park. A change was needed at the Rondeau Visitor Centre and we wanted it to be big. We worked with three different local Indigenous communities over five years to generate something amazing.
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We want your feedback!
Calling all park-lovers, we have exciting news! We are exploring the creation of Ontario’s first urban provincial park near Uxbridge… …and we want to know what you think!
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For the pollinators! Two pollinator gardens you can visit and learn about this year
Gardens are not something you typically think of when it comes to Ontario Parks, considering we preserve many of Ontario’s natural landscapes. But there’s one type of garden we’re happy to build in our parks: pollinator gardens! Last summer, two southeastern parks worked hard to build and establish new pollinator gardens. Why? Because planting native…
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Southern Muskoka’s “living edge”
“The living edge.” It sounds more like a Bond film than a trail name, until you follow it through the woods. The Living Edge Trail in Six Mile Lake Provincial Park is only a kilometre long, but it crosses such a variety of landscapes and habitats that it seems much longer. It also spans time, giving…
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Turtles: the ultimate survivors
In today’s post, Discovery Leader Olivia Bennett discusses turtles’ impact on Grundy Lake Provincial Park — and vice versa! When I first started working at Grundy Lake, I was talking turtles with our park superintendent when someone asked, “Why do you care so much about turtles here?” The answer is simple: while the park boasts a…
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7 things to remember when arriving at the park gatehouse for day use
In today’s post comes from Discovery Leader Matt Cunliffe at MacGregor Point Provincial Park. When the big day comes, if you’re like me, all you want to do is get to your site: tent set, chairs out, feet up. I’ve worked for Ontario Parks since 2006, afnd last year had the opportunity to run a…