Cabins, trails, and autumn calm await just an hour north of Peterborough
Peterborough Examiner – September 19, 2025 – by Drew Monkman
Tucked into the rugged hills of the Haliburton Highlands, Silent Lake Provincial Park offers exactly what its name suggests: a rare quiet and calm. This couldn’t be truer than right now with fall upon us. The only sounds are those of nature – the wind in the hemlocks and pines, the steady lap of water against granite shorelines and the music of a crackling campfire.
Just an hour’s drive north of Peterborough on Highway 28, this 1,600-hectare park feels like a world apart. A beautiful lake, excellent amenities and a rich flora and fauna of both southern and northern affinities await the visitor.
We spent two nights in the park last week with friends and found it a perfect fall escape. Our cabin was cozy and comfortable, the trails inviting, and nature never far away. And best of all…no bugs!
Accommodation options
Overnight stays keeps you close to the quiet that gives the park its name. In addition to traditional camping sites, Silent Lake offers eight yurts and 10 cabins. The cabins sleep up to five people, with a queen bed and a double/single bunk bed. They provide year-round comfort with electric baseboard heating, a propane fireplace, and a kitchenette equipped with a microwave, mini-fridge, and kettle.
The large, circular, tent-like yurts sleep up to six people. Four are equipped with electric heat and lighting, while the others are more rustic, featuring a wood stove and no electricity. All of the yurts and cabins are furnished with a table and chairs, plus an exterior propane barbecue, picnic table, and fire pit.
You can book a stay anytime during the park’s operating season which extends from early May to late March. Go to https://www.ontarioparks.ca/reservations or call 1-888-ONT-PARK. If you’re staying in a yurt or cabin, guests must bring their own bedding, food, and cooking supplies. There are nearby comfort stations for running water, flush toilets, and showers. Because the cabins – not the yurts or campsites – are located fairly close to the highway, you do hear traffic at times.
Hiking, canoeing and skiing
The park has three trails for exploring the ecology of Silent Lake and experiencing the park’s tranquility and solitude. They are Lakehead Loop: 1.5 km and easy; Bonnie’s Pond: 3 km and moderate; and Lakeshore Trail: 15 km and strenuous.
On past trips, we’ve also enjoyed taking a quiet paddle down to the southeastern end of the 2.5 km lake. The absence of motorboats transforms a canoe or kayak outing into an almost meditative experience, especially at dawn. Paddlers can explore quiet bays and slip into adjoining lakes through narrow channels. Canoe and kayak rentals are available at the park store which also offers firewood, ice, souvenirs and more.
Thanks to the heated yurts and cabins and plowed electrical campsites, Silent Lake is a very popular winter camping destination. Winter activities include 8 km of snowshoe trails, 34 km of classic groomed cross-country ski trails, and ice fishing opportunities.
A transition zone
Silent Lake is part of a transition zone often referred to as “The Land Between”, where more northern species of the rugged Canadian Shield mingle with more southern species of the flatter Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Lowlands. Because neither ecosystem fully dominates, you get a mix of species and habitats from both regions. The Land Between supports a high diversity of plants and animals, including some species at the edge of their ranges—southern species (e.g., scarlet tanager, ironwood) reaching their northern limits and northern species (e.g., moose, bunchberry) reaching their southern limits.
This allows for a rich diversity of breeding songbirds. In spring, the forest canopy erupts with the songs of warblers like the black-throated green, yellow-rumped and pine. The flute-like notes of the wood thrush drift from the understory, while ovenbirds deliver their insistent “teacher-teacher-teacher” and scarlet tanagers sing their burry robin-like phrases. The wails of loons echo across the lake at dawn and dusk, while barred owls broadcast their “who-cooks-for-you” call at night.
Mammals like red squirrels and eastern chipmunks are a constant presence. Beavers leave their mark on streams and ponds, their dams and lodges silhouetted against the water. It’s not uncommon to see white-tailed deer and lucky observers might even glimpse a moose browsing on aquatic plants.
The forests are characterized by sugar maple, red oak, yellow birch, American beech, white pine and eastern hemlocks, while the edges of beaver ponds are lined with trembling aspen and red maple. In spring, the forest floor comes alive with wildflowers like hepatica and bloodroot which flower in late April and May, quickly followed by trilliums, blue cohosh, jack-in-the-pulpit and many more. In June and July, grass pink and rose pogonia orchids, sundews and pitcher plants can be easily found in bog communities such as those on the Bonnie’s Pond trail and along the shoreline at the southeastern end of the lake.
On a quest for ferns
For me, a highlight of a visit to Silent Lake is paying close attention to the trailside flora, especially the wide variety of ferns that dominate much of the understory from mid-June through fall. Over the three days, I managed to find 16 different species along the Lakehead Loop and Bonnie’s Pond trails. I was especially impressed by the huge number of Christmas ferns – at times, almost covering entire slopes – as well as large colonies of maidenhair, hay-scented and New York ferns. It was also a thrill to come across some less common denizens of the park like the northern oak and long beech ferns. I was hoping to spot the curious rattlesnake fern, with its grape-like clusters of spore cases, but that will have to wait for another visit.
Some species like marginal wood fern, rock polypody and Christmas fern were still dark green and will remain so through the winter. Many of the cinnamon and royal ferns glowed rich in oranges and yellows, while others, like New York fern, were already turning a pale straw colour.
Identifying these delicate plants can be tricky. It’s all about focusing on the key features of the fronds (leaves), the tiny sori (spore clusters), the stalk, and the overall shape. Fortunately, I almost always had cellular service which allowed me to use the iNaturalist app, an invaluable companion for identification!
While the forest was mostly silent, I was accompanied at times by the calls of lone spring peepers, the chip notes of migrating flocks of white-throated sparrows and yellow-rumped warblers, and the lively chattering of red squirrels. However, even amidst all the natural beauty, the signs of a dry summer and fall were hard to miss. I didn’t see a single mushroom, save for a few shelf fungi clinging to tree trunks. The leaves of some trees had shriveled up and turned brown, while most others simply displayed more muted fall colours than normal.
Fortunately, most of the red maples were putting on a good display, thanks to the damp soil of their wetland-edge habitat. Shrubs like hobblebush, maple-leaved viburnum, dogwood and raspberry provided some pinks and reds as did the fruits of wintergreen, partridgeberry and bunchberry.
Whether you come for a couple of nights in a cabin or yurt, a day of hiking, or a relaxing paddle, Silent Lake rewards you with a deep sense of connection — to the land, to its wild inhabitants, and to the quieter parts of yourself.
