Frontenac Provincial Park is situated above an ancient granite ridge linking the Canadian Shield to the Adirondack Mountains and consists of forests, wetlands, marshes, lakes and granite outcrops. The park contains canoe routes through 22 lakes, over 100km of connected backpacking and hiking trails and four season interior camping on 48 campsites. Throughout the winter, the park maintains 12 km of hiking trails for snowshoeing or cross-country skiing.
We’ve been to Frontenac twice:
- February 2020 – 2 days
- November 2020 – 1 day
Hiking Trails
Frontenac offers over 100 km of hiking and backpacking trails, many of which are interconnected. Below are some of the trails that we’ve hiked:
(1) Arab Lake Gorge Trail (1.5km loop, rated easy) – the first part of the loop is along a wooden boardwalk that runs parallel to the edge of a frozen pond along the side of the gorge. The remainder of the trail weaves through the forest and eventually connects to the boardwalk that leads back to the Park Office.
A more detailed description of the hike can be found here
(2) Bufflehead Trail (8km, rated moderate) – the trail meanders through the forest, around frozen beaver ponds and over the barren granite forming part of the Canadian Shield. It is especially scenic in the winter and is often used for snowshoeing.
A more detailed description of the hike can be found here
(3) Doe Lake Loop (3km loop, rated easy to moderate) – the trail runs along the shores of South Otter Lake and Doe Lake and forms a loop back to the trailhead. Along the trail, there’s a short side trail that leads to the abandoned Kemp Mine. The trail originates at the Park Office and can be hiked all year-round.
A more detailed description of the hike can be found here
(4) Dedication Trail South Loop (9.8km, rated moderate) – the trail is part of the larger Cedar Lake Loop, but you can break it up and hike either the North or South Loop. The Dedication Trail South Loop weaves through the forest, passes by lakes, ponds and other marshy areas.
A more detailed description of the hike can be found here.
Camping
We have yet to camp at Frontenac, however, there are 48 interior campsites located amongst 13 clusters. All campsites within the park can be accessed by hiking trails all year-round. Some of these campsites can be accessed by canoe as well, with the exception of cluster 12. Each campsite has a tent-pad, fire-pit, picnic table, privy, and food locker. Due to the clustered campsite design you can usually see the neighbouring campsite. Reservations are strongly recommended between May and October and are available on a first come first serve basis from November to April.
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