Photo: P199 · CC0McDougall has more protected land around it than nearly 9 in 10 Canadian towns
Georgian Bay Islands National Park is the closest national park, 24 km from town. For a swim, Nobel Beach is the nearest of 9 beaches within 5 km. 16 areas within 10 km are protected for nature.
Where McDougall stands out outdoors
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
McDougall’s best card is protected land around it, with a provincial park at its edge close behind.
Each figure for McDougall, set against Canadian towns
Each figure against the 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+ (not city hubs or reserves), with the town marked and the typical one’s line. No letter: the outdoors is described for Canadian towns, not graded.
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
McDougall has the 6th most protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (2,961 to 3,047 residents), by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected. Hover for each one’s figures; click for its page.
Among its peers, McDougall’s strong point is protected land nearby, where 5 of 39 top it.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cocagne NB | 39% | 4.3% | 6 | 0 | 8 |
| 2 | Electoral Area C, Strathcona BC | 12% | 8.1% | 61 | 0 | 170 |
| 3 | Elkford BC | 12% | 16% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Vanscoy No. 345 SK | 11% | 4.2% | 25 | 0 | 3 |
| 5 | Saint-Marc-des-Carrières QC | 10% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 1 |
| 6 | McDougall ON | 10% | 4.1% | 16 | 0 | 9 |
| 7 | Lac-des-Écorces QC | 8.8% | 4.5% | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Saint-Roch-de-Richelieu QC | 8.6% | 0.1% | 29 | 0 | 1 |
| 9 | Riverside Park South - Revelstoke ON | 8.3% | 6.2% | 33 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | Gilkson ON | 7.1% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Kirkendall South ON | 6.9% | 0.9% | 23 | 2 | 3 |
| 12 | Buchanan ON | 6.3% | 0% | 22 | 1 | 3 |
| 13 | Saint-Anaclet-de-Lessard QC | 4.9% | 0% | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | Bainbridge BC | 4% | 0% | 23 | 3 | 26 |
| 15 | North Shore PE | 3.6% | 7.3% | 19 | 11 | 18 |
| 16 | Saint-Mathieu-de-Beloeil QC | 3.6% | 0.1% | 26 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | Grenville-sur-la-Rouge QC | 3.2% | 3.7% | 23 | 0 | 3 |
| 18 | Dewdney Place SK | 3.1% | 90% | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| 19 | Huntingdon QC | 3% | 0% | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Granville AB | 2.5% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Lesser Slave River No. 124 AB | 2.4% | 2.2% | 25 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | Holliston SK | 1.8% | 0% | 17 | 0 | 2 |
| 23 | Nutana Park SK | 1.7% | 0% | 18 | 0 | 1 |
| 24 | Poplar Park ON | 1.6% | 0% | 15 | 1 | 7 |
| 25 | Albany AB | 1.6% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | South Portage MB | 1.5% | 0% | 20 | 4 | 0 |
| 27 | Trillium ON | 1.4% | 0% | 18 | 1 | 5 |
| 28 | East Garafraxa ON | 1.1% | 0.6% | 16 | 4 | 0 |
| 29 | Varsity View MB | 1.1% | 0% | 19 | 1 | 37 |
| 30 | Hillcrest Management Area SK | 0.9% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | Wallace-Woodworth MB | 0.8% | 0.1% | 32 | 0 | 1 |
| 32 | Lorne MB | 0.7% | 0% | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Luxton MB | 0.5% | 0% | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Sunnyside AB | 0.4% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 35 | Stanstead QC | 0.3% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 36 | Kernohan AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 37 | Markstay-Warren ON | 0.2% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | Avonmore AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 39 | Division No. 1, Subdivision E NL | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 40 | Lago Lindo AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Parks, woods and paths around McDougall
The town’s parks, woods, protected land and paths, with its named places numbered.
3 named parks and woods to walk in near McDougall
Kinsmen Park is the largest, at 9.2 ha; the rest follow by size, numbered as on the map.
Yvonne Williams Park
Source: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, commons and woods with a name, in the town or within 400 m, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Sizes are the mapped outline’s.
Few people in McDougall live near a park
Residents of each 2021 dissemination area, at a point inside it, within 400 m (about a 5-minute walk) of a park or playing field mapped on OpenStreetMap.
Around 3,000 residents are further than 400 m from a park. For comparison, the typical Canadian town has 83%.
16 protected areas around McDougall
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
12 of the 16 are on public land. The Massasauga Provincial Park covers 13,264 ha, the most of any named area. 4 areas belong to private owners or land trusts and aren’t named here.
2 more named areas within 10 km are in the figures.
Source: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD) 2.9.0, Environment and Climate Change Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada.
24 km to Georgian Bay Islands National Park
National parks (Parks Canada) and provincial or territorial parks by direction and distance from the town’s edge: every one within 10 km, and the nearest of each within 100 km.
Round Lake Provincial Park
Oastler Lake Provincial Park
The Massasauga Provincial Park
The Massasauga Provincial Park Addition
Killbear Provincial Park
Georgian Bay Islands National Park
There are 5 provincial parks within 10 km.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
30 km of paths in and around McDougall
OpenStreetMap footpaths, paths, bridleways and steps, and tracks open on foot, in the town and 1 km around it; woods as mapped (landuse=forest, natural=wood).
Footpaths · km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
89% of Canadian towns have more footpath per km². More of it is wooded than in 94% of Canadian towns.
Source: OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Mapping varies by place: a dense figure can mean keen local mappers as much as many paths.
No named walking route passes McDougall on the map
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
The map shows no named route near the town. That says more about OpenStreetMap’s coverage than about the paths on the ground.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
Walking season in McDougall: May to September
Daylight at the town’s latitude and ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals (Muskoka, 81 km away). Good months: long days, highs of 15–30 °C, light rain.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°C) | -5 | -3 | 3 | 10 | 18 | 23 | 25 | 24 | 20 | 13 | 5 | -1 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 92 | 56 | 72 | 79 | 93 | 86 | 100 | 82 | 102 | 111 | 103 | 87 |
The wettest month, October, brings 111 mm, against 56 mm in February. July is the warmest month, with highs around 25 °C; January the coldest, at -5 °C. The climate in McDougall →
McDougall has 9 beaches close by
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
The map adds 7 unnamed stretches of beach. Beach water tests aren’t published as open data across Canada, so swimming advisories come from the local health unit.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
A waterfall near McDougall
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
The most common are slipways: 9 on the map.
Every named place, with directions
Waterfalls 1
Nature reserves 1
Picnic sites 4
Plus 4 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Dog parks 1
Slipways 9
Plus 9 slipways without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next to McDougall
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McDougall | 10% | 16 | 0 | 9 |
| Parry Sound 12 km | 7.1% | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| McKellar 13 km | 13% | 8 | 0 | 3 |
| Carling 14 km | 11% | 23 | 0 | 20 |
| The Archipelago 17 km | 14% | 67 | 0 | 8 |
McDougall is not outdone two to one on protected land by any neighbour.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Walking routes. The list is OpenStreetMap’s, so a missing trail may just be unmapped. The Trans Canada Trail appears where OSM maps it.
- Beaches. Beaches are OpenStreetMap’s, named or not; in the north many are unnamed shoreline imports.
- National and provincial parks. National parks are Parks Canada’s; provincial parks are the province’s or territory’s, Québec’s parcs nationaux among them.
- Protected land. The share is of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s outline, from CPCAD’s mapped areas; marine areas count, so a coastal town can score high on water.
- Private land. CPCAD includes conservation land held privately; the page counts it and leaves the names out.
Questions about the outdoors in McDougall
What is the best season to get outdoors in McDougall?
May to September: long days, mild highs and little rain.
How far is the nearest provincial park from McDougall?
Round Lake Provincial Park touches the town.
Where can you swim near McDougall?
Nobel Beach, in town, is the nearest mapped beach.
Which is the biggest protected area near McDougall?
It is The Massasauga Provincial Park, a provincial park covering 13,264 ha.
Are there protected areas near McDougall?
Yes: 10% of the land within 10 km is protected.
What is the nearest national park to McDougall?
Georgian Bay Islands National Park is closest, at 24 km.
The sources behind McDougall’s outdoors figures
Protected areas: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD) 2.9.0, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2026: every area within 10 km and the nearest national and provincial parks, measured outline to outline.
Walking routes and beaches: OpenStreetMap, November 2026: named hiking, foot and walking route relations within 2 km and beaches within 5 km.
Towns: Statistics Canada 2021 Census boundaries and populations; the comparison is the Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+, not city hubs or reserves.
When to go: Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020, from the nearest station that publishes them.
Green space, paths, woods, things to do: OpenStreetMap (Geofabrik’s Canada extract), November 2026: parks, gardens, playing fields, woods, footpaths, the coastline and things to do in and around each town.
Residents: Statistics Canada 2021 Census dissemination areas (population, boundaries), each at a point inside it.
Walking routes and beaches © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database Licence (ODbL).
Not on this page: trailheads and trail grades, and beach water quality. No open Canadian dataset gives these for every town yet.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).