Where is the Beaver Valley?

It is a deep valley cut through the Niagara Escarpment in Grey County, running south from Thornbury on Georgian Bay down past Kimberley and Eugenia. It is one of the most dramatic pieces of landscape in southern Ontario and it is largely undeveloped.

Can you see the Beaver Valley from The Collingview?

Yes. The house sits high on open ground and the outlook takes in Georgian Bay, the Beaver Valley and Georgian Peaks. The rooftop terrace is the best place in the house to see it from.

What is there to do in the Beaver Valley?

Hiking on the Bruce Trail, which runs the length of the valley; waterfalls including Eugenia Falls and Hoggs Falls; the hamlet of Kimberley; apple and cider country along the top of the escarpment; and in winter, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. The ski club in the valley is private.

When is the best time to see the Beaver Valley?

Late September into mid-October, when the hardwood on the valley walls turns. It is the best colour in southern Ontario and it draws people from across the province, so book ahead and expect company on the lookouts.

Is the Beaver Valley Ski Club open to the public?

No. It is a private member club and does not sell day tickets. Blue Mountain Resort, about 20 to 25 minutes from the house, is the public hill in this region.

The view from the roofline out across dense tree canopy toward distant high ground

The Beaver Valley

The valley below, and a terrace to see it from.

The Beaver Valley is the deepest cut in the Niagara Escarpment and one of the last genuinely wild-feeling landscapes in southern Ontario. The house looks out over it.

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Landform: Niagara Escarpment
In view from: The rooftop terrace
Runs from: Thornbury south
Best colour: Late Sept–mid Oct

What it is

A valley that got left alone.

The Niagara Escarpment runs across this part of Ontario as a long limestone ridge. The Beaver Valley is where a river cut through it — a broad, deep trough with steep hardwood walls, a flat farmed floor, and remarkably little built on it.

It is protected land for most of its length, which is why it still looks the way it does. There is no strip development, no ribbon of cottages, and only a handful of hamlets. Kimberley, near the middle, is a general store, a few houses and a road that goes up the far side.

From the house you are looking across the top of it. That is the part people do not expect from photographs: the valley is not a view you drive to, it is the thing on the horizon while you are having breakfast.

Close view of the rooftop hot tub filled and steaming under an open sky

Down in it

What is worth the descent.

The Bruce Trail: Canada’s oldest and longest marked footpath runs the length of the valley along both rims. Sections here range from an easy hour on the flat to serious climbing up the escarpment face. Trailheads are within twenty minutes of the house.
Eugenia Falls: A thirty-metre drop into a limestone gorge at the head of the valley. A short, easy walk from the parking area, which makes it the one waterfall that works with small children in tow.
Hoggs Falls: Smaller, quieter and harder to find than Eugenia, which is exactly its appeal. A short walk through the woods near Flesherton.
Kimberley: A hamlet at the bottom of the valley with a general store and a lookout above it. The road in from the north is the most scenic ten minutes of driving in the region.
Apple and cider country: The top of the escarpment either side of the valley is orchard land. Several cideries and farm gates are open seasonally between Thornbury and Meaford.
Beaver Valley Ski Club: Private members only, with no day tickets. Worth knowing before you plan around it. Blue Mountain, 20 to 25 minutes away, is the public hill.

The autumn question

The colour is the reason most people come.

From roughly the last week of September into the middle of October, the hardwood on the valley walls turns, and the Beaver Valley becomes one of the most photographed landscapes in the province. The lookouts along the rim fill up at weekends. Old Baldy, above Kimberley, is the one everybody knows.

Timing moves by a week or two each year with the weather, so nobody can promise you a peak weekend in advance. If you want the colour, aim for the first ten days of October and accept some luck is involved.

Autumn photography of the house and the valley. Everything on this site was shot in other seasons, so rather than describe colour we cannot show you, we have left it. A dedicated autumn page follows once there are real photographs to put on it.

Want the valley from the terrace?

Tell us when you are thinking of coming and how many of you there are, and we will tell you what the house looks like that week.

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Keep reading

Trail conditions, waterfall access and parking all change with the season and the weather. Check the Bruce Trail Conservancy and the Grey Sauble Conservation Authority before setting out, and see what we ask of guests before you book.