Lancastria.net Yea Blackburn!

Today we are heading off to the pinery, on the shores of Lake Huron.

Pinery Provincial Park contains much of the remaining Oak Savanna woodland to be found in North America. Explore this unique ecosystem, along park roads, trails, beaches or quiet reaches of the Old Ausable Channel.

Today an Oak Savanna ecosystem rests atop an undulating sand dune topography that began forming over 6,000 years ago as glaciers retreated, leaving dunes more than 100 feet high. The panoramic view from lookouts presents a seemingly endless forest canopy, meeting Lake Huron’s brilliant blue waters on the horizon.

Whether you want to quietly explore the woodlands along a trail, dip a paddle in the Old Ausable Channel, ride along the bike trail, or slide across crisp snow on a ski trail, Pinery is a special place year round.

The Pinery Provincial Park is a park located on Lake Huron near Grand Bend, Ontario. It occupies an area of 25.32 square kilometres (6,330 acres).

The park features the largest area of Oak Savanna in Ontario. To preserve this habitat, a population control program for White-tailed Deer has been implemented. During the early 1960s, because the value of the native savanna was not recognized, large numbers of Red and White pine trees were planted in the park, displacing the native vegetation. That is also how the park got its name.

The Old Ausable Channel is a wide, slow-moving river which flows through the park. It was separated from the main Ausable River when two channels were excavated at Port Franks and Grand Bend at the end of the 19th century.