Dysart et al.
Dysart et al is the amalgamated Haliburton-County municipality that combines nine geographic townships around the Village of Haliburton on Head Lake. Glebe Park, on Head Lake's north shore, holds 175 acres of trails plus the Haliburton Sculpture Forest's 40 sculptures and six benches in a maple woodland alongside the Haliburton Highlands Museum and Fleming College's Haliburton School of Art + Design.
The 35-kilometre Haliburton County Rail Trail runs south from the village to Kinmount along the former Victoria Railway corridor, where it joins the Victoria Rail Trail toward Lindsay. North of the village, the privately owned Haliburton Forest & Wild Life Reserve covers 80,000 acres, with the Wolf Centre's resident timber-wolf pack visible through one-way glass and over 400 kilometres of mountain bike trails and gravel roads.
Sir Sam's Ski/Ride at Eagle Lake, founded in 1965, offers 12 groomed alpine runs in winter and 23 kilometres of cross-country and downhill mountain biking in summer. Most of the municipality sits within a few hours' drive of the Greater Toronto Area via the main highway corridor north through Haliburton County.
Today's read.
Real-time conditions updated; AI field notes unavailable.
On the record.
Every claim sourced. Click through to the original.
- 01Haliburton Forest & Wild Life Reserve is a privately owned 300 km² (80,000-acre) forest in Haliburton County, acquired in 1962, with the Wolf Centre opened in July 1996.Source ↗
- 02The Haliburton Sculpture Forest in Glebe Park opened in fall 2001 and now holds 40 sculptures and six benches by Canadian, Indigenous, and international artists; admission is free and the trails are open year-round.Source ↗
- 03The Haliburton County Rail Trail runs 35 kilometres from the village of Haliburton to Kinmount along the former Victoria Railway corridor, opened in 1878 and converted to public trail after the rail line was abandoned by 1992.Source ↗
- 04The Hike Haliburton Festival, established in 2003 and held each September across the Haliburton Highlands, is described by the County of Haliburton as Canada's largest hiking festival, with more than 40 free guided hikes over four days.Source ↗
- 05Sir Sam's Ski/Ride near Eagle Lake operates 12 groomed alpine runs in winter and 23 kilometres of cross-country and downhill mountain bike trails in summer.Source ↗
- 06Dysart et al sits within the 1923 Williams Treaties area of central Ontario; the 2018 Williams Treaties First Nations Settlement restored hunting, fishing, and trapping rights for the seven signatory Nations.Source ↗
9. activities
worth your time
StrongHiking
Glebe Park's 175 acres on Head Lake hold the most accessible network in the village — multi-use loops including the ~5-kilometre Glebe Park Loop, all reachable from the trailhead at 297 College Drive next to the Sculpture Forest. South of Haliburton, the Haliburton Highlands Land Trust's Barnum Creek Nature Reserve at 1118 Gould Crossing Road carries seven kilometres across three named routes (Heritage Hike 5 km, Waterfall Way ~0.75 km, Ridge Trail 1 km) through mature maple, marsh, and mixedwood forest. Sir Sam's Historical Interpretive Hiking Trail at Eagle Lake, the 2-kilometre High Falls Trail, and the village's Head Lake & Drag River Trail round out the named municipal options.
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StrongCycling
The Haliburton County Rail Trail runs 35 kilometres south from the village of Haliburton to Kinmount along the former Victoria Railway corridor, an 1878 line abandoned by 1992 and converted to public trail. At Kinmount it joins the Victoria Rail Trail south to Lindsay and Bethany, giving riders close to 120 kilometres of continuous rail-trail connecting cottage country to the Trent–Severn corridor. Surface is gravel and stone dust through Gelert and Kinmount, with rivers, waterfalls, and heritage bridges along the way; the trail is non-motorized exclusive April 2 to May 1 and shared with permitted ATVs and snowmobiles by season.
