Bronte Creek Provincial Park - little known facts

Pack a snack and head on over to the park for a day of adventure! Start a 1 or 30 or anywhere inbetween.

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Bronte Creek Provincial Park - little known facts

Oakville, Ontario L6M, Canada

Created By: Bronte Creek Provincial Park

Tour Information

Welcome to Bronte Creek Provincial Park!

This free roam tour is intended to help you explore the lesser known sights of Bronte Creek Provincial Park - please use the park trails and paths to navigate to the next point of interest.

This is your access to 684 hectares of protected land and water where you can hike, bike, picnic, fish and learn. The park is open 364 days a year (closed on Christmas Day).

Visit the other PocketSights found within the park boundaries - we have trails, Discovery Centres, and festivals for you and your family to explore.

You are required to obtain and display a valid Ontario Parks permit - please stop at the gate kiosk ahead to speak with a staff member or purchase a permit at our pay-and-display machines.

www.ontarioparks.com/park/brontecreek

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Tour Map

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What You'll See on the Tour

This is the access road to the day-use side of the park - stop at one of the gatehouses to obtain your permit either with the help of a staff member or via our Pay-and-display machine. Avoid long line ups like this by having your payment m... Read more
This structure is called a silo. Silos are used in agriculture to store grain or fermented feed known as silage which is used to feed livestock. Little Known Fact: This silo uses glazed ceramic tiles a construction style that began in 189... Read more
We know Oak Trees to be tall, strong and sturdy and this tree in front of you is no exception.  Little Known Fact: This tree is estimated to have germinated in 1685, one of the few trees in this region to predate European settlement. See... Read more
Little Known Fact: This pond dries up around mid-August - depending on how rainy the summer has been. The animals that call this pond home will either travel to another pond or wet area or bury themselves into the mud and wait for the pon... Read more
In 1796, John McIntosh found an apple tree growing at his farm near Ottawa. This tree bore apples that were particularly tasty and kept well. Efforts were made to graft branches from this tree onto other root stock, thereby starting new tr... Read more
Its no rumour that the mass of vines growing on these trees is called Wild Grape. The plant produces a small, grape-like fruit. Although it is bitter to human taste, the fruit is readily eaten by more than one hundred species of songbirds a... Read more
Constructed in 1899, by Henry C. Breckon, Spruce Lane Farmhouse stands as a ‘living’ example of everyday life at the turn of the century in Halton County.  Henry earned a substantial income through the sale of prize-winning apple and s... Read more
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This is the start of the 18-hole Disc Golf course. The sport is played with special discs - not frisbees. Disc characteristics like size, weight, density, rim style, and dome height help determine if it is a putter or driver.  This flying ... Read more
This hill affords visitors with a stunning view of Lake Ontario and surrounding development of Burlington and Oakville.  On clear days you can see across the Lake to the Niagara Penisula. When there is enough snow, brave park patrons floc... Read more
A fun little section of the Barrier Free Trail where you can find cute little wooden homes. These are the homes of the rarely seen gnomes - protectors of the forest. These gnomes moved in shortly after the area trees were hit hard by the Em... Read more
A favourite and iconic feature of Bronte Creek Provincial Park. The Playbarn is a sheltered (unheated) area for kids 10 and under to perfect their climbing, jumping and sliding skills. Originally holding hay, rope swings and chain swaying b... Read more
This area was most recently used for agriculture (1850-1960)such as growing wheat and then fruit.  Horses were used up until the early 1900's for clearing, plowing and seeding the land.  By the 1920's horsepower began being replaced  ... Read more
Central to our Discovery Education Program, the Nature Centre is where visitors will find a variety of aquariums and displays showcasing the natural world of Bronte Creek Provincial Park.  Many interactive displays help visitors learn ab... Read more
This structure is called a silo and was associated with a barn that was torn down in the early 1990's due to being hazard to public safety.  This farm is known as the the Burkholder farm. It is considered a "century farm" as it stayed i... Read more
