At least 30,000 islands dot Georgian Bay, and 59 of them constitute Georgian Bay Islands National Park. The park’s islands are rocky and can be difficult to reach. Little or no wildlife lives on the islands, except for gulls and terns and the occasional turtle, although some host a few dwarf trees clinging to clefts in the rock.

The park is at its best at the height of summer, when the deep cobalt of the bay’s astoundingly clear water is set off by the pink granite of the Canadian Shield and the dark greens of the spruces, cedars, and pines.

The park’s main facilities are on the largest of the islands, Beausoleil, which has campsites, overnight and daytime docking, education programs for children, a visitor centre, and hiking trails.

Beausoleil rewards the hiker with great views. Blueberry Point, at the north of the island, has extensive views of Beausoleil itself, as well as the open water of the bay.