Killbear Provincial Park is a

provincial park Ischigualasto Provincial Park A provincial park (or territorial park) is a park administered by one of the provinces of a country, as opposed to a national park. They are similar to state parks in other countries. They are typically open to the ...

located on

Georgian Bay The Georgian Bay () is a large bay of Lake Huron, in the Laurentia bioregion. It is located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. To its northwest is t ...

in the

Parry Sound District Parry Sound District is a census division of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its boundaries are District of Muskoka to the south, the Sudbury District to the north-northwest, the French River and Lake Nipissing in the north, Nipissing Distri ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, near the town of Nobel. Killbear combines sandy beaches typical of the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

with the rock ridges and

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

s of the

Canadian Shield The Canadian Shield ( ), also called the Laurentian Shield or the Laurentian Plateau, is a geologic shield, a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks. It forms the North American Craton (or Laurentia), th ...

. The park boundaries lie within the

Georgian Bay Littoral The Georgian Bay Littoral (also called the Georgian Bay Biosphere Reserve) is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve located in Ontario, Canada. The biosphere was the thirteenth in Canada, and covers the Thirty Thousand Islands area of eastern Georgian Bay ...

UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) is an intergovernmental scientific program, launched in 1971 by UNESCO, that aims to establish a scientific basis for the 'improvement of relationships' between people and their environments. MAB engages w ...

Nature and ecology

The park is ecologically significant for its large and varied types of shoreline. As water levels in the Great Lakes fluctuate over a time span of decades, different wetland, meadow and shoreline vegetation types are created. High levels of human activity can damage natural shoreline ecosystems; currently only small areas of natural beach remain intact in this park. The wetlands of the park also support significant animal species including

spotted turtle The spotted turtle (''Clemmys guttata''), the only species of the genus ''Clemmys'', is a small, semi-aquatic turtle that reaches a carapace length of upon adulthood. Their broad, smooth, low dark-colored upper shell, or carapace, ranges in its ...

Blanding's turtle Blanding's turtle (''Emydoidea blandingii)'' is a species of semi-aquatic turtle of the Family (biology), family Emydidae. This species is native to central and eastern parts of Canada and the United States. It is considered to be an endangered s ...

s and eastern massasauga rattlesnakes. Uplands support both the hognose snake and five-lined skink, both of which are considered species of special concern. There is also a population of

fox snake Fox snake or foxsnake is the common name given to some North American rat snakes of the genus ''Pantherophis ''Pantherophis'' is a genus of nonvenomous colubrid snakes endemic to central and eastern regions of North America. It consists of th ...

s, which use offshore islands extensively, and overwinter in hibernacula in the area. The southeastern portion of the park protects a typical area of bedrock barrens; these barrens represent a distinctive shallow soil habitat type found in eastern Georgian Bay. The park is one area within a larger significant landscape, the 30,000 islands along the eastern coast of Georgian Bay, which comprise the world's largest freshwater archipelago.

''The Killbear Tree''

Killbear Provincial Park features a "" windswept isolated

white pine ''Pinus'', the pines, is a genus of approximately 111 extant tree and shrub species. The genus is currently split into two subgenera: subgenus ''Pinus'' (hard pines), and subgenus ''Strobus'' (soft pines). Each of the subgenera have been further ...

growing on a

rock outcrop An outcrop or rocky outcrop is a visible exposure of bedrock or ancient superficial deposits on the surface of the Earth and other terrestrial planets. Features Outcrops do not cover the majority of the Earth's land surface because in most p ...

. In 2019, after a major limb died over two years, the tree began showing signs of damage. Following a major ice storm, the tree had two support rods installed in 2022.

History

The area that is now Killbear Provincial Park was extensively logged for about 20 years, starting in 1900. The land was expropriated by the Ontario Government and designated a provincial park in 1960.

Facilities and activities

Activities in the park include camping, swimming, boating, cycling and fishing. The park's proximity to southern Ontario make it very popular, especially in peak season, and reservations are often necessary despite its large number of campsites. The campgrounds are divided into campsites which are often focused on a feature such as a beach. They include: Beaver Dams, Blind Bay, Georgian, Granite Saddle, Harold Point, Kilcoursie Bay, and Lighthouse.Map of Killbear campgrounds
Retrieved 3 December 2011

References

External links

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Friends of KillbearGeorgian Bay Biosphere ReserveFlickr group
{{Authority control Provincial parks of Ontario Parks in Parry Sound District Year of establishment missing Campsites in Canada Georgian Bay