One of two areas in the park where pet owners are allowed to have dogs off leash.  Before taking your dog to the leash free area be sure that they are vaccinated and have good recall (will come back to you when you call them).  Well beha... Read more
In 1861 Ralph Breckon recorded that 100 acres had been cleared and that his family was living in a log house built in 1830.  A brick farmhouse was being built (1860) and reportedly the bricks came from clay taken from a stream that cuts a... Read more
Walking the trails of Bronte Creek Provincial Park is an excellent way to explore the park and see all its unique natural landscapes and wildlife.  In late April to early May - take a stroll and see the forest floor carpeted with Large Wh... Read more
This trail takes you directly to the creek for fishing and where you can explore the Bronte Creek valley and the park's early history. It includes some steep climbs, a set of stairs and may not be suitable for disabled visitors. Follow a di... Read more
This trail winds for approximately 1.1km through Burkholder woods. Along the paved trail there are excellent opportunities to observe the rural landscape and how it has been altered by people and nature. Little Known Fact: The Mice, Men a... Read more
If you look carefully you can see the landforms that took millions of years to form. 500 million years ago this area looked very different (see Ancient earth globe). A shallow sea deposited layers of silt and over millions of years the silt... Read more
You are looking at one of the reasons why this park was established. Pioneering a new concept in planning and programming, the development of Bronte Creek Provincial Park was unique and innovative. The establishment of the park in 1975 was ... Read more
You are looking at one of the reasons why this park was established. Pioneering a new concept in planning and programming, the development of Bronte Creek Provincial Park was unique and innovative. The establishment of the park in 1975 was... Read more
As the towering trees cast a deepening shadow over the fields, another day is closing at Bronte's Spruce Lane Farm. An eventful day on an old-fashioned rural farm - a calf was born, and a stray sheep was found. The shadows of the twilight ... Read more
The team of oxen strain as the heed the call of the farmer "pull, pull.." Again, the ropes snap tight, twanging like a gigantic base fiddle, the oxen put all their strength into the pull. With a savage snap of the timber, the stump of a hu... Read more
You are standing where a river once flowed. Before the last glacial period some 14000 years ago a waterway made its way to Lake Iroqois (now Lake Ontario) creating an equally deep ravine through the Queenston shale. When the Wisconsin Glaci... Read more
One of two areas in the park where pet owners are allowed to have dogs off leash.  Before taking your dog to the leash free area be sure that they are vaccinated and have good recall (will come back to you when you call them).  Well beha... Read more
This stage was built in 2009 as a temporary structure where our program staff could lead evening programs, campfires, and daytime children's programs. We hope one day to be able to build a multi-use structure that can be used for park prog... Read more
Think of all the changes the area around you has experienced over the past 400 years.  Once covered in forest and roamed by creatures such as wolves and elk, this area was cleared for farmland in the early mid-1800's and is now being repl... Read more
A yurt is a soft sided, semi-permanent structure that provides more sturdy shelter and a bit more luxury than a tent.  Ontario Parks offers roofed accommodation like this in 10 parks meeting the need for alternative camping options.  A y... Read more
Kids can swing, slide, climb and run!  the campground opened in 2002 and has quickly become a favourite for travellers and local families.  With the geographical challengesof Bronte Creek Provincial Park being divided by our namesake cre... Read more
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Looking at the 1975 map of the park it is hard to understand why this particular section of land was identified for a provincial park.  The surrounding area did not look so different then what was being preserved inside the park boundaries... Read more
This area was most recently used for agriculture (1850-1960) such as growing wheat and then fruit.  Horses were used up until the early 1900's for clearing, plowing and seeding the land.  By the 1920's horsepower was replaced by the tr... Read more
You might be able to see across the ravine to a small waterfall.  Little known Facts:   It is best seen in the spring before the leaves are on the trees and the snow has melted.  
This is a nesting box intended for Eastern Bluebirds.   There is no mistaking an adult male with their striking royal blue back with bright orange throat and breast, and bright white belly. Females tend to be paler overall, grayish wit... Read more

 

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