Hiking.
Parrott's Bay Conservation Area carries 6 km of trails across 75.6 hectares of woodland and wetland just west of Amherstview, with a boardwalk through the marsh and an osprey nesting platform near the Bath Road / Loyalist Parkway trailhead. The area opened as Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority's newest property and stays accessible 7:30 a.m. to dusk year-round.
The brief.
Loyalist's hiking is short-loop and shoulder-of-the-corridor — Parrott's Bay's 6 km on the mainland and Topsy Farms' 6 km of interconnecting forest and farmyard trails on Amherst Island, with the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail's Loyalist segment (about 40 km along the Loyalist Parkway) for longer linear walking. Parrott's Bay is moderate-difficulty with boardwalks and natural surfaces; there are no washrooms on site, so plan accordingly.
Topsy Farms requires pre-registration and a $5 donation before you hit the trails, since the property is a working sheep farm and the registration helps the operators know who's out on the property. The Waterfront Trail follows Highway 33 shoulder and parallel municipal paths through Amherstview and Bath.
May through October is the easiest hiking window; Parrott's Bay is walkable on snowshoes through winter.
3. places.
- 01
Parrott's Bay Conservation Area
75.6 ha woods and wetlands; 6 km of trails with a boardwalk and osprey nesting platform; Bath Road / Loyalist Parkway trailhead just west of Amherstview.
- 02
Topsy Farms Trails (Amherst Island)
6 km of interconnecting flat forest and farmyard trails on a working sheep farm reached via the Millhaven ferry; pre-registration and $5 donation required.
- 03
Great Lakes Waterfront Trail — Loyalist segment
~40 km along the Loyalist Parkway between Amherstview and the western township boundary near Adolphustown; mix of paved shoulder and parallel municipal paths.
Today's read.
Cool but comfortable for layered effort · light winds · clean air.