Emily Provincial Park Review & Camping Guide

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Emily Provincial Park Reservations – What You Need to Know Before You Go

Booking a campsite at Emily Provincial Park is pretty easy.

Just like all the other Ontario Park campsites, you can book your campsite up to five months in advance of your arrival date through the Ontario Parks reservation system.

In order to make a reservation online though, you will first need to have an Ontario Parks account.

I can’t speak about the popularity of this park, but I can say that we did not have a hard time getting a spot in mid-June.

Registrations begin at 7 am EST.

Emily Provincial Park is open for camping from the middle of May until after the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend in October.

Emily Provincial Park Address:
797 Emily Park Rd, Omemee, ON K0L 2W0
https://www.ontarioparks.com/park/emily

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Arriving at the Park

Once you arrive at the main entrance to the park, you are able to check in at the gatehouse. This is where you can grab your printed map as well as your parking permit.

We were able to check in before 2 o’clock as our site had already been vacated.

John was able to buy our ice at the gatehouse, while I waited in the parking lot with our Teardrop Trailer.

While the lot was not very big, there were nice long spots for RVs.

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Emily Provincial Park Map

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Navigating the Park

Navigating around Emily Provincial Park was pretty good for the most part.

We did get turned around at one point while walking through the Circle Campground (and NO, that wasn’t a pun!).

But one look at the map, which I had saved to my photos, had us heading in the right direction pretty quickly.

There were both paved and gravel roads in this campground. We found them to be in pretty decent shape too.

Parking

In general, we found there to be enough parking throughout the park.

There were two parking lots at the beach, a large lot at the Park Store which was shared with the day-use area, one at the main entrance to the park, and one by every comfort station.

We also noticed two smaller parking areas at the Hill Campground and the Circle Campground.

There is even Boat Trailer parking right next to the boat launch at both the campground beach and the day-use area.

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Emily Provincial Park Camping

Emily Provincial Park accommodates a variety of camping styles. From car camping to tenting, group camping, barrier-free camping, and RVs up to 32 feet (9.7 metres), you will find it all.

You will also have the choice between electric or non-electric sites. Unfortunately, not all types of camping can be accommodated at all sites, so you will need to watch for this when making your reservations.

Emily Provincial Park has 4 main campgrounds – Hilltop, Hill, Circle and Cedars – with a total of 310 campsites.

We found most of the campsites to be quite private with plenty of trees and shrubs.

However, we also found many of them to have moderate slopes.

One thing we noticed at this park that we had not seen anywhere else, is two sites sharing one ‘driveway.’

A small offshoot road leads to two campsites. So if your neighbour is trying to back their large RV into their spot, you are basically stuck waiting for them.

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Campgrounds at a Glance

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Our Campsite Experience

During our visit to Emily Provincial Park, we stayed at campsite #306 in the Hilltop Campground.

The campsite was a decent size with plenty of trees and shrubs for privacy.

It was also just a short 5-minute walk to the beach.

On the downside, the site was pretty sloped in most areas, so we had a bit of a difficult time finding the perfect position for our Teardrop.

What added to the difficulty, was the awkward placement of the electrical box, which was located right by the road.

We needed 75 feet of cord to reach it!

And lastly, the site is on a busy road. There was plenty of foot traffic with people headed to the beach.

Not only that, but there was constant vehicular traffic with boats being pulled to and from the beach.

Our site was also about a 5-7 minute walk from the comfort station.

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What Amenities Does Emily Provincial Park Offer?

Comfort Stations

There are two comfort stations in the Campground areas at Emily Provincial Park.

Comfort stations with showers are located in the Hill Campground and the Circle Campground.

There is also one comfort station without showers located in the main day-use area, right by the Park Store.

The Cedars and the Circle Campgrounds also have two vault toilets.

Just be aware, the Hilltop Campground, where we stayed, had neither comfort stations nor vault toilets.

So if you stay there, and don’t have a bathroom in your rig or are tent camping, you will need to walk the 5 minutes to the Hill Campground comfort station.

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Laundromat

There is only one Coin Laundry available at the park.

You will find the Laundry facilities in the comfort station in the Hill Campground.

There were two sets of machines (2 washers and 2 dryers), and they appeared to be clean and in good working order during our visit.

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Park Store

The Park Store is located in the day-use area. You actually need to drive past it after filling your RV with water at the sanitation station.

The park store sells Ontario Parks merchandise (like my patches!), firewood, ice, toys and souvenirs, as well as a variety of items that you may have forgotten when packing for your camping adventure.

The store was quite small but seemed to carry a bit of everything.

