Pancake Bay Provincial Park was established in 1968 by

Ontario Parks Ontario Parks is a branch of the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks in Ontario, Canada, that protects significant natural and cultural resources in a system of parks and protected areas that is sustainable and provides opportuniti ...

. It is a

recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasur ...

-class

provincial park Ischigualasto Provincial Park A provincial park (or territorial park) is a park administered by one of the provinces of a country, as opposed to a national park. They are similar to state parks in other countries. They are typically open to the ...

created to help preserve the fragile beach

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

ecology. There are 325 campsites, including 160 with electricity. There are three comfort stations.

Yurt A yurt (from the Turkic languages) or ger ( Mongolian) is a portable, round tent covered and insulated with skins or felt and traditionally used as a dwelling by several distinct nomadic groups in the steppes and mountains of Central Asia. ...

camping is available in the park. Group camping sites are also available. In 2006 Pancake Bay Provincial Park received an extension as part of Ontario's Living Legacy and now comprises .

Facilities

Park office

The park office is located on

Ontario Highway 17 King's Highway 17, more commonly known as Highway 17, is a provincially maintained highway and the primary route of the Trans-Canada Highway through the Canadian province of Ontario. It begins at the Manitoba boundary, west of Kenora, and the ma ...

just past of the Agawa Crafts and Store (as coming from

Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Sault Ste. Marie ( ) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is at the St. Mary's River on the Canada–US border. It is the third largest city in Northern Ontario, after Sudbury and Thunder Bay. The Ojibwe, the indigenous Anishinaabe inhabitants ...

). The park is open during the months of May to October. Senior staff, including the superintendent, can be reached at the park office between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm during summer months. The office is open from 8:00 am until 9:00 pm with overnight driving patrol.

Main campground

The main campground has approximately 250 sites. Two comfort stations are located in the main campground equipped with showers, laundry facilities and flush toilets. There is an amphitheater located in the campground and presentations by the park naturalists occur every weekend during the summer months. A flyer detailing the weekly events can be found in the park gatehouse. All the campsites in the main camp are within easy walking distance of the beach. The beachfront sites are subject to special premium rates. There are a large number of pull through sites for RVs and motor homes. Permits are obtained at the park gatehouse. Firewood is available for purchase at the gatehouse (seven days a week, 9:00 am to 10:00 pm) and from the park host on their site (Wednesday to Sunday, 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm).

Hilltop campground

Approximately 70 of the sites are located on a hill on the western end of the camping area. These are all large sites. They are close to the fen and the in-camp hiking trail but are a 5 to 8 minute walk from the beach. One of the comfort stations is located in the Hilltop campground. This comfort station does not have laundry facilities.

Group sites

There are five beachfront group camping sites available, accommodating between 13 and 40 campers. They are located in a separate area beyond the western end of the main campsite below the Hilltop sites.

Yurts

There are five

yurt A yurt (from the Turkic languages) or ger ( Mongolian) is a portable, round tent covered and insulated with skins or felt and traditionally used as a dwelling by several distinct nomadic groups in the steppes and mountains of Central Asia. ...

s at the park. Two of the yurts are in the main campground, three are located on a beachfront location by the administration and day use areas. The yurts have a screened shelter tent and picnic table and a covered area beside the yurt where a propane barbecue grill is located. Each yurt sleeps six people with two bunkbeds (double bed on the bottom and a single on top). The yurt also contains a small fridge.

Ecology

''Pancake Bay'' is a sheltered, south-facing bay on the eastern shore of

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

, north of

, Canada. A sand beach lines the bay of which 3.5 km are within the park boundary. The bay is sand filled and shallow, which helps to warm the lake. Ancient beach ridges are visible more inland. The

ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

of the region is characteristic of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence transition forest, but is a northern shelter for more southerly

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...

. The region is home to a number of regionally rare and

vulnerable species A vulnerable species is a species which has been Conservation status, categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being threatened species, threatened with extinction unless the circumstances that are threatened species, ...

, including Braun's holly fern, maidenhair spleenwort, sand reed and the majestic

peregrine falcon The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan bird of prey (Bird of prey, raptor) in the family (biology), family Falco ...

. Along the Pancake Bay Nature Trail, you can find evidence of beach ridge succession over the millennia, a large conglomerate boulder believed to have been brought by

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

s, and a beautiful and ecologically sensitive

fen A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as mires. T ...

(a type of

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

). While at this park, one can see moose, black bears,

sandhill crane The sandhill crane (''Antigone canadensis'') is a species of large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird refers to habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills on t ...

s and other wildlife.

Hiking and cycling

There are two marked trails, the 3.5 km Pancake Bay Nature Trail and the 14 km Lookout Trail. From the Lookout Trail one can view a panorama of the

Canadian Shield The Canadian Shield (french: Bouclier canadien ), also called the Laurentian Plateau, is a geologic shield, a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks. It forms the North American Craton (or Laurentia), the anc ...

, and from the Edmund Fitzgerald Lake Superior Lookout along that trail one can see to the west the area of Lake Superior where the SS ''Edmund Fitzgerald'' sank in a fierce November storm in 1975. Biking is also allowed on the Lookout Trail.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Provincial parks of Ontario Parks in Algoma District 1968 establishments in Ontario Protected areas established in 1968 Lake Superior