Kayaking at Rockwood Conservation Area

Rockwood Conservation Area is one of our favourite "close to home" destinations to camp. The park is clean, the staff friendly and there's a wonderful little place to kayak and fish. We always bring our kayaks here and do some fishing. The geology at Rockwood is fascinating. It includes caves and towering limestone cliffs. All are accessible by hiking trails throughout the park, but my favourite way to see these features are from the water. It's a very cool feeling to paddle past the cliffs and close to the caves along the shoreline. Here are some photos or our latest trip to Rockwood in 2011:

The kayak cart of doom!

Misty morning on Rockwood Lake

Geological features at Rockwood

Rockwood Lake is fairly small, but there is a lot to explore in the way of little passages leading to places tucked in away from the main lake. I would say in full exploration mode, in a couple hours you'd see everything. The lake has rainbow trout, but we've never caught one. We've caught a lot of fiesty catfish and a few other panfish which still makes for a fun time out. The lake has quite a few types of birds including a few herons. Other wildlife includes river otters. There are some places where the depth changes rather quickly due to rock features under water, but there's usually enough water to paddle over them safely. At the end of Rockwood Lake is remains of a dam where the Eramosa River flows into the lake. It's fun to paddle up there in the summer time and sit in the current close to the falls and feel the refreshing spray. Here are a few more photos of Rockwood:

Misty morning kayaking

A heron in flight

Sitting in the current at the waterfall

Secret passageways at Rockwood

Rockwood is a beautiful little conservation area located in the town of Rockwood. You can literally walk into town from the park. Within close travel distance there are a couple more parks run by the Grand River Conservation Area where you can paddle. If you're registered at Rockwood, you can use that pass to enter the other parks for the day free of charge. Belwood Lake is a short drive north from Rockwood and Guelph Lake is an even shorter drive north east from Rockwood. Both offer large reservoirs for fishing and paddling if you want to try somewhere new. The park has clean washroom facilities and pay showers which give you a decent amount of time for 25cents. The campsites are clean and well maintained.
We highly recommend Rockwood for both kayaking and camping. You can find more info about this park at my camping blog page: http://sdrvadventurers.blog.com/rockwood-ca-september-2011-3/