Killarney Provincial Park

If you're looking for a challenging and remote trip, Killarney Provincial Park's La Silhouette Trail Loop in Ontario, Canada is the hike to do! This is a very scenic area with many lakes and a number of excellent lookouts on the mountain peaks.

For the most part we would not see anybody except for a couple of locations where day hikers can make it in and the canoers/kayakers on the lakes. We went counter clockwise and crossed a couple of hikers each day going in the opposite direction as us. Clockwise is the normal direction for most, leaving the most difficult days for when your pack is the lightest.

The Friends of Killarney are very helpful and will help you plan your trip.  When you are ready to book you can call Ontario Parks and reserve your backcountry sites. This is a tough hike, make sure to plan the mileage according to your ability. They say you should plan at least 6 nights, but there are people who have done it in 2-3. I don't recommend it unless you and your group are in excellent shape.  ;)

Ontario Parks Website
Friends of Killarney

Book with Ontario Parks Reservations:
1-888-668-7275
Trip Planner with Friends of Killarney:
705-287-2800 (careful with this number, you may get extra charges on your bill since it is international)


I highly suggest purchasing the waterproof Map and La Silhouette Trail Guide Book. The book describes the campsites, wildlife, trail, and also provides a nice mileage map. Unfortunately there is not a lot of information online on the La Silhouette Trail making purchasing these items a must.

Make sure to purchase these early.  It took a couple of weeks for these to travel snail mail to Michigan from Canada. You will also want to make sure to plan your trip early! The campsites are not shared which is very nice for solitude and privacy, but its first come first serve when making reservations. We did not do this and ended up doing the trip counter clockwise in order to book some campsites.

The terrain is very rugged so make sure to have sturdy comfortable hiking boots.  We saw a guy wearing his camp sandals because both of the soles of his hiking boots blew out!  I should have taken a picture, it was kind of awesome. I suggest a hiking pole as well.


View Killarney in a larger map

VanRaalte Farm

Take a stroll through VanRaalte Farm in Holland, MI.
There are 160 acres of meadows, forest, ponds, and streams.

It is accessible from both 16th street and 24th street.
This farm is also open in the winter for cross country skiing AND they have a sled hill.

Map