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StrongMountain Biking
Haliburton Forest's mountain-bike network covers over 400 kilometres of trails and gravel roads across the 80,000-acre private reserve, with day-use riding offered from Victoria Day weekend through the weekend after Thanksgiving. Sir Sam's Ski/Ride at Eagle Lake operates a separate bike park with 23 kilometres of cross-country and downhill trails accessed by chairlift in summer; the resort has run as a ski-and-bike destination since 1965. Glebe Park's multi-use trails inside the village offer a third, smaller set of cross-country options on Head Lake's north shore.
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StrongDownhill Skiing & Snowboarding
Sir Sam's Ski/Ride at 1054 Liswood Road operates 12 groomed alpine runs above Eagle Lake — the alpine anchor of Haliburton County since the resort's founding in 1965. The hill is family-scale rather than resort-scale: short lines, hilltop views over Eagle Lake from the Eagle View Observation Tower, and a chalet-centred operation. The same chairlifts run for fall-colour rides and summer mountain biking, making Sir Sam's a year-round destination on a single property.
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StrongCross-Country & Nordic
Glebe Park's Nordic ski trails wind through 175 acres of maple woodland on Head Lake's north shore, offering both classic and skate-ski options on the same network that hosts walkers and the Sculpture Forest in summer. Haliburton Forest adds a separate groomed network inside the 80,000-acre reserve. Glebe Park's village-edge access (297 College Drive, free parking) makes it the easier base for visitors without a vehicle deep into the township.
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StrongSnow Adventure
Haliburton Forest's snowmobile network runs roughly 300 kilometres of double-tracked trail up to six metres wide, with guided tours and machine rentals on site. The Haliburton County Rail Trail opens to permitted snowmobile use December through March. Glebe Park keeps a separate snowshoe network where fat-biking is also permitted, and the municipality maintains three outdoor skating rinks during the freeze. Together this is a genuine winter recreation stack — bigger than most cottage-country municipalities offer outside dedicated alpine resorts.
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▲ SignatureWildlife Viewing
The Haliburton Forest Wolf Centre, opened in July 1996 inside the 80,000-acre private reserve, holds a resident pack of timber wolves in a 61,000-square-metre enclosure visible through a one-way observation window. The Wolf Centre carries the Ontario Signature Experience designation and remains the public-facing wolf-viewing facility most associated with central Ontario. The companion museum and interpretive program covers wolf biology, pack behaviour, and Algonquin-region wolf research, and the property's evening wolf-howl events are scheduled around the resident pack's vocal cycles.
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StrongAerial Experiences
The Walk in the Clouds canopy tour at Haliburton Forest carries visitors along a treetop boardwalk through the privately managed 80,000-acre reserve — one of the few canopy-walk experiences in Ontario, run as a guided seasonal program with naturalist interpretation. The route covers a section of mature mixed forest at canopy height; the same property hosts ground-level forest hiking and mountain biking, so a canopy tour can be paired with a longer day in the reserve.
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▲ SignatureHeritage & Culture
Glebe Park, on Head Lake's north shore at 297 College Drive, holds the Haliburton Sculpture Forest's 40 sculptures and six benches by Canadian, Indigenous, and international artists, arranged along trails through a maple woodland that has been growing the collection since fall 2001. The same 175-acre park houses the Haliburton Highlands Museum and Fleming College's Haliburton School of Art + Design, making it one of the few Ontario sites where an outdoor sculpture gallery, a regional museum, and a credit-bearing arts campus share a single trail network. The Haliburton Forest Logging Museum adds depth on the forest-history side, north of the village.
Read field guide arrow_outward19. more outings
surveyed.
Activities supported across Dysart et al without a featured write-up.
