Craigleith Provincial Park

Craigleith Provincial Park is located about 10km from the town of Collingwood on the southern shore of Georgian Bay in Ontario. Craigleith was established in 1967. It is a small narrow park squeezed between the lakeshore and Highway 26. At one point the distance between the lake and the highway is only as wide as this parking lot.

You can hear traffic noise at EVERY site within the park. The sound of the surf might muffle the sound a bit if you have a lakeside site though.

Entering Craigleith is somewhat confusing and a little awkward. You enter directly off of Highway 26 and you are blocked by these restricted access parking arms.  You need to go into the campground office and register. A card with a bar code will be given to you that allows you to activate the gate. It will be yours to use for the duration of your stay. This process can take several minutes. There are 2 entry gates but the driveway is short. There is a small parking lot to the right of the gates but not practical to park in and then register if you are maneuvering a large rig or towing a trailer. I imagine that on a busy summer Friday this can get backed up and you will be stopped on the highway.

Site Review:

There are over 150 sites at Craigleith Provincial Park in 4 campground areas:

• All of the campground areas have at least some electric sites.
• Areas C and D are radio free.

Ontario Parks typically have more distance between the sites. The sites at Craigleith Provincial Parks tend to be pretty tight. The lakefront sites are nice. This is site #195:There are 15 sites on the lake and they are all pretty much the same.

All sites have a fire ring and a picnic table.

Comfort Stations at Craigleith Provincial Park:

There are 4 comfort stations located throughout the park. All have flush toilets. There are no vault toilets (outhouses). There is a shower house with free hot showers and laundry facilities also located within the park.

We had site #221 when we visited. We visited in May before the Victoria Day weekend and while the park was almost completely booked it was pretty quiet. Craigleith Provincial Park is one of only a handful of Ontario Parks that opens in April for camping, rather than late May which is more typical.

Activities:

Swimming:

There is no designated beach space at Craigleith Provincial Park. There are various paths that allow you access to the shore and you can swim wherever. The rock is flat and gets extremely slippery when wet. You need to use caution. Besides setting up a couple of camp chairs on the rock you are not getting much in the way of a beach experience.

Wasaga Beach

The town of Wasaga Beach is about a 40-minute drive away. Here you will find Wasaga Beach Provincial Park. This is a Day Use park located on a stretch of the longest freshwater beach in the world with 14 km of safe sandy shore. It is also awarded as a Blue Flag Beach which designates it as a world-class waterfront destination. Your Craigleith Provincial Park permit will allow you free access.

Northwinds Beach

If going to Wasaga Beach is too far, then only about 2km down Highway 26 heading towards Collingwood is Northwinds Beach. It is a small park with a nice sandy beach.   There is a parking lot and there is no fee. There are picnic tables and washrooms available for use.

Biking:

There is a small path directly across the road from the Craigleith Provincial Park entrance. You can access the Georgian Bay Trail from here. Use caution when crossing Highway 26. There are no lights nor is there a crosswalk indicator at this location. I would be fearful if I had kids making this crossing. The cars coming along Highway 26 are coming at a good clip. It is difficult to gauge their speed as you are attempting to cross. Quite frankly, it is an accident waiting to happen in my opinion. There are other access spots along the trail where you can park. One is just a short distance down at Arrowhead Rd. I would probably do that if I had kids.

Georgian Bay Trail

The Georgian Bay Trail is a 34 km long multipurpose trail and connects the town of Collingwood to the town of Meaford. The trail is well maintained and easy to enjoy by bike or as a pedestrian to hike.

Boating/Kayaking/Canoeing

Craigleith Provincial Park does not have a boat launch within the park for motorized boats.

If you are planning to canoe or kayak on Georgian Bay, remember that this is a Great Lake (Lake Huron) and it can be fairly rough and often unpredictable. You would have to bring your own equipment as the park does not rent anything for the camper’s use.

Nearby Towns of Collingwood/The Blue Mountains

While Collingwood and The Blue Mountains are known primarily as ski destinations there are a lot of amenities that can be enjoyed year-round including:

• Scandinave Spa
• Ridge Runner Mountain Coaster
• Restaurants
• Golf
• Horseback riding

Collingwood also has a public beach and some nice lookout spots:

Things To Know:

1. There is a small store on-site at Craigleith Provincial Park (and I mean small) for some forgotten items. You will probably have to travel into Collingwood or Thornbury if you forgot anything.
2. Wood and ice are available for purchase.
3. I have read some reviews and they have suggested you bring earplugs to drown out the traffic noise. I don’t know about that- but the traffic noise is unavoidable so do what works for you.
4. There is a playground
5. The Day Use area consists of a parking lot, a picnic pavilion and some steps down to the rocky shore at the water- that’s it. There is no place to even throw a frisbee. This is not where I would be coming just for Day Use. There are much nicer spots in the area with better amenities.

IMO:

Craigleith Provincial Park is pretty much a “lodging only” park and can be used as a base to enjoy the surrounding area. Unless you can secure one of the few lakeside sites (which are quite nice) most of the sites are underwhelming and not particularly private or picturesque. I enjoyed the bike trail and I would come back here to use that. There are better parks less than an hour and a half away that offer a better camping experience: Sauble Falls  Provincial Park and Inverhuron Provincial Park are both better in my opinion. I would recommend Craigleith Provincial Park as an RV Place to Go for a weekend if you wanted to enjoy Collingwood or Wasaga Beach, but not just for the park itself.