General Info:
– 1-hour northeast of Toronto
– seasonal camping: May – October
– car camping
– 10 campgrounds
– sandy beach + 2 pet beaches
– 1 hike
Maidenhair Fern Trail (2 km)
– in-park museum/historical and cultural centre
Directions:
https://goo.gl/maps/nKKog5FCuiSAnyPo8
The Good Stuff: Rating and Review
Sibbald Point is a convenient, family friendly park with some good sites and popular beaches. Located an easy hour from Toronto, along Lake Simcoe, the popularity of this park was quickly evident from the Saturday morning line up of cars at the entrance, and the crowds sprawled out along the beaches. Check-in took awhile and hopeful day-use visitors were being turned away if they hadn’t made a prior reservation.
Oddly, OPP presence was high during the whole visit and this park, like Rock Point, had majority of its sites vacant throughout the stay despite us being there on a weekend.
[I’ll have to make a note to ask staff at the next park what’s happening with all these vacancies and if they’re intentional or not.]
The waterfront/day use areas provide two pet beaches and a large sandy beach with playgrounds, picnic shelters and boat launch and temporary docking ports available. Plenty of people were taking advantage of the calm sunny days out on the beach and swimming in the buoyed-off waters. Close by the beaches is the Park Store and the Sibbald family estate which has been converted into a museum that highlights the history of the area. At the store you can buy wood, ice, park’s merchandise and snack foods like ice cream and fries.
The park itself was well-maintained and clean (other than the vault bathroom stalls) but I did notice a lack of garbage cans throughout the campgrounds. This seemed inconvenient as it forced dog owners to dispose of waste bags in the only trash bins available – inside comfort station bathrooms.
We stayed in Sugarbush and the sites were large and felt more natural than some other parks where you can tell that they’ve been cut out of overgrown fields with lawnmowers at the start of the season. These un-manicured forested camps are spaced out and provide privacy and that great out-of-the-city feel I’m always looking for.
As for the hike, the Maidenhair Fern trail was an easy 2 km loop that passes the water-stabilization facility near the front of the park. Well-marked and pretty flat, this proved to be more of a shady stroll than much of a hike. The trailhead is located off the main road that leads into the park and wasn’t very accessible by walking. I always find this set up annoying when I’m at a park because it seems to cater to driving in and parking rather than commuting to by foot – seems counterintuitive to me.
All in all, I’m giving Sibbald Point a 2.5/5 because despite my company being an easy 5/5, it was their company that made the trip truly worthwhile and enjoyable. As always the staff were great and I loved the fresh air and camping out in nature, but the overall park was pretty average and lacklustre. Sibbald definitely caters to the groups that are looking to laze out in the sun, whip around on skidoos and sit around a fire in spacious sites. But if you’re hoping for scenic views and woody hikes, it’s probably not going to wow you.
She Collects Campsites 