- 01
Trail Running
Glebe Park - 02
Walking & Strolling
Head Lake Park - 03
Camping
frontcountry - 04
Horseback Riding
Haliburton County Rail Trail - 05
Nature & Discovery
nature-interpretation · forest-bathing - 06
Rock Climbing
Haliburton Forest - 07
Alpine & Adventure Climbing
ice-climbing - 08
Paddling — Flatwater
canoeing · kayaking · sup - 09
Sailing & Boating
motor-boating - 10
Swimming & Beach
lake-swim - 11
Freshwater Fishing
lake-trout · brook-trout · smallmouth-bass - 12
Sky Watching
stargazing · astrophotography - 13
Seasonal Phenomena
fall-colours - 14
Motorized Touring
atv-quad-tour - 15
Indigenous Experiences
Available - 16
Food & Drink
farm-tour-u-pick - 17
Geology & Discovery
rockhounding - 18
Arts & Craft
artist-studio-tour · pottery-craft-workshop - 19
Outdoor Education
outdoor-education-camp
Local operators.
Trusted outfitters, guides, and experience providers in Dysart et al.
Algonquin Yeti Paddling
Guided canoe trips and Kevlar canoe rentals out of Kingscote Lake Access Point #15 in the Algonquin Park Panhandle
View on AER arrow_outwardCamp Adelaide
Glamping domes, bubble domes, and cottages on 360 acres beside Black Lake near Haliburton, Ontario
View on AER arrow_outwardHaliburton Forest & Wild Life Reserve Ltd
Private 100,000-acre Ontario reserve with canopy walks, paddling, fishing, snowmobiling and year-round backcountry cabins
View on AER arrow_outwardHaliburton Sculpture Forest
Donation-entry outdoor sculpture park with 1.4 km of trails through Glebe Park, Haliburton, with free summer Tuesday guided tours
View on AER arrow_outwardHooked on Haliburton
Guided fishing charters on Haliburton-area lakes for walleye, bass, trout and more.
View on AER arrow_outwardMinden Off-Road Park
Family-run off-road park with 14+ km of custom trails on 131 acres for Jeep, ATV, SXS and 4WD vehicles in Haliburton County
View on AER arrow_outwardRoyal Canadian Falconry
Hands-on falconry experiences and a 30-hour falconry course in the Haliburton Highlands, with raptors flown by an RVT-led handler
View on AER arrow_outwardWinding River Equine
English riding lessons, horse boarding, training, and a summer day camp in Haliburton
View on AER arrow_outwardWinterdance Dogsled Tours
Family-run Siberian husky dogsled tours on a 2,000-acre private trail network in Haliburton, near Algonquin Park
View on AER arrow_outwardYours Outdoors
Guided art, culture, and nature experiences across the Haliburton Highlands of Ontario, year-round.
View on AER arrow_outwardGet Up Stand Up Paddle Co.
SUP paddleboard rentals, lessons, delivery to cottages, tours
Visit website arrow_outwardMadcate Bikes
Fat tire e-bike rentals, self-guided and guided tours
Visit website arrow_outwardMinden River Run
Lazy river tubing/floating on Gull River, shuttle service
Visit website arrow_outwardOn the map.
Dysart et aland the local operators we've mapped nearby.
Key resources.
- dysartetal.caGlebe Park, Head Lake Park, Skyline Park, and 26 municipal boat launches — Municipality of Dysart et al
- haliburtonsculptureforest.caHaliburton Sculpture Forest — collection, walking access, and visitor information
- haliburtoncounty.caHaliburton County Rail Trail — seasonal use rules and shared access — County of Haliburton
- ontario.caOntario Fishing Regulations Summary — Fisheries Management Zone 15 (Haliburton Highlands)
- dysartetal.caGlebe Park trail network and Haliburton Sculpture Forest access — Municipality of Dysart et al
- haliburtonforest.comHaliburton Forest & Wild Life Reserve — Wolf Centre, Walk in the Clouds, mountain biking, and snowmobile trails
- festival.hikehaliburton.comHike Haliburton Festival — September guided-hike programming
- haliburtonlandtrust.caHaliburton Highlands Land Trust — Barnum Creek Nature Reserve and protected properties