Property Info

American Camp is the Georgian Bay Land Trust’s most-visited property, beloved for its flat rock, great swimming, and clear views to the west. It has been a gathering place for many generations of people, who have come to enjoy its unique beauty.

American Camp and its surrounding islands are relatively rare as a closely interconnected, mostly natural archipelago in southeastern Georgian Bay. The sheltered embayments along their shorelines contain a number of coastal meadow marshes, which combined with the rocky islands provides ideal habitat for many reptiles and other species that depend on the interface between land and water. It’s not unusual to find a group of Northern Watersnakes poking their heads out of a hole in the rock, or to see a Painted Turtle sunning itself in a wetland.

In 2004, then-owner Douglas Alexander donated American Camp Island and several neighbouring islets to conservation, first to the Nature Conservancy of Canada and then a few years later to the Georgian Bay Land Trust. Our promise is to steward the island so that people and nature can continue to enjoy it forever.

Please note: Only American Camp Island and the adjacent island to the immediate northwest (Andrew’s Island) are available for public use within the Alexander Islands, and there is a limit on the number of people allowed on the property at one time. There is a red flag that will be flown if the island has reached capacity; we ask that you not land at American Camp at such times. We ask also that visitors kindly respect our Volunteer Stewards and Summer Students.

Please keep an eye out for Environmentally Sensitive Area signs – these areas are off-limits to people and pets.

Any group larger than 10 people looking to picnic on American Camp Island should contact Aaron Rusak at (416) 440-1519 x103 or aaron.rusak@gblt.org.