You will also find a small ice cream counter inside the Park Store.

They had a small selection of locally-made ice cream (which surprisingly was NOT Kawartha Dairies brand), as well as one non-dairy sorbet.

While I was somewhat disappointed with the variety, the non-dairy peach sorbet was pretty good with real fruit pieces!

Another thing that you will find at the Park Store is the canoe and fishing gear rentals. This area is located in the small building adjacent to the Park Store entrance.

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Visitor’s Centre

Unfortunately, there is no Visitor’s Centre at Emily Provincial Park.

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Day Use Area

Emily Provincial Park has one day-use area.

It is located adjacent to the Park Store, and right along the Pigeon River.

You will find picnic tables, water taps and a comfort station in this area.

There is also a basic children’s swingset in the main day-use area closest to the beach and boat launch.

You will not find a picnic shelter, however.

We saw people sitting on the steps of the boat rental, as they could not find anywhere else to sit.

One of the Park Store employees mentioned that guests have a tendency to move the picnic tables, so they may be difficult to find.

We found the day-use area to be just ok. While there were plenty of trees for shade and lots of parking, the beach area was marshy and not really inviting.

Most people we saw picnicking in the day-use area were right outside the Park Store.

I was drawn to the protective box that was covering the turtle nesting area. If you ask the park staff, they will tell you all about them!

You can reserve your daily vehicle permit to guarantee your day-use spot at this park.

Permits can be obtained up to five days in advance.

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Amphitheatre

Not sure why any of the parks have an amphitheatre, as they all look like they haven’t been used in decades!

But this one really took the cake!

The amphitheatre was located at the top of the Hill Campground and was quite prominent on the map. We were curious!

It ended up being a small shed, with a small wooden platform, in the middle of a large grassy circle. No seats.

Sigh.

On the positive side, kids were using the large area to play with their frisbee

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Emily Provincial Park Beach

Emily Provincial Park actually has two beach areas – the Campground Beach and the Day-use area beach.

The Campground Beach, which is the larger of the two beaches, has plenty of amenities.

You will find a boat launch area (with boat trailer parking), several floating docks, a roped-off swimming area, benches off the large parking area, and two vault toilets.

While the beach area was quite clean, with soft groomed sand, the water was just meh.

You are swimming in the Pigeon River. While the swimming area was clear, the marshy areas were right next door.

The water was brown and not too clear. But on the plus side, there is movement, so it did not smell funky like the beach at Earl Rowe.

Just a heads up, while there is a beach in the day-use area of Emily Provincial Park, there is no designated swimming area.

One thing I did find interesting, is that during our visit, there was a sign posted by the day-use beach warning of high bacteria levels making it unsafe to swim.

Yet, there was no such sign posted at the Campground Beach. Same body of water! 🙄🙄

Another thing to be aware of is that there are no lifeguards on duty, and dogs are not allowed on the Campground Beach at any time.

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What Services Does Emily Provincial Park Offer?

Emily Provincial Park has all the usual services found at other Ontario Provincial Parks.

Water

There is one sanitation area in Emily Provincial Park. You will find it just past the Park Store on the way to the Day-Use area.

You will need to drive through the sanitation area first.

The water fill station actually has two lanes with 3 water fill hoses – one to the left of the road, one in the middle and one to the right of the road.

And the good news is, the hoses are all threaded!

There is no by-pass lane (although you can drive down the park road right before the fill station and it will loop around to the Park Store, effectively by-passing the water fill).

Emily Provincial Park also has a second separate water fill station with a single lane. This can be found leaving the Cedars Campground just near to the Gatehouse.

And speaking of water taps, there were plenty of them at pretty close intervals located in each of the campground loops, as well as in the day-use areas.

There are no individual water hookups at each campsite at Emily Provincial Park.

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Dump Station

Just before you get to the water fill station, you will find the dump station.

The dump station also consists of two lanes with one dump station per lane.

There is also a by-pass lane which was nice.

The hoses in this area were not threaded – not nice.

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Garbage and Recycling

There was a small area located next to the entrance to the Group Camping sites. You will find garbage bins and a place to put recyclables.

It’s a bit of an odd location. But since everyone has to pass it in order to get out of the park, I guess it makes sense.

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Wi-Fi

Emily Provincial Park had very little in terms of consistent Wi-Fi.

I was able to scroll through social media, but not click on anything.

Nor was I able to open too many websites (including my own) anywhere in the park.

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Things to Do at Emily Provincial Park

1. Go for a Hike

Emily Provincial Park is home to two trails. However, they are more of a short walk than a hike.

It took us less than 15 minutes to stroll each path.

