Escape to Sudbury this fall for an unforgettable autumn adventure. Discover unique ways to experience the brilliant fall foliage, from mountain biking and hawk walks to fishing and paddling amidst the stunning landscapes.
It’s early October, and the weather is perfect. I’m roaring up the Trans-Canada Highway. The roads are wide open, just a handful of other cars heading north.
As I make my way past Grundy Lake Provincial Park, the rocky Canadian shields start to climb up on either side of the highway, creating dramatic passes that seem to beckon me further north.
It’s autumn in Ontario, and I’m heading to one of the best places to see the fall colors in Ontario. The city of Sudbury. The gateway to Northern Ontario.
Fall is my favorite time to be here in my home province. Every year, my family heads out on autumn adventures, looking for those fleeting moments when the leaves blossom into their rainbow of hues just before falling to the ground. We’ve had amazing scenery in Peterborough and the Kawarthas, chased the falling leaves in Algonquin Provincial Park, and even dove into the late-season bogs at the Bala Cranberry Festival.
This year, though, Christina was stuck at a conference in Chicago, and the boys were knee-deep in their hockey season. We were jetting off for a visit to Japan in just a few weeks, so the coaches gave me a hard pass on this year’s fall color adventure.
Thanks to a lot of help from the boys’ grandparents, though, I was able to get away and do some leaf-peeping up north. And the adventures that I got up to made me want to bring everyone back here next year.
Chasing the autumn scenery up north was epic. And during this year’s visit, I wanted to see how many different ways I could experience fall in Sudbury. Here’s what I got up to.
Unique Ways To Experience Fall In Sudbury
Let’s face it: there are a million ways to experience fall in Sudbury. This part of Ontario is gorgeous. Winding roads carved from the hard granite of the Canadian Shield, neverending forests that arch around more than 330 lakes, and some of the most accessible landscapes in all of Ontario.
But if you’re looking to spend autumn in Sudbury, you want to know what there is to do besides the obvious. And that’s where I can help.
Mountain Biking Through Walden Trails
Don’t expect a quiet ride here. This is Sudbury, where the Canadian Shield throws up its mighty granite fists and dares riders to try one more run. During autumn, though? Walden Trails are set ablaze. Scarlet maples, gold birch, a riot of color that would bring a tear to Renoir’s eyes.
As I carved through those trails, my lungs burning, my legs screaming for mercy, it was like riding straight into the heart of a Turner masterpiece.
Now, I’ve tackled trails from the Atlas Mountains to the Andes, and let me tell you, biking in Sudbuy place has beaten them. There’s a sheer, brutal honesty to it. Raw, untamed autumn beauty that will test your mettle and leave you gasping for another lungful of that crisp northern air.
But don’t let me scare you off. Walden Trails has something for every skill level, from relaxing green runs to wild black diamonds. The trails are all maintained by the Walden Mountain Bike Club, and it’s quite wonderful.
There are few better ways to experience the scenery than human-powered pedals. So ditch the tour bus and grab a bike. This is how you experience Sudbury’s fall, unfiltered.
Go For A Hawk Walk
It came at me like a feathered missile. Talons like carving knives, eyes locked on to me, and a wingspan that would make a pterodactyl jealous. This was Komori, a sharp-eyed Harris Hawk. And it was diving straight at me. All that stood between my arm and a trip to the emergency room was a thick leather glove.
Sudbury, you’ve done it again. I never thought I’d find myself playing falconer amongst the autumn leaves, but here we are.
Emily Wrenshall is the owner of Talon and Bark Falconery, and she is a bit of a bird whisperer. As she talked to me about Komori and her collection of birds of prey, she had more passion than a Ferrari engine and more knowledge than a Harvard professor.
Komori, a born killing machine, was reduced to a fluffy lapdog in her presence, hopping between trees like a feathered ninja. Coming obediently to our arms when presented with a serving of rodent canapés. Between the autumn colors and the thrill of falconry, we were bathed in a primal beauty that made me question why I’d ever bothered with cities and civilization in the first place.
Fishing On Lake Wanapatei
Lake Wanipitei. “Concave tooth,” the Ojibway called it. It was a fitting name, considering I was about to sink my teeth into some serious fishing action. Now, I’m not much of an angler. But here I was, surrounded by an explosion of fall colors, trying to look like I wasn’t a complete novice while a seasoned pro schooled me on the art of angling.
I was out on the lake with local fishing pro Frank Clark of Frank Clark Pro Fishing and local outdoorsman Len Talarico or LenTal Outdoors. They were showing the ropes and trying to turn me from an amateur to a pro in just a few hours.
