Apsley, Ontario, Kanada
Enjoy my quiet, private retreat in nature. Walk about, enjoy sunrise on the deck, walk along trails to a large beaver-duck pond, sit by an outdoor fire each night and star gaze, daily bird watch, feed the bluejays, look and listen to the wildlife. ATV the trails and Clydesdale Rd. to the beach.
Read my Guidebook to local and seasonal attractions.
In Apsley, exit Burleigh Street: Shell: say hello to Charlie, fabulous auto works, wonderful Mark's tow support, Home Hardware: outfitters to local contractors and a good supply of whatever you feel inclined to do, LCBO, Hunter's General Store: essentials, ATM, great, fresh, to-order pizza and subs, morning coffee, a friendly 'Have a good one', Legion, North Kawartha Library, Guardian Pharmacy.
Apsley Eats: North Kawartha ice cream at Ball's, Grape & Wedge: daily homemade soups, salads, gourmet sandwiches, international cheeses, and smiles, Best Catering: family run and recommended by the eaters at Shell and that's good enough for me - Delivery Service with fees Wed-Sun after 4pm. Build your own pizza and pub food. Apsley Inn & Restaurant on 28 at the Burleigh Street exit: Great people, great breakfast, local morning gentle coffee hangout, great East Indian food with daily dinner menu and takeout. I cannot emphasize enough that the Indian food is exceptional! Just S on the 28, for the summer, is a truck food stop in a retired fire truck. On the 28, N of the Burleigh Street exit is the one-of-a-kind Swiss Bear Cafe Bistro and an homage to schnitzel and Alpine. Heading North through Bancroft - 5 minutes out is old-school everything family homemade, including buttertarts) Café B C, Bird's Creek (just beside Boyer Chev Buick GMC).
Fishing Zone 15:
Chandos Lake is 10 minutes away with public boat launch: Northern Pike, Lake Trout. Bass opens fourth Saturday in June.
Jack Lake, 10 minutes S of Apsley with 2 public boat launches and boat rentals at Anchorage Marina and Forest Glen Marina: Walleye, Black Crappie, Bass.
Silent Lake Provincial Park is 15 minutes away from Pinewoods and home to Lake Trout, Small and Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch and Sunfish. Please consult the Ontario Recreational Fishing Regulations as Silent Lake has special exceptions. Activities - fishing, hiking, swimming, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, ice fishing.
Beach and Lakes:
Chandos Beach, on the north end of Chandos Lake, and public boat launch is about 10 minutes away from Pinewoods (Clydesdale Rd. and County Rd 620) - parking, sand beach, roped swim area, swim raft - don't dive!, grassy picnic area, washrooms, public boat launch. Bring your beach gear and umbrellas.
Quiet Tallan Lake with public boat launch is just up Clydesdale Rd. Great for canoeing.
10 Signature Paddling Routes:
visit thekawarthas.ca
Provincial Parks:
within 15 minutes from Pinewoods - Kawartha Highlands Provincial Park (canoe rentals, also canoe and kayak rentals in Bancroft) and Silent Lake Provincial Park with outdoor trails and water activities
Algonquin Park - Visitor's Centre is 1 1/2 hours north
Petroglyphs Provincial Park is 20 minutes S of Apsley off the 28. This park is home to nearly 1000 rock carvings that scientists estimate were drawn between 500 and 1000 years ago.
The Gut Conservation Area has walking trails and a stairway down to the gorge
The Warsaw Caves Conservation Area, between Lakefield and Young's Point, has 15 kms of trails through a truly unique landscape, offering a range of recreational activities include camping, caving (spelunking), hiking, kayaking/canoeing, fishing and swimming.
Nearby:
The Bancroft Mineral and Mining Museum is housed in the fully-restored heritage train station. Stop by and discover the history of the mining in the area, learn about mineral collecting, or explore over 400 local specimens, all on display in the 1200 square-foot showroom.
Kawartha Settler's Village - Bobcaygeon historic homes and buildings.
Also nearby is Trent-Severn Lock 32 to watch boats pass through the canal.
Whetung Ojibwa Art and Crafts Gallery, Curve Lake Reserve is a MUST visit.
