Camping at Charleston Lake Provincial Park
Charleston Lake provides an incredibly immersive park experience, maybe the best one available in the densely populated parts of Southeastern Ontario - in terms of feeling like you're in the wilds away from highway and city noises, among uniquely rugged geology, and with high quality activities including hiking, swimming and boating.
Rating: 9 / 10
Our experience
Aman and I had the opportunity to spend two nights here on Labour Day weekend in 2022 (Sept 4 - 6, 2022). We were pretty lucky to get a camping spot, as we booked quite late and the park is usually fully booked well in advance. There was a particular reason why we chose this park - it was well reviewed, and it was close to Montreal where I needed to pick up a work desk I'd purchased from Costco that was only available at one Quebec location; we'd shipped it to a parcel pick-up location in Montreal and needed to pick it up that weekend.
Where is Charleston Lake?
Charleston Lake Provincial Park is located less than two hours away from Ottawa, and about 3 hours from Toronto. The park lies very close to the southeastern Canada-US border with New York state.
Geology
Charleston Lake is located centrally within the Frontenac Biosphere Reserve - a region identified for its relevance in connecting the ecosystems of the Canadian Shield - which is the largest exposed part of earth's continental crust anywhere in the world - with the Adirondack Mountains, which lie in northeastern New York. Interestingly, the Shield is the unforgiving remnants of an eroded ancient mountain range that once, billions of years ago, covered large swathes of northeastern and central Canada. That makes the Shield ancient continental crust. Imagine, if you will, a billion years from now - the Rockies may look much like the Shield does today. Incredibly, five separate forest regions meet at the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve.
All of this serves to give Charleston Lake park a rugged personality when compared to other parks in the southeastern area) - it's craggly, it's rocky and it's hilly, with varied hiking terrain to give your body a good workout (if you like hiking). This is not a park where you simply want to laze by a beach all weekend; for that, there are much better parks in the area, such as Sharbot Lake Provincial Park.
Our Campsite
Site 321 lies in the Shady Ridge Campground, steps away from the beach, in a mature wooded area. The campsite was quite isolated from the other campsites around it - a perfect spot that we were lucky to find, as it seems Shady Ridge campgrounds in general are not that private. Magenta-purple sunsets by the beach each night were an amazing feast for the eyes. No motorboats are allowed in that section of the lake, which ensured it remained quiet.
Hiking Trails
Sandstone Island Trail
On our arrival, we unpacked our tent and then decided to hike the Sandstone Island Trail. The trail is hilly and rocky with fascinating geology.
Along this trail is a large rock overhang that served as a shelter for Indigenous people of the land; scientists have discovered a fire pit, bone tools, and pieces of pottery here dating back over 1200 years.
There are beautiful views of Charleston Lake along the trail.
Near the end of the trail, we came upon rock cairns that someone had painstakingly created. Perhaps it was maintained by one person, or perhaps by a series of hikers who left them behind. It was a beautiful spot to pause, rest, and breathe.
Shoreline Trail
The next day, we hiked the Shoreline Trail, another rugged trail that hugs the Lake's shore and provides some amazing views and landscapes.
We took our camping stove and some food with us stashed in my backpack. Halfway through the hike, while the picnic table in the area was occupied, we decided to plop down on the exposed rock, and high above the lake on that windy, cloudy day, we ate a meal amidst that rugged, wildly beautiful landscape. And of course, we wrapped up and took all our leftovers and any throwaway items with us.
Quiddity Trail
The last hike we did, this featured boardwalks through marshy areas and ended at a scenic lookout. It was not as interesting as the other two hikes had been, but worth it for the exercise!
Overall, I rate Charleston Lake Provincial Park very high on my list - it was a wonderful camping experience filled with hiking and rugged beauty - everything I ask for in a car camping experience.
