Bruce Peninsula National Park: 1-night Backpacking Stormhaven by Cerulean Views
Bruce Peninsula National Park Tobermory, ON N0H 2R0, Canada
The shore faces Georgian Bay, its clarity is thanks to the absence of large-scale agriculture and industrial activity in the surrounding watershed, which reduces the runoff of sediments and pollutants
Bruce Peninsula National Park spans the Niagara Escarpment, a vast ridge cutting through southern Ontario making it a popular hiking destination. The hike to Stormhaven itself traverses challenging terrain but with limited campsites, after sunset, you’re met with an intimate experience like you’ve never had before at this often bustling location.
Trip Report:
This backcountry 1-nighter was the first part of a bigger trip at Bruce Peninsula National Park where we spent a couple days afterwards car camping to see the famed Grotto. As far as backpacking goes, you can extend this trip by adding an extra night at High Dump by hiking the Half Way Log Dump trail.
| Type | Backcountry | |
| Toronto Drive | ||
| Duration | ||
| Campground | Stormhaven | |
| Site | SH5 | |
| Season | Summer (September 2022) |
Day 1: Stormhaven
Since our 1-night backcountry trip was as part of a car camping stay, so we parked at the Cypress Lake campgrounds and hiked a total of 3.7km to Stormhaven using the Bruce Trail. The Bruce Trail is Canada's oldest and longest marked footpath located right here in Ontario and spans about 900km total.
Note: there are not a lot of backcountry campsites at the park and with high demand, you should book very early!
Starting Point: Cypress Lake
Camping Reservations: (here)
Park Maps: (official maps)
Bruce Peninsula Park: Backcountry Camping Backpacking Trail to Stormhaven and High Dump campsites
The hike begins with well-marked and a maintained forested trail where you'll walk through dense woodland. This part of the journey provides shade and a peaceful ambiance which you should enjoy now because it’s about to get a lot harder.
Starting our trip at Cypress Lake campgrounds
After emerging from forests, you meander along a rocky shore
Ring-billed Gull are the most common birds you’ll find along the shore
You’ll encounter moderate to steep elevation changes with lots of exposed roots as it follows the contours of the Niagara Escarpment. There are quite a few deep crevices in the ground that you’ll need to keep an eye on: the terrain is definitely moderate and is a really tricky to trek especially once you hit the long stretches of polished white rocks.
Once you arrive to shore, you can dip into the cool waters of Georgian Bay, but this area is incredibly slippery. Bring proper shoes! No sandals.
For the most part you’ll find stable footing on large rocks, but this hike isn’t friendly for those with weak ankles. Trekking poles are a must! We encountered a lot of unprepared park visitors that were simply trying to find their way to the Grotto and they were struggling.
Small polished stones along the hike to Stormhaven
Layered stone steps, a break from the precarious rocks
Re-entering the forest to get to camp
The trail wasn’t well marked during our time at the rocky shore, but despite how challenging hike was the views that followed us are worth their weight in gold. Cerulean blue waters and so many photo-worthy spots. This is the place to be for solitude and wave watching.
Rock formations along Georgian Bay at the base of camp: this shore has smaller pebbles easier to traverse
Site #5: we arrived at camp after looping into a wooded area. The sites were easy to find and the park provides convenient bear poles to hang your food at night which uses a pulley system.
There are also communal vault toilets which are so clean you forget you’re in the backcountry! Unlike most, these washrooms are spacious with even a mirror to boot.
Campsite #5: the tent platforms at the Stormhaven campsites
Although we weren’t able to snag them, there are campsites much closer to the Georgian Bay shore which I would highly recommend trying to book first. #5 is decent with an elevated wooden platforms which made for a really smooth sleeping surface. You’ll have to stake your tent with rocks nearby though.
To that Cave, in the Distance
This isn’t an official trek, and frankly can be dangerous for some but we decided to climb towards the cave we spotted from shore (you can see it peaking in the photo below, in the far back). A huge warning that this is not recommended unless you’re stable and fit.
Large boulders litter the shores
The rocks found at Bruce Peninsula National Park are a type of bedrock called dolomite (a limestone formed 430 million years ago). These ancient rocks house a surprising amount of life which we noticed: vibrant lichen, plush mounds of mosses and even trees embedded in the cracks. The caves themselves are home to bats and birds.
