Sauble Falls Provincial Park is located near Sauble Beach, Ontario.
The 11km long Sauble Beach is a popular destination. Sauble Falls Provincial Park is about 3km from the northern end of the beach.
One of the things that I always research is accessibility to feature attractions. For the most part, we travel without a towed vehicle. We don’t really like unplugging and packing up to drive to an attraction or a campground feature if it can be avoided. If something is 3km away- I want to know if that means, it’s straight uphill or down a major highway and would exclude cycling or walking. Sauble Beach can be realistically accessed by bike (and even by foot if you were so inclined). It is a flat, paved, mostly residential, road from the park to the beach.
Site Review:
Sauble Falls Provincial Park is divided into 2 campgrounds by Sauble Falls Parkway (county road 13). There is the East campground and the West campground. The West campground is radio free.
There are about 9 really nice campsites along the Sauble River in the West campground- sites #3,4,6,8,11,13,15,17, and 19.
It should be noted that you cannot access the river from any sites in the West campground. There is a barrier fence and a steep wooded embankment. From these sites, it is a short walk to Sauble Falls.
The privacy is generally good at the majority of the sites in the West campground. I suggest consulting the Ontario Parks webpage for Sauble Falls Provincial Park to get site-specific information. Their assessment of pad slope and site privacy has been pretty accurate in my experience.
East campground has some bunched together electric sites, but also some very large, private, non-electric sites along the river. Odd-numbered sites from #121-139 all looked great, however, because of the tree cover I think the maximum size equipment is up to about 20 ft.
Electric sites #100 and #102 are spacious and can accommodate bigger units. They are directly across from the river where there is a small dock that can be used to put in kayaks and canoes etc.
Activities:
Sauble Falls Provincial Park is what I like to call a combination wilderness park and lodging park. You can have a private camping experience in a forested area and enjoy the natural element of the waterfalls. You can also use the park as a base to explore the surrounding area.
Swimming/Beach
There is no on-site swimming at Sauble Falls Provincial Park. We did see numerous people wading around in the falls, however, this is not recommended because of the obvious danger of slippery rocks.
Sauble Beach is 3km down Sauble Falls Road (Note: this is different than Sauble Falls Parkway). Bear to the right when you reach the fork in the road and this will take you to the beach’s north end access point.
If you did take Sauble Falls Parkway you will still end up in the town of Sauble Beach and signs will direct you to the beach from there (this is just longer and down the county highway so potentially busier with traffic).
The town of Sauble Beach is typical of any beach town- there are the usual vendors serving up grilled foods, fries and ice cream as well as shops selling an assortment of beachwear and sunglasses. There are a few stores where you can stock up on various other supplies as well. The main attraction is, of course, the beach.
The beach is large enough that even on the busiest of days you will have lots of space. Note: there are no pets allowed on the beach and there are no lifeguards.
Sightseeing
The beach is the main attraction around Sauble Falls Provincial Park, but there are numerous activities throughout the Bruce Peninsula. You can enjoy things like touring caves, going on a peninsula lighthouse tour, scuba diving wrecks, as well as enjoying all manners of boat tours. Tobermory is about an hour’s drive away and is a popular destination. It should be noted that the entire Bruce Peninsula gets pretty busy during tourist season. For example, if you were thinking of travelling to see the Grotto at Bruce Peninsula National Park you should know that parking is limited and on the Sunday of Labour Day weekend last year, 1630 cars were turned away. Reserve ahead where possible and plan for long lines during peak times.
Car Racing
Sauble Speedway is a 1/4 mile short track motor racing oval, located east of Sauble Beach, in Hepworth, Ontario. The track hosts a weekly Saturday night stock car racing program that runs from June to September each year, with additional Sunday night races on long weekends. Admission ranges from $15 – $40 with children 12 and under free with an adult. Sauble Speedway is approximately 10 km away.
Hiking
There is a hiking trail within the park that takes you through the forested area and affords a couple of nice views of the Sauble River.
Kayaking/Canoeing
The campground rents canoes and kayaks for use on the Sauble River. There is a rental office at the bridge at the top of the falls.
Things to Know
- There is no store on site. However, you can stand on the bridge at the top of the falls and see the “Call of the Wild” Country Store. There you can purchase wood/ice/bait etc. along with other camping supplies.
- If all you are interested in are the falls themselves, there is direct access from highway 13 (Sauble Falls Parkway). There is no fee and you don’t have to be a guest at the park.
- The sites at Sauble Falls Provincial Park tend to be on the small size- despite them being well laid out and private. There are only about 6 sites in the entire park that can accommodate rigs longer than 32ft.
- There are several other Ontario parks located along this stretch of the Lake Huron shoreline including MacGregor Point Provincial Park, Inverhuron Provincial Park, and Point Farms Provincial Park.
Sauble Falls Tent and Trailer Resort
If you have a larger unit and want to visit the area- you might want to consider Sauble Falls Tent and Trailer Resort. It is located directly across from the “Call of the Wild” Country Store. This is a private campground that houses a lot of permanent seasonal campers but does have accommodations for overnight and short-stay guests.
We took a quick walk through it and the sites are larger than most at Sauble Fall Provincial Park and some afford full hook-ups. There is a tennis court but there is no pool.
IMO:
I liked Sauble Falls Provincial Park. It seemed to have a little bit of everything. You can enjoy the natural feature of the waterfalls as well as bike/drive into the village and enjoy the beach and the vibe of a summer beach town. If I was in the area again, I would stay here. The sites were big enough for our 30ft motorhome but for anything bigger make sure you consult the Ontario Parks web page for any size restrictions. I would recommend Sauble Falls Provincial Park as an RV Place to Go.