Collingwood Ontario: Skiing and More!
Collingwood Ontario is one of the towns of the Georgian Triangle, along with Wasaga Beach, Thornbury, Meaford, and Creemore, that border the southern shore of Georgian Bay. Wasaga Beach, by the way, is the world’s longest freshwater beach. Collingwood isn’t so much about beaches because being located along the world renowned Niagara Escarpment, the Blue Mountains and surrounding areas have become a year round vacation destination. If this area interests you, and I hope it will because it's a beautiful part of the world, you'll need a place to stay. Here's a beautiful B&B to be your base as you enjoy Georgian Bay:
Wymbolwood
During the
summer,
special events to the region include the Festival for Canada, Georgian Bay Sailing Regatta and the Corvette Beach Cruise.
Ice Fishing Collingwood Ontario harbour
The first Europeans arrived in this area during the 1600's, see our
Sainte Marie among the Hurons
page, but it wasn't until the 1700’s that French and British farmers began settling
in Ontario in numbers, some around the Georgian Triangle where you'll still see a strong French language presence. In the 1780's, many Loyalists from the separating United States came to the area.
During the war of 1812, American warships sank a number of British ships in Georgian Bay, some of which have been recovered. A supply ship, the Nancy, was raised from the bottom of the lake and is on display on the island that formed around it in the Nottawasaga River mouth and which is now called Nancy Island. Following the war of 1812, a British naval base was built in Penetanguishene, due to its prime location. The navy is gone but the British Naval legacy remains in the place names around the area. Collingwood, for example, was a famous Admiral in his own right before he lead the second line into battle at Trafalgar and took command when Nelson was mortally wounded, accepting the surrender of the French and Spanish fleets as Lord Nelson lay dying on the flagship, Victory. The nearby township of Saint Vincent is named for Admiral Jervis, whose victory off Cape St Vincent in 1797 earned him the title Earl St Vincent. As relations with the Americans improved, the Navy left and, around 1834, Discovery Harbour became an army base. The naval tradition continued with a transition to shipbuilding and shipping. In the 1850's, Collingwood also became a rail terminus for exporting Ontario produce and products to the west and the world. The skiing resort business began in the 1940's when a young
Czech refugee, Jozo Weider, arrived in Collingwood Ontario. Starting with two sleds, drawn uphill by a cable, Weider’s first ski lift was the beginning of today's Blue Mountain resort.
When you're tired of golfing or skiing, there are a lot of scenic drives from Collingwood heading south into the Escarpment and the highlands around it. A good stop on those drives is
Creemore.
Sunsets over Lake Huron have been famous for decades because, it's said, of the dust from the heavy industries in Detroit and Chicago to the west. Whatever the reason, Collingwood gets its share of spectacular sunsets even though it's facing north rather than west.
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Some of the activities on offer in the region include hiking (this picture is the view over Collingwood Ontario from a hiking and biking trail), golfing, fishing, boating and apple picking in the warmer seasons. A 
Collingwood's shipyard closed permanently in 1986 and since that time the town has focused more on the service industries (photo shows the mountain bike lift up to the top of the ridge),though Pilkington Glass still has a significant factory on the outskirts.