Categories: Travel

This Ontario park has a viewing platform with epic views of changing autumn hues

Image via Ontario Parks

You won’t have to venture far outside of Toronto to experience some beautiful fall foliage views. Darlington Provincial Park has day access year-round meaning visitors can head over any time of year, but we recommend now while the autumn colours are in full swing!

A fall road trip awaits.

Getting there

Darlington Provincial Park is just a quick 45-minute drive from Toronto! The road trip is easy to do in one day, just past Oshawa.

The front desk is closed for the season so if you’re planning on attending you’ll need to get your vehicle pass online which costs $12.25 per vehicle.

What to do at Darlington Provincial Park

The first thing you’re going to want to do is to take in the changing fall colours that the park has to offer for a limited time.

According to Ontario Parks, the best spot to do so is via the Burk Trail Viewing Platform.

The best place to view the stunning fall colours is the Burk Trail Viewing Platform (also known as “the lookout”), shares Ontario Parks.

“This is located roughly in the middle of the Burk Trail, west of the Park Office and the Pioneer Cemetery, north of Day Use 2, and east of Day Use 3. The Burk Trail can be accessed across the road from the Park Store, by the Park Office, from the McLaughlin Bay Trail, or the Waterfront Trail.”

If you love animals or consider yourself an avid birdwatcher, the McLaughlin Bay Trail is another great option for getting some steps in.

The trail moves through fields, meadows and mature forest past a pioneer cemetery to a scenic lookout over Lake Ontario.

Ontario Parks says to watch for the “elusive Coopers Hawk at the bluff and songbirds in the meadows.”

While the park’s beach is utilized more in the summertime, it’s still a great place to set up a blanket and chairs if you’re sticking around to watch the sunset.