(also reservation-priced gas)
Maple Syrup, March MapleFest and summer berry picking:
McLean and Buckhorn Berry Farms
Trent-Severn Waterway:
For scenic canal views, locks and walks, canal and lock cruises: Peterborough Lift Lock 21, Burleigh Falls Lock 28, Young's Point Lock 27, Buckhorn Lock 31, Bobcaygeon Lock 32, Lakefield Lift Lock 26.
Riverdale Park and Zoo outdoor zoo area is open and free admission, 1300 Water Street N, Peterborough.
Biking:
Join all the local cottagers who bike along County Rd. 620 - most are in serious biking gear and colours in the summer. However you bike, on whatever 2 wheels, enjoy the curves, hills, long stretches of open road, between Clydesdale Rd. and the 504 split (home coffee, eats, sweets, breads at the Border Town Market Cafe), and ride on the 504 along the south shore of Chandos Lake back into Apsley. Or, continue on the 620 to Coe Hill, and beyond to Ormsby and The Old Hastings Mercantile Gallery - a MUST visit!
Hiking:
Silent Lake Provincial Park, or join a Peterborough Outdoors Meetup group for area walks. For the adventurous try the Peterborough Crown Game Preserve.
Peterborough Crown Game Preserve:
Protecting approximately 15,268 hectares of forest land northwest of Burleigh Falls, the preserve provides a wildlife refuge for white-tailed deer, waterfowl and moose. There are ATV & snowmobile running through the area along the Kawartha Nordic Trail system. Accessed from the south from Hwy 6, Hwy 28 in the west and Jake Lake and McCoy Rd in the north - just try and find the access point.
Pinewoods November Hunting:
Ontario WMU 60 is white-tailed deer. Pinewoods hunting opens with the rifle deer harvesting the first week in November. During the WMU60 two-week rifle deer hunt in November, Pinewoods (private land) offers 2 weekly white-tailed deer rifle/bow hunt camps for 2 hunters or 2 couples. All hunters welcome, especially female hunters, new hunters, hunting couples...It is very difficult for new hunters without private land now!
Yes, there are moose here and I suspect it's because they feel safe - best of luck if you're applying for a moose tag in WMU60, but you are welcome if successful!
Accommodations for hunter week rifle hunt - 2 bedrooms with Queen beds, with on-site hosting by Elizabeth as a semi-guided B&B&D (Bed & Breakfast & Dinner). In addition to the $100 night fee for house accommodation, there is an additional charge of $50 per hunter, per day for hosting, guiding and baiting, and meals.
There are 2 baited plots on the property (starting with a Spring-seeded feed plot in May) with 1 ladder tree stand and 1 ground blind in each plot area.
Contact Service Ontario for annual hunting regulations (available in April), Licences (Pinewoods is in WMU60 for antlerless and moose) and Licence Summary. To hunt at Pinewoods, you must provide a PAL (firearms), an Ontario Hunter's Licence, and ServiceOntario Licence Summary with deer for the year you are hunting.
Bancroft Fish & Game Club: This depends on the Club's current rules for guests on range. As my hunting camp guests, zero-in and practice on the 100-300 yard rifle range, archery & crossbow ranges (there are handgun ranges 25-50 yards and a 5-post skeet 2G range). There is a target for bows-crossbows at 30 yards on the property.
After the 2-week rifle hunt camps, bow hunting continues until mid-December for deer.
Sledding:
The Stoney Lake Snoriders Snowmobile Club club maintains over 225 kms of some of Ontario's most beautiful trails from Stoney Lake in the South, to Apsley in the North. They connect to Paudash Trailblazers Snowmobile Club trails in the north, Havelock Snowmobile Club trails in the East and Old Hastings Snowmobile Club trails in the north east. Visit the Stoney Lake Snoriders website and FB page for more information. The Stoney Lake Snoriders Snowmobile Club is listed with the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC) as part of District 2 (Central Eastern Region).
Paudash Trailblazers Snowmobile Club has just over 300 km of amazing trails extending from Gooderham to near Bancroft, and from just north of Apsley to the south end of Algonquin Park. Trails connect to other great trails going in every direction. Visit the Paudash Trailblazers website and FB for more information.
Kawartha Nordic Ski Club:
10 minutes S of Apsley for groomed X-country and snowshoe trails - open to the public with rentals. Fabulous!