Lichen on dolomite rock at Bruce Peninsula
Trees grown within the cracks of rocks, within the cave
Late Dinner at the Shore
Since the campground is small and fairly communal, you’ll likely encounter other campers at the shore who are also enjoying the sunset. This is the spot where you’ll refill your water for filtering which is crystal clear and delicious.
Filtering water at night at Stormhaven campgrounds, the backcountry
The nighttime temperature cooled down rapidly and after enjoying a leisurely meal of rehydrated curry, we welcomed the dark sky before heading back to our site.
Day 2: Back
Like I mentioned, you can extend your trip by adding another leg to High Dump, but we turned back to Cypress Lake where the rest of our party was.
Day 3-4 (Bonus)
Car Camping at Tamarack
Tamarack is a great camping area as far as car camping sites are concerned: there’s a decent number of trees between sites and the washrooms were very clean when we stayed. Even being a long weekend, we found the grounds to have reasonable noise.
Note: From May 1 to October 31, an alcohol policy is in place. During all long weekends, a full ban on alcohol and cannabis will be in effect.
Fathom Five National Marine Park Shipwrecks at Tobermory
We took a day trip to Tobermory (15-20 minute drive) to paddle to the shipwrecks. We used our inflatable paddle boards as well as kayak rentals; the waters are quite choppy making the route a bit challenging but we reached each sighting successfully. You can launch at the foot of Little Tub Harbour, but see more launches here.
Paddling to the Fathom Five National Marine Park Shipwrecks at Tobermory
How are the shipwrecks? Pretty cool! I’d say the drone shots of the wreckages are more awe-inspiring than they are in real life, but they’re still a marvel by pure existence. Big Tub was by far the most worthy one to get to. When you’re finished paddling, Tobermory itself is a fun area to explore and we enjoyed lunch at Coconut Joe's Harbour Bar and Grill.
Fun fact: you can scuba dive to the shipwrecks!
The (very busy) Grotto
We visited Indian Head Cove and the Grotto in the evening. The trail markings are a bit confusing, evident by how many people asked us for directions, but once you arrive the areas are most likely packed. This is partly due to how many people visit Bruce Peninsula Park as a simply day trip - so if you can go early morning or late evenings, the crowds will thin out.
The Grotto at Bruce Peninsula National Park
A realistic photo of the crowds at Indian Head Cove
You can swim here, but the waves are powerful so very few people were in the water. There were some adventurous souls that snorkelled through the Grotto - which I was told was a longer stretch than expected for what it’s worth.
Stony Hikes + Little Lakes
There are a lot of little trails that weave into each other while you’re in the Grotto area: we formed a loop by merging the Georgian Bay Trail and the Marr Lake Trail. Ontario is known for its lakes, and you get a sampling of that here. Although we didn’t spot one on our hike, you might find Common Loons at one of these bodies of water.
Marr Lake Trail, Bruce Peninsula
Trail Run at Cyrpus Lake
We took a trail run around Cypress Lake (AllTrails map) which is a moderately difficult run though it’s a perfect length of 5.5km that loops from and to the campgrounds. There are a lot of exposed roots and rocks meaning I would only recommend running this route if you’re experienced, or have sturdy legs. This marks as a highlight of the trip for me! Exhilarating and energizing: a perfect way to cap our adventure.
Sunset at Cypress Lake
Not into trail running? Paddle these waters instead, particularly in the evening
Final Thoughts
Bruce Peninsula National Park is world-famous for a reason: its views don’t disappoint! But as with all popular destinations, this means the influx of visitors could mean a crowded stay. With that in mind, I would recommend coming here on week days or off-season if you can - apparently winter camping here is amazing, and they offer roofed accommodations.
Despite the crowds, I found all the quintessential activities we did on a typical tourist bucket list actually really enjoyable and worth doing once. The backcountry camping at Stormhaven (or to High Dump) is a must, made worthy not only because of its remarkable landscape but by how impeccable the facilities are maintained. We’re eagerly wanting to come back!
For our camping gear list, click here.
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