Algonquin Provincial Park is located in south-central Ontario, Canada and covers 7,630 square kilometers (2,946 square miles). The park is about 300 km north of Toronto, Ontario and about 260 km west of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada s capital.

There are a few maps available for Algonquin Park. The most popular are from the Friends of Algonquin Park and Jeff's Map. Unfortunately, the popular Jeff's Map is no longer available for purchase. It was however made available to share, licensed under a Creative Commons license that allows free non-commercial sharing of the map as long as you give credit.

You can download a copy of the JEFF's MAP HERE.

Algonquin is one of the largest provincial parks in Ontario and is known internationally as a wilderness camping destination with endless opportunities for backcountry canoe trippers or backpackers.

The park offers excellent trout fishing, in the spring, and also during the spring offers great birding opportunities with spring arrivals and migrants. The park is also known to offer amazing moose viewing opportunities along Highway 60 and throughout the park.

There are many different Access Points into Algonquin Park, so distance varies.

Typically, the distance between Toronto and Algonquin Provincial Park is calculated as 243 km (from Toronto to the main permit office at Canoe Lake off of highway 60). The road distance is 387 km.

Each year the park hosts over 800 000 visitors with very few accidents reported.

There is always some level of risk associated with backcountry camping, so it's important to take some time to learn how participate in these activities through a training program or from an experienced camper.  There are many outfitters, guides and training programs that can help with skills development.

Everyone who visits the park must have a valid Park Permit. Permits are available from Ontario Parks Reservations. There are a variety of different permits and their applicable fees differ depending upon your use of the Park.

To make a reservations for a backcountry trip or a reservation for a Ranger Cabins, call 1-888-ONT-PARK (1-888-668-7275) [or (519) 826-5290 for outside of North America] or make a reservation online.

Algonquin Park Reservations >>>

Canoe rental prices vary depending on the size and type of canoe, as well as the specific Outfitter's prices will also vary from business to business.

Most canoe rental prices will be around $28 to $40 Cdn per day.

It is much more economical to rent a canoe compared to buying your own.

No, Algonquin Park is not the largest park in Ontario.

The province of Ontario has more than 330 parks, covering some 35,000 square miles of land. The five largest provincial parks in Ontario (listed in order of size) are Polar Bear Park, Wabakimi Provincial Park, Quetico Provincial Park, Opasquia Provincial Park, and Algonquin Park. 

The park may not be the largest park in Ontario but it is the oldest provincial park in Canada, established in 1893. 

The largest park in Ontario is Polar Bear Park, which is an isolated wilderness park located in northern Ontario. It is only accessible by plane and visitors require special permission landing permits before flying in. The park is primarily used as a preservation habitat for wildlife, particularly polar bears. 

There are many outfitters who rent canoes and kayaks around the park. Here are a few links to some of our favorites.

Algonquin Basecamp >>

Algonquin Outfitters >>

Voyager Quest >>

The Friends of Algonquin Park are a non-profit registered charity for people passionate about Algonquin Park. The organization dedicates their resources to furthering the educational and interpretive programs to develop current and future stewards of Algonquin Park. 

Friends of Algonquin Park >>

There are many different species of wildlife in Algonquin. Moose are typically one of the most sought after species and found throughout the park.  In fact, there are about 3500 moose living within the park boundaries.

In addition to moose, there are also White-tailed deer, beaver, chipmunks and red squirrels. There are also around 2000 black bears living in Algonquin Park and about 35 different wolf packs.

Algonquin is home to over 272 recorded bird species, 31 different species of reptiles and amphibians and 7,000 species of insects.

Yes, there are bears in Algonquin Park.

The Black Bear is the second largest mammal in the park (after the moose). There are approximately 2,000 bears within the park boundaries, which is about one for every three to four square kilometres.

Black Bears are reclusive and tend to avoid contact with people unless, through human carelessness.

Female Black Bears in Algonquin weigh between 45 and 70 kilograms. Males are usually larger, weighing between 70 and 150 kilograms.

It's important to learn how and practice storing food and any items that have a scent properly using a food hang (the pulley system is the best option).

Yes, there are snakes in the park.

There are 31 different species of reptiles and amphibians within the park boundaries. Among the reptiles are five species of turtles, and nine species of snakes (there are no venomous snakes in Algonquin). 

There is limited cellular phone service within Algonquin Park, most of which is along the Highway 60 Corridor. Cell phone service varies from carrier to carrier and is not necessarily available at access points or campgrounds. 

Yes, you can swim in the park.

The clear, clean lakes of Algonquin offer fantastic opportunities for swimming in its many lakes. All campgrounds and picnic areas have designed unsupervised beach areas, and backcountry camping offers hundreds of lakes for swimming.

You can not technically live within the boundaries of the park. There are however several cottages on some of the lakes that access the park, especially at the south end of the park along the highway 60 corridor.

All visitors to Algonquin Park must have a valid Park Permit which are available from Ontario Parks Reservations. There are a variety of different permits and their applicable fees differ depending upon your use of the Park.