Getaways & Day Trips Guide › Getaways: The Great Outdoors

Haliburton Forest and Wildlife Reserve

705-754-2198

Just south of Algonquin and big enough to be a provincial park in its own right, the 60,000-acre Haliburton reserve has 340 greatly sought-after campsites. But its biggest attraction takes place at the top of the trees. Set in a pine and hardwood forest, the canopy tour is a dizzying adventure. First, a guide drives your group to the edge of Pelaw Lake; then you paddle out three-quarters of a kilometre. When you arrive, everyone is outfitted with harnesses and assorted safety gear. Then you tackle the single-plank walkway, which is only 30 centimetres wide. It gradually rises in elevation; eventually you are 10 to 20 metres above the forest floor. Soon the forest opens out to views of the Pelaw River. The walk (round trip) takes four hours. Be sure to squeeze in a visit to the reserve’s Wolf Centre, a 15-acre enclosure where a pack of grey wolves resides. On Thursday evenings in July and August, take part in organized wolf howls, geared to elicit a response from the pack.

Driving Time:: four hours.
When:: year-round; Wolf Centre year-round (weekends only from Thanksgiving to Victoria Day); dogsledding Dec. to March.
How Much:: four-hour Walk in the Clouds canopy tour, adults $95, children 10 to 17 $70 (includes visit to Wolf Centre and requires at least one adult; under 10 not permitted on canopy walk); Wolf Centre, adults $9, under 18 $6, six and under free.