Welcome to Sudbury, where the fish are bigger, the scenery’s bolder, and the experience is about as epic as it gets. This is a land where monster walleye lurks in the depths, trophy bass practically leap into the boat, and a symphony of reds, golds, and oranges surround me. A scene that almost made me forget that my rod was twitching with another catch.
Fishing is one of the top ways to truly experience autumn in Sudbury in all its brutal, breathtaking glory, with a side of freshly caught fish and a healthy dose of northern Ontario charm. Hey, if I can catch something, you can too!
Canoeing Or Kayaking At Laurentian Conservation Area
The first time that my family glided across the waters of Lake Laurentian was back in 2021. We were spending a week in Sudbury trying to find out why this city had developed its “unique” reputation. What we found was a city with amazing restaurants, beautiful scenery, and one of the best science museums in Canada.
Lake Laurentian Conservation Area is unique among Ontario’s plethora of wild spaces. This place is huge. It covers over 2,400 hectares, and it’s, quite literally, on Sudbury’s doorstep.
Touring Lake Laurentian under paddle power offers a unique chance to slow down and really drink in the fall foliage. Coasting into the lake’s idyllic nooks and crannies, searching for pockets of brilliant color tucked amongst towering cliffs and aging evergreens.
On my most recent visit to Lake Laurentian, I met up with Erik Barr, a local volunteer who, along with his daughter Hazel, spends countless hours at the park, both for leisure and to help repair the network of hiking and cycling trails.
He regaled me with stories of the “great beaver war” and other wild adventures that this park has seen in its more than 60 years of existence. If you ever visit, track him down and find out how a prideful rodent kept an entire park’s worth of experts on their toes for seven years.
Hike The Trails At Kivi Park
Kivi Park might sound like some sort of Finnish spa retreat. You won’t find any saunas here, but you will find plenty of serenity. Nearly 500 acres of pristine wilderness, criss-crossed with hiking and mountain biking trails. This park has an ambitious goal to stretch its borders as far south as Killarney Provincial Park.
During the spring, blueberries dot the trails, making this one of my favorite places to visit in the fall for family hikes. Come autumn, this park erupts in an inferno of color.
This place is Sudbury outdoors at its finest. Make the 10-minute drive from the city, pull out your favorite hiking boots, and prepare to be humbled by the autumn scenery. Trust me, the reward is worth every aching muscle. It’s a proper connection to northern Ontario outdoors.
Take In The Views Of Onaping Falls
This isn’t just any panorama of fall foliage. This is a viewpoint so gorgeous that it just might make you drop your pumpkin spice latte. A that has captured the hearts of generations, including one of Canada’s most famous painters, A.Y. Jackson.
Not every way to witness the fall colors in Sudbury requires scaling a mountain or trekking through miles of wilderness. Sometimes, the best views are the ones you can drive right up to. And my visit to this one? It’s like the whole Canadian Shield decided to put on a show just for me.
No hiking boots are required. Just roll up, park your car, and let the sheer, jaw-dropping beauty of it all smack you right in the face. It’s enough to make even the most jaded city slicker rediscover a little bit of that childlike wonder.
Pumpkinferno At Dynamic Earth
Pumpkinferno at Dynamic Earth. Now, I know what you’re thinking. Pumpkins, Halloween? Isn’t that a bit, well, childish? Absolutely, and that’s why it’s such a blast!
If anything, I was shaken that my kids couldn’t experience this spectacle with me. Pumpkinferno is like stumbling into a fever dream concocted by Tim Burton after a particularly nasty bender. Thousands of hand-carved pumpkins, lit up like a horde of demonic jack-o’-lanterns, arranged in displays that range from the whimsical to the downright macabre.
It’s silly, spooky, and bonkers, and I absolutely loved it.
You see, amidst all the natural splendor of autumn, sometimes you need a bit of the man-made, the theatrical, the slightly unhinged. And that’s where Pumpkinferno comes in. This yearly display at Dynamic Earth, home of Sudbury’s famous “Big Nickel” and its underground mine tour, is a celebration of creativity, a testament to autumn’s most beloved holiday.
There’s a parallel to these pumpkins and the fall colors in Sudbury. These glowing tributes to autumn will be gone in a flash, like a good meal. So grab a hot cider, embrace the kitsch, and wander through this illuminated wonderland. It’s a reminder that fall isn’t just about pretty leaves and crisp air; it’s also about embracing the darkness, the bizarre, and the utterly delightful.
A bit like Sudbury itself, really.
Sudbury Fall Adventures Video
want to see everything that I got up to during my visit to Sudbury in the fall? Check out the whole trip on my YouTube channel. Don’t forget to like and subscribe!
Disclosure: My fall visit to Sudbury was in partnership with Tourism Sudbury. All opinions remain my own.
You May Also Like To Read:
