A Day Trip to Kelso Beach!

Looking for some beach fun in the west end of the GTA in beautiful surroundings? I recently went to Kelso Beach (Hwy 401 & Guelph Line) to celebrate my mother’s birthday. There’s a smaller sandy beach with a long shallow entry for the kids. The lake is supposed to be supervised but the life guard wasn’t on duty when we went. There are kayaks, canoes and paddle boats for rent, two volleyball nets, and you can camp in the park should you want a longer getaway!

We went on a sunny and hot Saturday and I expected it to be quite busy but it wasn’t overcrowded at all. I remember there being trees in the middle of the grassy area providing a lot of shade but the trees were gone and instead there was construction tape blocking off areas where I’m guessing they are trying to grow grass. Bring a big beach umbrella if you have one to provide relief from the sun. There are shaded areas further back from the beach you can also use.

This building houses washrooms, change rooms and a concession stand.

Picnic tables are scattered throughout and there’s a concession stand next to the stairs selling hamburgers, veggie burgers, hot dogs, french fries, and of course ice cream and popsicles. If you forget your water toys they sell beach balls, pails and shovels and swim rings here. Check the slideshow for a photo showing prices. In the same building as the concession stand are washrooms with flush toilets and a change room. There is a baby change station in the washroom or you can use the wide benches in the change room.

The stairs leading down from the parking lot to the beach are very steep. Make sure to hold on tight to young children. My daughter slipped while she was curiously looking ahead instead of down at her feet and thankfully I was holding onto her hand tightly and was balanced enough myself or we would have both tumbled down! Better yet, use the path behind the museum which is also stroller friendly. It seemed steep as well but better than using the stairs. You’ll see it if you drive behind the museum (there’s parking very close to it).

On Tuesday evenings until August 21st Kelso is holding a Mountain Bike Race Series. They have a separate course for kids at the base of the hill that’s free. The course is about 500m and all on grass. Details available here. And if you are planning a trip in August, be sure to check their movie nights every Friday night which are free with admission. The Muppets is scheduled for the 10th and Rio for the 17th.

What else can I say? We all (including my husband!! :-O ) enjoyed our day at the beach. On our way out my daughter chose to have a cherry popsicle instead of ice cream (WHAT?!). So we all had them including my son. His first popsicle ever and boy did he look so happy and proud!

I have to share with you this photo of my daughter taken when I took her to this beach last year. She was around 17 months old. Sniff. She’s growing too fast. I wish both my kids would just stop growing right now! Love this age.

Here’s a slideshow showing lots of photos of the beach. Enjoy!

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4

left

right

This building houses washrooms, change rooms and a concession stand.

Very steep stairs leading from the parking lot to the beach.