And while the trails were pretty flat, I wouldn’t call them fully accessible because of the woodchips.

The Fern Trail

The Fern Trail can be accessed behind the comfort station in the Day-Use area.

The trail was well-marked and consisted of a wide path covered in wood chips.

The Marsh Trail

The Marsh Trail can be accessed from the Campground Beach, just off the smaller parking lot, or from the Circle Campground.

Again, the trail was well-marked, wide, and covered in woodchips.

There is a Lookout on the Marsh Trail, but don’t expect to see very much.

The trail forks about midway, and takes you over the marsh along a wooden boardwalk. It ends abruptly with a view over the marsh.

And look out for the mosquitos! We got eaten ALIVE on the trails!

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2. Go for a Boat Ride

With the calm water on the Pigeon River, canoeing would be awesome. In fact, we saw plenty of kayakers and even paddleboarders on the water during our visit.

There were also people out on Seadoos and motorboats.

Boat Launches

Emily Provincial Park has two boat launches.

One is located at the far end of the Day-Use area (next to the beach), and the other is located at the Campground Beach.

Boat Rentals

Canoe rentals are available from the Park Store during peak season and include the use of lifejackets and paddles.

You can check at the Park Store for rental hours.

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3. Try Your Hand at Fishing

Emily Provincial Park is apparently quite popular with the fishing crowd, with walleye, muskie and Large and Small Mouth Bass to be caught.

We noticed quite a few people fishing off the floating docks at the Campground Beach, as well as from their boats.

And just like some of the other Ontario Parks that we have been to, Emily Provincial Park offers a Tackle Share program where you can borrow all kinds of fishing equipment.

If you head to the park store, they have live bait and tackle available.

The park also has a Learn to Fish program.

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4. Enjoy a Bike Ride

Biking is allowed on all park roads. We would not recommend biking on the walking trails.

And since there are actually quite a few park roads, it really is a great place to go for a ride.

We had our bikes with us (the first time with our new Jack-It Bike Rack), but as luck would have it, I ended up with a flat! Ugh!

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5. Go for a Swim

While this park does have a decent beach to go swimming, it’s not very big, and the water isn’t very clear.

I had no problem wading at the beach, as the bottom was nice and sandy with no rocks. The swimming area also stayed quite shallow until 3/4 of the way to the rope.

However, I wasn’t comfortable enough to swim in the water.

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6. Take Part in the Discovery Program

From what we can see on the website, a basic Discovery Program is offered at Emily Provincial Park.

During July and August, kids can pick up a Discovery Activity Book, and use the equipment and materials provided to explore the park.

While our kids have gotten too old for this program, they really enjoyed it when they were younger.

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Is Emily Provincial Park Accessible?

Yes. We found Emily Provincial Park to be relatively accessible.

All the comfort stations allowed for barrier-free access to both flush toilets and showers.

Emily Provincial Park also has two campsites which have been designated as barrier-free. You will find them (#701 and #702) in the Hill Campground.

The sites are conveniently located right next to the comfort station.

All the public buildings, including the Camp Store, are also barrier-free.

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Are Pets Allowed at Emily Provincial Park?

Yes. Dogs are welcome at Emily Provincial Park.

Pets are allowed at the campground and in the day-use area but must be leashed at all times.

Dogs are not allowed on the campground beach. However, the beach in the day-use area is a designated dog beach.

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Is There Winter Camping at Emily Provincial Park?

No. There is no winter camping at Emily Provincial Park.

However, the day-use area and trails, as well as the campground loops, are available for winter hikes, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing during the daytime.

Just be aware that none of the buildings, including the washrooms, are open during the winter.

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FAQs

What kind of fish are in Emily Provincial Park?

Emily Provincial Park is home to various fish species, including walleye, muskie and Large and Small Mouth Bass.

What body of water is Emily Provincial Park on?

Emily Provincial Park is located on the Trent-Severn Waterway. This waterway links Lake Ontario with Georgian Bay. The beach overlooks the Pigeon River.

Is Emily Provincial Park nice?

While not the most beautiful provincial park, we found Emily to be quite nice with private campsites, great paddling opportunities, and clean facilities.

Are there bears at Emily Provincial Park?

No. There are no bears at Emily Provincial Park.

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Our Park Rating

We give this park 3 out of 5 stars for having:

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Final Thoughts

We had a really nice time at Emily Provincial Park.

While it is a small park compared to many that we have been to (not even mentioning Algonquin here), it did have a nice beach and awesome campsites.

And we found it to be quite peaceful.

So while Emily is not one of our favourite campgrounds, we would still recommend going for a visit.

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