Great Photo Opportunities Abound in Ontario’s Parks.
Ontario’s provincial parks offer great opportunities for families and friends to view the beautiful fall colours. This coming fall, take the opportunity to visit a provincial park or go for a stroll in your local neighbourhood park, take a selfie with the fall colours, and remember to use #FallColours.
The Ontario Parks Fall Colour Report shows you when colours are at their peak in provincial parks across Ontario. Colours peak at different times across the province, so check the report often.
Did you know?
- There are about 85 billion trees in Ontario and almost 40 per cent of those are deciduous.
- About 66 per cent of Ontario is forested, making Ontario rich in fall colour. Some of the most brightly coloured fall foliage in the world occurs in southern Canada.
- Tamaracks are the only conifer trees in Ontario to lose their needles, but before they fall the needles turn a brilliant gold.
- Birch and poplar trees are among the first to lose their leaves in fall while oaks are among the last. Some oak and beech trees hang on to their leaves all winter.
- Part of the reason leaves turn colour is because they’re recycling nutrients. Trees whose leaves turn red are the best recyclers.
- Who said carbs and sugar are bad for you? Chlorophyll, which makes the leaves green in the summer, gets turned into sugar, carbs and water to help the trees live through the winter.
- Leaves don’t actually turn yellow and orange. The yellow and orange pigments are always in the leaves but are not revealed until the green fades.
- Carotenoids give leaves their yellow and orange colours and are also found in corn, canary feathers, daffodils and egg yolks.
- Anthocyanins are sunscreen for trees and are what make their leaves turn red and purple. Anthocyanins are also found in cranberries, blueberries, strawberries and plums.
For the best viewing spots to see the beautiful fall colours in Ontario’s provincial parks, check out:
- Ravine Trail in Bronte Creek to see into the valley below
- Lookout Trail viewing platform at Pancake Bay
- Mink Lake Lookout at Frontenac
- The footbridge at Earl Rowe
- The trails in Pinery
- Big Bend Lookout in Arrowhead
- The Sea Lion in Sleeping Giant
If you’re planning to stay overnight, campsites can be reserved online, 24 hours a day, or by calling the park reservation line at 1-888-ONT-PARK between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. daily.
Quick Facts
- There are more than 330 provincial parks in Ontario, covering more than eight-million hectares — an area larger than Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island combined.
- In 2014, Ontario’s provincial parks received more than 8.5-million visits from people around the world and brought in more than $70 million in revenue, which supported jobs and businesses across the province.
Source: Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry
