First pick
Sainte-Marie Park
Park or garden
6.7 ha0.6 km of path
5 minto walk all 0.6 km of path
6.0 km westfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Nick3501 · CC BY-SA 3.00.5%protected within 10 km
Outdoors in Tay · parks, protected land & trails
A national park 6.9 km from Tay: Georgian Bay Islands National Park
Biggest among them: Severn River Conservation Reserve, 9,912 ha, 10.0 km off. Walkers have 3 mapped routes close by, starting with the Uhthoff Trail (hiking) and Rotary Waterfront Trail (hiking). Within 5 km are 5 beaches; Magnus Beach is the nearest.
Protected land
0.5%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
17
within 10 km, 5 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest national park
6.9 km
Georgian Bay Islands National Park
Nearest provincial park
At the edge
Waubaushene Beaches Provincial Park
Walking routes
3
named, within 2 km (OpenStreetMap)
Beaches
5
within 5 km (OpenStreetMap)
Character
Where Tay stands out outdoors
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
A national park nearbyGeorgian Bay Islands National Park, 6.9 km awayWalking routes3 named routes within 2 kmA provincial park at the edgeWaubaushene Beaches Provincial Park reaches the townLittle protected land0.5% within 10 km; the typical Canadian town: 2.3%
What Tay has most to offer outdoors is Georgian Bay Islands National Park within easy reach, with its choice of walking routes close behind. It has less to offer in protected land nearby.
Against other towns
Each figure for Tay, 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. Outdoors isn’t graded in Canada. The page compares each figure with other towns and leaves it there.
Protected within 10 km0.5%Share of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s edge in a protected or conserved area
Protected in town0.6%Share of the town’s own area in a protected or conserved area
Public protected areas5Areas within 10 km held by a government or an Indigenous nation
Walking routes3Named OpenStreetMap walking and hiking routes with 300 m+ within 2 km
Beaches5Beaches mapped on OpenStreetMap within 5 km
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
Towns its size
Tay has the 8th least protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (11,676 to 12,258 residents), by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected. Hover for each one’s figures; click for its page.
Protected within 10 km
Tay0.5%
Towns its size2.5%
Towns in Ontario2.3%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Tay5
Towns its size5
Towns in Ontario4
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Tay3
Towns its size0
Towns in Ontario1
Typical Canadian town0
Where Tay trails its peers is protected land nearby; 32 of 39 have more.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | L'Île-Perrot QC | 42% | 0.5% | 44 | 0 | 4 |
| 2 | Notre-Dame-de-l'Île-Perrot QC | 34% | 0.6% | 50 | 0 | 5 |
| 3 | Mont-Tremblant QC | 27% | 29% | 20 | 0 | 18 |
| 4 | Chapel Hill North ON | 14% | 1.2% | 36 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Nelson BC | 14% | 0.1% | 10 | 2 | 8 |
| 6 | Clearwater County AB | 13% | 5.7% | 44 | 3 | 4 |
| 7 | Cardinal Creek ON | 11% | 0% | 43 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | Rideau Lakes ON | 10% | 14% | 77 | 6 | 12 |
| 9 | Valley Creek ON | 6.3% | 29% | 10 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | Chapman Mills ON | 6% | 1.9% | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Saint-Rodrigue QC | 4.8% | 0% | 15 | 1 | 4 |
| 12 | Adjala-Tosorontio ON | 4.7% | 1.1% | 68 | 3 | 4 |
| 13 | Chester NS | 4.1% | 6.1% | 124 | 1 | 21 |
| 14 | Humber Summit ON | 3.6% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Moncton NB | 3.4% | 1.4% | 27 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | Milliken ON | 3.4% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | McKenzie Lake AB | 3.3% | 1.1% | 2 | 0 | 17 |
| 18 | Fletchers Meadow North ON | 3% | 4.9% | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Marieville QC | 2.9% | 0.7% | 37 | 0 | 5 |
| 20 | Morrisburg ON | 2.6% | 4.2% | 17 | 0 | 5 |
| 21 | Saint-Sauveur QC | 2.3% | 0% | 21 | 0 | 7 |
| 22 | St. Andrews MB | 2.3% | 1.1% | 9 | 2 | 2 |
| 23 | St. Clements MB | 2.2% | 3% | 9 | 8 | 10 |
| 24 | Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts QC | 1.8% | 1.6% | 15 | 1 | 8 |
| 25 | German Mills ON | 1.6% | 0% | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Grey Highlands ON | 1.3% | 0.7% | 77 | 4 | 0 |
| 27 | Saint-Raymond QC | 1.2% | 1.2% | 27 | 8 | 5 |
| 28 | The Hamptons AB | 1.2% | 0% | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Georgian Bluffs ON | 1.1% | 1.9% | 67 | 4 | 17 |
| 30 | Hamilton ON | 0.9% | 0.8% | 14 | 2 | 4 |
| 31 | Wetaskiwin County No. 10 AB | 0.7% | 1% | 52 | 0 | 3 |
| 32 | Blackfalds AB | 0.6% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Tay ON | 0.5% | 0.6% | 17 | 3 | 5 |
| 34 | Uptown ON | 0.3% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | Weyburn SK | 0.2% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Etobicoke West Mall ON | 0.2% | 0% | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 37 | South Cameron ON | 0.2% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 38 | Mississauga Valleys ON | 0.1% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| 39 | Cityscape AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 40 | Martensville SK | 0% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
The map
Where the green is in Tay
The town’s parks, woods, protected land and paths, with its named places numbered.
Green: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, playing fields and woods. Hatched: CPCAD protected areas.© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); CPCAD (OGL-Canada)
Places to walk
5 named parks and woods to walk in near Tay
Largest first: Sainte-Marie Park leads with 6.7 ha. Numbers match the map.
5 named parks and woods, 11 ha in all
Parks & gardens 11 ha
Most of it sits in Sainte-Marie Park and Oakwood Park: 79% together.
Oakwood Park
Park or garden
2.2 ha0.2 km of path
0.8 km north-eastfrom the centre
Oakwood Park Trail
Directionsto a point inside
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.
Close to home
A park is within a short walk for 3 in 10 in Tay
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.
Within 400 m (31%)Further (69%)
Tay31%
Towns in Ontario90%
Typical Canadian town83%
That leaves about 8,300 people more than a short walk away. The usual figure for a Canadian town is 83%, above this.
Protected areas
Protected land at the edge of Tay: Wye Marsh National Wildlife Area
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Inside Tay0.6%
Within 10 km0.5%
Towns in Ontario2.3%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
5 of the 17 belong to a government or an Indigenous nation. Severn River Conservation Reserve leads for size with 9,912 ha. 12 areas belong to private owners or land trusts and aren’t named here.
Wye Marsh National Wildlife AreaWildlife area · 44 ha · reaches Tay
Waubaushene Beaches Provincial ParkProvincial park · 34 ha · reaches Tay
Georgian Bay Islands National ParkNational park · 1,400 ha · 6.9 km from the edge of town
Six Mile Lake Provincial ParkProvincial park · 212 ha · 9.7 km from the edge of town
Severn River Conservation ReserveNature reserve · 9,912 ha · 10.0 km from the edge of town
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.
National & provincial parks
Big parks near Tay
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.
National parkProvincial park
Provincial park
Waubaushene Beaches Provincial Park
At the edge0.3 km²since 1969
National park
Georgian Bay Islands National Park
6.9 km north14 km²since 1930
Provincial park
Six Mile Lake Provincial Park
9.7 km north2.1 km²since 1958
2 provincial parks lie within 10 km.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
55 km of paths in and around Tay
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
55 km
in and around the town (228 km²)
Woodland
27%
about 62.4 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
TayTowns in OntarioTypical Canadian town
Footpaths0.2
01.53 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
TayTowns in OntarioTypical Canadian town
Woodland27%
0%50%100%
Woods cover more of it than in 72% of Canadian towns. It has fewer paths per km² than 75% 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.
Walking routes
Tay has 3 named walking routes
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
RegionalLocal
Ganaraska Trail243.6 km
Uhthoff Trail (hiking)30.1 km
Rotary Waterfront Trail (hiking)7.0 km
The Ganaraska Trail is the big one locally: 243.6 km.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
When to get out
Tay is best on foot in May to September
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from Muskoka (45 km), and daylight at the town’s latitude. Good months: 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15–30 °C, little rain.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| 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 |
Highs peak near 25 °C in July and fall to -5 °C in January. Rain and snow peak in October (111 mm) and ease in February (56 mm). The climate in Tay →
Beaches
Tay has 5 beaches close by
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
Magnus Beachin town
DirectionsThe map adds 4 unnamed stretches of beach. No national or provincial register of beach water quality is published as open data, so check the local health unit before swimming.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Things to do
Tay has 2 viewpoints within 2 km
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
Count 10 playgrounds, the biggest group.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 2
Plus 2 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Nature reserves 2
Waubashene Beaches Provincial Parkin town
DirectionsWye Marshin town
DirectionsPicnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 10
Plus 10 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 3
Bayfort Campin town
DirectionsBell Falls Family Campgroundin town
DirectionsPlus 1 campsite without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next door
Next to Tay
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
MidlandPenetanguisheneTinyTay
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tay | 0.5% | 17 | 3 | 5 |
| Midland 8.9 km | 3.4% | 9 | 1 | 5 |
| Penetanguishene 13 km | 6.6% | 7 | 1 | 7 |
| Tiny 18 km | 3.9% | 23 | 0 | 61 |
Midland, Penetanguishene and Tiny have at least twice the protected share around them.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Walking routes. Only named route relations count; a park’s own path network may not show unless it is mapped as a route.
- Protected land. CPCAD maps each protected area; the page counts how much of the 10 km around the town they cover, lakes and sea included.
- National and provincial parks. The nearest national park and the nearest provincial park are always shown when they are within 100 km.
- Beaches. Beaches are OpenStreetMap’s, named or not; in the north many are unnamed shoreline imports.
- Private land. Private conservation land is in the totals, not the lists. Many such areas are easements on working farms or woodlots.
Questions about the outdoors in Tay
How far is the nearest provincial park from Tay?
Waubaushene Beaches Provincial Park, which reaches the edge of town.
When is the best time for walking in Tay?
May to September, on the 1991–2020 normals and the daylight: long days, highs of 15 °C or more, light rain for the place.
What is the largest protected area near Tay?
It is Severn River Conservation Reserve, a nature reserve covering 9,912 ha.
How much land around Tay is protected?
Within 10 km, 0.5% of the land lies in protected areas.
What is the nearest national park to Tay?
Georgian Bay Islands National Park is closest, at 6.9 km.
Is there a beach near Tay?
The nearest is Magnus Beach, in town.
Are there hiking trails near Tay?
The Uhthoff Trail (hiking), Rotary Waterfront Trail (hiking) and Ganaraska Trail, among the routes mapped within 2 km.
Sources
Sources for this page on Tay
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).