4 Reasons Nature Lovers Should Visit Point Pelee National Park

Lisa BallardUpdated: Oct. 20, 2020

Discover the outdoor activities waiting for visitors at Point Pelee National Park in Ontario, Canada. See monarch butterflies, migrating birds and more.

Lookout tower at the Marsh Boardwalk at Point Pelee National Park, Ontario, Canada. — Lookout tower at the Marsh Boardwalk at Point Pelee National Park in Ontario, Canada.

Witness Monarch Migration

Watch thousands of monarch butterflies at the Tip, the southernmost point of the park and of mainland Canada. Monarchs congregate in the trees during the fall, waiting for the right moment to cross Lake Erie on their 1,800-mile migration to Mexico.

Check out more fascinating facts about monarch butterflies.

Gaze at the Stars

Experience the park on a designated Dark Sky Night, when park visitors are allowed to stay until midnight to stare at the stars. Point Pelee has been named one of the best stargazing spots in Canada. Check the park’s website for dates and information.

If you love to explore nature at night, try creating a moon garden.

Attend a Birding Festival

Learn how to identify warblers and other songbirds, gulls and raptors by sight and sound during the park’s annual Festival of Birds every May. Naturalists lead birding tours and teach sessions on local and migratory species found in the park.

Watch for Wildlife

Point Pelee National Park is Canada’s second-smallest national park, but it holds the title for being the country’s most ecologically diverse. Lake Erie warms this 5-mile peninsula, creating an environment ideal for many birds and plants. Discover sandy beaches, dunes and trails for biking, hiking and bird-watching. Or meander through the marsh on a boardwalk or by canoe, looking for waterfowl, beavers, turtles and muskrats.

Looking for birding adventures throughout the year? Check out this list of birding hotspots for every season.

Originally Published: October 20, 2020

Lisa Ballard

If it's outdoors, Lisa Ballard has likely covered it for her work. She has a keen passion for wildlife, especially birds, and has videoed, photographed and written about them since 1991. She garnered three Emmy's as a field producer and co-host of the show, "Wildlife Journal" (PBS), and has contributed videos, articles and blogs on birds and birding to a myriad of magazines, websites and apps including Audubon, The Nature Conservancy's Cool Green Science, Colorado Outdoors, and Wyoming Wildlife. A past-president of the Outdoor Writer's Association of America (OWAA), Lisa has also received numerous OWAA Excellence in Craft Awards. When she's not on assignment, she takes great pleasure in watching whatever comes to her feeders in Red Lodge, Montana, where she lives with her husband, Jack.