Day Trip: Port Hope Ontario
One last little day trip to send off summer - before the fall adventures unfold!
I woke up to a nice peaceful sky one Tuesday morning near the beginning of September. It was my day off, so naturally I immediately searched up “Quaint Towns of Ontario.” I was looking for something not too far from Toronto, and ended up deciding on Port Hope on a whim.
Port Hope is only about an hour and a half east of Toronto, right off of Highway 401. The town sits on a heritage site and similar to the Grand River in Paris (Ontario), the Ganaraska River runs through downtown Port Hope. The river is actually a tribute to the Indigenous groups that resided here, as Port Hope was initially a village named ‘Ganaraske.’ Four British families settled here in 1793, took over, and expanded the area into a bustling town.
The downtown area of Port Hope is a charming mix of historical buildings and modern amenities, including antique shops, boutiques, home decor shops, and one-of-a-kind gift shops. There are art galleries, cafes, spas, and a range of restaurants and pubs. To fully immerse yourself in the historical charm, there are also various B&Bs, inns and boutique hotels situated inside some of the beautiful heritage buildings.
What is really fascinating about all of these buildings is that Port Hope has never suffered economic collapse and the buildings remain fairly untouched. Therefore, minus a little bit of restoration and renovation, many of the buildings still capture the essence of the town in the 1800s. Port Hope actually won ‘The Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award' in 2008.
There is a large stage in the park downtown (Memorial Park) and also a historical indoor theatre on the main strip; both host many shows. Throughout the year the town runs many festivals and events, including: Maple Syrup Day, a river float race, garden tours, artisan and craft shows, Canada Day celebrations, a fall fair, a food and drink festival, heritage building tours, and a film festival. During Christmas, they host the Candlelight Walk and Lighting Ceremony, the Festival of Lights and Trees, and a Santa Clause Parade.
- Visit Port Hope (definitely check out the ‘History of Port Hope’ Section!)
When we first arrived we drove down to check out the marina (which is just on the edge of town). Along with the boat launch, the marina is also a prime spot for fishing and walking along the waterfront trail. There are two beaches on either side of the harbour, and I believe that there is a café close to the waterfront as well. To get there, you actually drive under a large suspended bridge, which holds the railway for the trains coming in and out of the city (The VIA Rail station is very close to this area). The railway was originally called the ’Grand Trunk Railway.’
Once we decided it was time to get out and explore the town on foot, we found a good sized parking lot behind Memorial Park (pictured above), and it was completely free! Score. There was a mix of pay-and-display parking areas and a couple of free lots. Since it was a gloomy Tuesday, the town was not too busy and we had a lot of choice.
Beside the park, we crossed the Ganaraska River on a little bridge and walked on a trail that loops around to another bridge - which connects to the main downtown strip. It was a peaceful little stroll.
Once we crossed the bridge, we took some time to weave in and out of the few open shops. We hopped into a thrift shop, a funky antique shop with many music related items (this one had a really unique assortment), and a lovely home and decor store with some great local products (there were many eco-friendly products, which I really appreciated). Since many of the stores and galleries were closed, we didn’t actually spend that much time indoors. We opted to walk around and seek out all of the beautifully designed buildings.
We liked the idea of checking out the waterfront trail that is so prominent in Port Hope. We headed to the A.K. Sculthrope Marsh trail, which is a trail about five minutes from downtown Port Hope. It holds a large marsh that is parallel to the waterfront (for google maps purposes, I would recommend just typing ‘Marsh lookout’ - that is how we found it). There are also several conservation areas to visit in different locations surrounding the town.
The trail itself is very easy, as you are walking on flat ground (mix of boardwalk and sandy patches) along a single trail. It is quite interesting to view the lake to your right and the swampy marsh to your left along the way. There is one section of the trail (fairly close to the beginning) where you can climb a few short steps to a viewing platform. You can see the entire marsh from above on this platform. We saw a family of swans floating around calmly and completely undisturbed. The trail seemed to continue on for a while, so we spent a good amount of time enjoying it; we turned back after about 20 minutes. As you traverse through, it is a very quiet walk (other than the sound of the water and chirping birds). I would definitely recommend it as a spot to unwind and clear your mind, enjoy a quick lunch, or bring the pups!
After our little stroll along the water in Port Hope, we decided to drive over to Cobourg, which is the next town over along the lake. It is only about a 15 minute drive. Cobourg is a charming town, which also has a lovely downtown strip of shops, restaurants, and other goodies. It is home to the prominent ‘Cobourg Beach.’ Unfortunately, it was early evening when we got there and mostly everything was closed. We did find a great (super funky) vintage shop that was open though (called ‘Little Underground’). It was such a treat, as we had a lovely conversation with the owner while we browsed and gawked at the unique items in her store. She told us some wonderful stories about the pieces and about how many regular visitors often find inspiration for their own unique style with her items. I love this! If I lived nearby, that would surely be a frequent stop for me. We walked around the downtown area and settled for a sushi dinner at ‘Golden Chopsticks’ before we headed back to Toronto. The food was great but it was the service that made it amazing. Our waitress was extremely attentive and very friendly, which made us feel very welcome. A very short, yet very positive experience in Cobourg. Until next time.
The most amusing part of the visit to Port Hope was that we kept seeing posters, graffiti, and upcoming themed events relating to the horror movie “IT,” and we could not wrap our heads around the obsession with this terrifying clown movie. Fast forward a month later, we spontaneously decided to watch the movie with some friends and it all hit us! THE MOVIE WAS FILMED HERE. We felt so silly. We subconsciously knew that it was filmed in parts of Ontario, yet we didn’t put two and two together when we visited. It was a fun revelation.
A quick not-so-fun fact about Port Hope: the town is contaminated with a large volume of low-level radioactive waste, which was caused by Eldorado Nuclear Ltd, after it was taken over by the Canadian Government. There is currently a giant cleanup underway. You can read more about it here.