Location: Off of Highway 35, 15 mins from Dorset
Website: Online Reservations
Map: Google Maps
Camping Facilities: Backcountry Exclusively
Grade: B
Summary: Probably one of the best spots in the Frost Centre area, though it's expensive and not free of cottages either.
Thoughts: Though this lake also lies within the old Frost Centre area (and is governed by the same management system), it might be an easier sell to the typical backcountry camper than the rest of the Frost area. First positive item - no portages. Second, I believe there's one cottage on the lake and it wasn't much of a disturbance. Third, reasonably good fishing (not on my line, but my more skillful friend caught many a bass). Fourth, plenty of nice sites. Sadly I don't have any photographic evidence of this, but you can have a look at the online reservation system, which has a few pictures for each site. We stayed at site #21, which is now closed (unfortunately). Hopefully it recovers and opens again soon.
One item to note is that when we stayed here back in 2003, the road off of the 35 was in terrible shape. Luckily I was driving a car that was near the end of its life, so I wasn't too worried about long-term impacts. But some eroded sections of the road are pretty brutal. As an alternative, you can also access Sherborne through St. Nora, though I don't think it's worth the effort. The drive into the lake aside, a satisfactory backcountry camping experience, you might want to consider it in place of some of the more congested areas in Algonquin (it is a shorter drive, at least).
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| View from Campsite 20 (Source: Camis) |
Website: Online Reservations
Map: Google Maps
Camping Facilities: Backcountry Exclusively
Grade: B
Summary: Probably one of the best spots in the Frost Centre area, though it's expensive and not free of cottages either.
Thoughts: Though this lake also lies within the old Frost Centre area (and is governed by the same management system), it might be an easier sell to the typical backcountry camper than the rest of the Frost area. First positive item - no portages. Second, I believe there's one cottage on the lake and it wasn't much of a disturbance. Third, reasonably good fishing (not on my line, but my more skillful friend caught many a bass). Fourth, plenty of nice sites. Sadly I don't have any photographic evidence of this, but you can have a look at the online reservation system, which has a few pictures for each site. We stayed at site #21, which is now closed (unfortunately). Hopefully it recovers and opens again soon.
One item to note is that when we stayed here back in 2003, the road off of the 35 was in terrible shape. Luckily I was driving a car that was near the end of its life, so I wasn't too worried about long-term impacts. But some eroded sections of the road are pretty brutal. As an alternative, you can also access Sherborne through St. Nora, though I don't think it's worth the effort. The drive into the lake aside, a satisfactory backcountry camping experience, you might want to consider it in place of some of the more congested areas in Algonquin (it is a shorter drive, at least).
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| View from Campsite 20 (Source: Camis) |
So it would be good for someone who fancied some off roading?
ReplyDeleteWhy was the site closed? Do they do that often?
Hehe, I guess an off-roading opportunity would probably be the most positive way to look at it. Though a CRV or RAV4 would probably hold up just fine.
ReplyDeleteI guess overuse had probably deteriorated the natural features (perhaps trees and understory were dying). It's pretty common for park management to do this, but usually the sites reopen after a few year.
2016
DeleteWe camped and canoed Sherborne lake on the September long weekend. The lake is relatively larger than most inland lakes and has trout and small mouth bass for fishing enthusiasts. Various waterfowl are present; loons, wood ducks and cranes.The scenery is worth photographing. It has three islands and numerous long bays to explore which lead to five portage points, (two near dams) to other smaller inland lakes.There is also a trail with board walk near the portage to Norse Lake. The campsites have established firepits and maintained thunderboxes and are distanced well apart on the vatious points of the bays offering lots of privacy from other campers.
Their were very few campers on the lake that weekend.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Cindy. Glad to hear that you had a good time there.
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