Looking for any information if you have been to Barrel Lake, Ontario. This lake is in the East English River Provincial Park, a non-operating park (whatever that means) about 20 miles north of Ignace.

I have been pouring over google maps looking for next summer's destination. I'm looking for lots of fish and very few people. :-)

I'm not determined to go to Canada but I don't want to wait in line for a portage or participate in a race for a campsite this year. I also prefer not to get a permit months in advance. I would like to wait for a good weather forecast and hit the road! If you have any other suggestions I would love to hear them. Thanks for any help.

I have never been to Barrel Lk but Canada has many wonderful paddling opportunities. A non-operating park has no services, staff or fees. If you are traveling on Crown Land (government owned land which is not in a park) there is a daily fee per person.

Canada can be expensive compared to paddling in the states but I have found the solitude to be worth it. You may want to seek advice on the provincial park you are interested in by going to Canadian Canoes Routes (CCR). Find it by googling mycrr.

I appreciate the suggestion, Deerfoot. I registered for an account at myccr and spent quite a bit of time there but no luck so far. That site is not as well organized as this one in my opinion.

Deerfoot is correct that non-operating parks lack services (Ontario is blessed with a large swath of parks but limited on personel for on-the-ground managing, is I think why those non-operating parks occur). However, I think non-residents are supposed to purchase Crown Land camping permits for camping on Non-operating parks, weird as this sounds. I think those are around $10 Canadian per person per night, maybe a bit more. You can access these (pay and print off) on line if you register with something called ONe-Key. Another rule seems to be that non-residents fishing on Crown Land are limited to a conservation license limit, regardless of what license they purchase; I don't know if that applies to fishing on non-operating parks or not. Conservation license limits are still sufficient for fish-fries, IMO, and the license is less expensive... Enjoy those more remote areas!

Here's some info to help you...

English River Provincial Park management statement

Thank you all for the ideas, info, and links. I have spent a great deal of time looking through all I can find and simply cannot discover any specific information regarding camping, permits, charges (and how or where to pay them) for any non-operating provincial parks much less than for the East English River park in particular.

This page https://www.ontarioparks.com/park/eastenglishriver does clearly indicate that fishing and camping are allowed but does not address fees or permits or any indication whether US citizen access is different from Canadian citizen access.

I am going to write to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and see what I can learn. If I get a useful response I will post it here.

I looks like there is boat access to Barrel Lake...so don't expect to have the place to yourself.

Why write to the MNR? There's a phone number at the bottom of the page which will get you directly in touch with the regional office in Thunder Bay Ontario.

Yeah, I too discovered that there is boat access. A place called Cozy Lodge is about 10 miles up the English River and their customers fish Barrel Lake as well. The fishing does look impressive but the frequency of access has me less interested. I don't really mind seeing or hearing a boat now and then but I would not want to go that far only to find a steady stream of visitors.

Please keep us posted on what you find out in regard to your questions.

The fee question is important since you would not want to be cited for lacking a permit when required. On a Wabakimi Project trip an NMR yellow beaver aircraft flew over the group’s campsite (which was on Crown Land outside the park borders), landed on the lake and waved the entire group out to the plane. While speaking to the group the NMR officer (armed law enforcement) learned that 3 of the 4 were Canadian nationals while the fourth was American. The American was cited for not having a crown land camping permit. Due to an oversight by WP leadership the citation was never taken care of and the next year the American participant was contacted by NMR prior to the canoeing season and told the citation needed to be paid if he wanted to return to Canada. The citation was paid.

I have been to Turtle River Provincial Park many times. We simply buy Crown Land camping permits (~$10 per day) and buy a conservation fishing license. The last time I was there, we bought our license and permits at Brown's Clear Water lodge.

I would highly recommend this park. On my last trip for 6 days, we saw one man and his son, and one couple. Fishing is excellent and the water is really clear.

Email me if you would like more information.

HayRiverDrifter: "I have been to Turtle River Provincial Park many times. We simply buy Crown Land camping permits (~$10 per day) and buy a conservation fishing license. The last time I was there, we bought our license and permits at Brown's Clear Water lodge.


I would highly recommend this park. On my last trip for 6 days, we saw one man and his son, and one couple. Fishing is excellent and the water is really clear.


Email me if you would like more information."

I will second the above. In early June 2019 the group I was with paddled the Turtle River from Clearwater Lk to Mine Center over one week and we saw no one after the shuttle boat dropped us off at the north end of Clearwater Lk the first morning. Very nice trip.

Thanks for the info about this park, sounds really interesting. I sent an email, HayRiverDrifter.

I fully agree with the comments about Turtle River Provincial Park. I tripped here the first time a few years back when BWCA and Quetico were both shut down due to forest fires. Despite the fact that some of the lakes have boat access, I've actually found the solitude and wildness of the area to far surpass what you find in Quetico. Seeing one or two people in a week's trip is fairly typical. The portages are generally rougher and less well maintained but still passable. And several of the lakes (Irene, Sanford) have the most incredibly clear water. Sandy beaches are frequent.

If you're interested in trip ideas you can email me. Or get in contact with Jeremy at Canoe Canada. He can arrange orientation, maps, and whatever gear and shuttle you'd need.