Collingwood Waterfront

The area was once called Hens-and-Chickens Harbour, after one large and four small islands in the bay. The Petun nation lived here first, and Wikipedia says the Iroquois drove them out in 1650. The Ontario, Simcoe and Huron Railway reached Collingwood in 1855, which made the harbour a shipping point for Great Lakes ports, and the community was incorporated as a town in 1858. It is named for Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, Lord Nelson's second in command at Trafalgar.

The Collingwood Shipyards opened on 24 May 1883 and stayed in business until September 1986, when overseas competition and overcapacity ended shipbuilding here. Wikipedia reports that the Huronic, launched in September 1901, was Canada's first steel-hulled ship, although the exact superlative is worth hedging. The Collingwood Terminals grain elevator was built in 1929 and operated for 64 years, until 1993, and it still stands at the harbour entrance as the town's most recognizable landmark.

The Town's trails page lists a Harbour Circle Route of about 4.2 km along the waterfront, boardwalk, arboretum and labyrinth, with parking at the Station Museum, Sunset Point Park, Harbourview Park and Whites Bay Park. A boardwalk through trees leads to Harbourview Park, which is described as an arboretum with the Collingwood Labyrinth, and a gazebo over the wetland gives a view of the harbour. Sunset Point is known for sunset views and as a swimming and windsurfing beach. A Heritage Trail leads toward the Collingwood Terminals and Millennium Park, and passes the marina, boat launch and yacht club. Sources vary on the name Millennium Park versus Millennium Overlook Park.

Collingwood is the start of the Georgian Trail, a 34 km multi-use trail through Grey County to Meaford along the former North Grey Railway corridor. That railway line was chartered in 1871, came under Canadian National in 1923 and was abandoned in the 1970s or 1980s (sources differ), and the trail opened in 1989. The surface is mostly level crushed limestone, with about 30 access points, wetlands, forests and views of the bay and escarpment. Sources differ on the exact start point, with some placing it at Harbourview Park. The restored Craigleith Station now operates as a railway history museum.

The Collingwood Museum is in the Simcoe Street cultural area. Blue Mountain, a promontory of the Niagara Escarpment known for skiing and its Scenic Caves, rises just to the west. The 2021 census counted 24,811 residents, up 13.8 percent from 2016.

The waterfront is flat and easy to walk, and the trail system links a beach, a marina, the old grain terminals and downtown. Check the Town of Collingwood for current parking rules, trail conditions, museum hours and any seasonal closures.

Voyzo operates private tours with a private vehicle and driver and door-to-door pickup, so a Collingwood stop fits neatly into a day linking Wasaga Beach, Blue Mountain and the Georgian Bay shoreline.