Road Trip Ottawa to Algonquin Park
Ottawa
Algonquin Provincial Park
260
km
3h
drive
All seasons
season
The Itinerary
Most visitors reach Algonquin Park from Toronto and enter through the West Gate, which means the eastern approach from Ottawa is consistently quieter for the same scenery. The route runs about 260 km west along the Ottawa Valley and enters the park at the East Gate near Whitney, putting you at the far end of the Highway 60 corridor with the crowds ahead of you rather than around you.
The drive follows Highway 417 and then Highway 17 up the valley through Arnprior and Renfrew, before turning inland on Highway 60 through Eganville, Golden Lake and Barry's Bay. This is rolling farm country with the Bonnechere River running through it, and Eganville sits on limestone that contains the Bonnechere Caves. Golden Lake is the home community of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan. Barry's Bay and Wilno mark the heart of Ontario's oldest Polish settlement, established in the 1860s, and Wilno keeps a hilltop church that signals the fact from a distance.
Inside the East Gate the road reaches Rock Lake, Whitefish Lake and Lake of Two Rivers within a few kilometres, and the Algonquin Logging Museum sits just inside the boundary with a 1.3 km loop trail explaining the river drives and the alligator tugs that hauled logs between lakes. Autumn is the reason to make this drive, with peak maple colour usually in the last days of September; day-use permits are required and the corridor lots fill early. Whitney and Madawaska have the nearest lodging.
The drive follows Highway 417 and then Highway 17 up the valley through Arnprior and Renfrew, before turning inland on Highway 60 through Eganville, Golden Lake and Barry's Bay. This is rolling farm country with the Bonnechere River running through it, and Eganville sits on limestone that contains the Bonnechere Caves. Golden Lake is the home community of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan. Barry's Bay and Wilno mark the heart of Ontario's oldest Polish settlement, established in the 1860s, and Wilno keeps a hilltop church that signals the fact from a distance.
Inside the East Gate the road reaches Rock Lake, Whitefish Lake and Lake of Two Rivers within a few kilometres, and the Algonquin Logging Museum sits just inside the boundary with a 1.3 km loop trail explaining the river drives and the alligator tugs that hauled logs between lakes. Autumn is the reason to make this drive, with peak maple colour usually in the last days of September; day-use permits are required and the corridor lots fill early. Whitney and Madawaska have the nearest lodging.
Points of Interest
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✦
Algonquin Logging MuseumThe story of the river drives and the logging era, on a 1.3 km trail.
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✦
East Gate - Sand LakeThe park's east entrance, with lakes reachable as soon as you arrive.
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✦
Brent Crater TrailA 3.8 km trail into a meteorite impact crater inside the park.
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✦
Ottawa ValleyFarm country between Renfrew and Eganville.
Fishing Spots Along the Route
Protected areas along the route
🌿
ALGONQUIN PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURAL ENVIRONMENT CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
ALEXANDER STEWART PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURE RESERVE CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
HAWKINS PROPERTY CONSERVATION RESERVE
Conservation Reserve
🌿
CONSTANT CREEK SWAMP AND FEN CONSERVATION RESERVE
Conservation Reserve
🌿
DIVIDING LAKE PROVINCIAL PARK (NATURE RESERVE CLASS)
Provincial Park
🌿
Hubert Property
Enhanced Management Area
🌿
WHITE LAKE CONSERVATION RESERVE
Conservation Reserve
🌿
Livingstone Township
Enhanced Management Area
🌿
SNAKE RIVER MARSH CONSERVATION RESERVE
Conservation Reserve
🌿
Darling ANSI (Core Protection Zone)
General Use Area
🌿
Darling ANSI (Resource Management Zone)
General Use Area
🌿
UPPER MADAWASKA RIVER PROVINCIAL PARK (WATERWAY CLASS)
Provincial Park
Take this route offline
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- Departure Ottawa
- Destination Algonquin Provincial Park
- Distance 260 km
- Duration 3h
- Category Long (250–500 km)
- Best season All seasons
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