Sparrow Lake is situated north-west of the town of Orillia and south of the town of Gravenhurst, Ontario and approximately 150 kilometres and a 1.5 hour drive north of the Greater Toronto Area. Sparrow Lake is the most southerly lake in the popular Muskoka tourist region.
The lake was named after a William Sparrow, an Englishman, who fished and hunted the area in the 19th century. He disappeared one summer giving rise to stories that he may have been murdered.
It is also slightly famous as being the northern setting for the Showcase TV show Paradise Falls. Various settings and lodges around the lake were used for filming. It is also home to Sparrow Lake Camp (founded 1912), the oldest children's recreational camp operated by the United Church of Canada.
There is an abundance of resorts and lodges on the lake. There are also two golf courses, Lake St. George Golf Club and Evergreen Golf Center within 3 km.
This shallow, fresh body of water is a part of the Trent-Severn Waterway, a series of rivers, lakes and canals running southwest from Severn Sound on the eastern shore of Lake Huron's Georgian Bay, up the Severn River, through Lake Couchiching, Lake Simcoe and the Kawartha Lakes and down the Trent River across south-central Ontario to the northern shore of Lake Ontario.
The lake is approximately 7 kilometres in length and between 1 and 2 kilometres in width, with a maximum depth of approximately 12 metres and an average depth of approximately 4 metres. The main inflow and outflow is the Severn River, which in turn drains the Lake Simcoe, Lake Couchiching and Black River watersheds. Other inflows are the Kahshe River (Kahshe Lake/Gartersnake) and the Beaver Creek watersheds.
Situated on the southern edge of the Canadian Shield, the lake is spotted with granite islands and surrounded by rocky, well-treed shorelines. Shoreline development consists mainly of road-access recreational cottage properties with several resorts and full-service marinas accessible by road and water.
Average traveling time from the GTA to Sparrow Lake - (Gravenhurst) is 1 hour 34 mins
This Lake Median Lake Average Lake | |
Sparrow Lake is 1140 hectares (2817 Acres) in size The median size lake in our area is 71 hectares or 175 Acres (average size 398 hectares) | 1140 71 398 |
Sparrow Lake has a maximum depth 16 meters (52 ft)
The median depth of lakes in our area is 13.5 m or 44 ft (average depth 18 m) | 16 13.5 18 |
Sparrow Lake Altitude 214 m (702 ft)
The median altitude of lakes in our area is 290 m or 951 ft (average Altitude is 289 m) | 214 290 289 |
Water Clarity of Sparrow Lake (median 3.2 m) 3.20 m (10ft)
The median Secchi Depth of lakes in our area is 3.2 m or 10 ft (average Secchi Depth is 3 m) | 3.20 3.2 3 |
7 % of Sparrow Lake shorline is wetland. The median percentage of shoreline which is wetland of lakes in our area is 9 % (average Percentage of shoreline which is wetland 10) % |
Percentage of Shoreline which is wetland 7 9 10 |
Sparrow Lake's phosphorus content in water is 12.50 ug/L
The median Phosphorus content in the water of lakes in our area is 8 ug/l (average Phosphorus content 9 ug/L | 12.50 8 9 |
Sparrow Lake's watershed area feeding the Lake (excluding lake) 145.0 km2 (35830 acres) | |
Lake Trout found in Sparrow Lake: No | |
Drainage Basin of Sparrow Lake Severn River | |
Public Access to Sparrow Lake Boat Launch | |
Much of the above data for Sparrow Lake is compliments of the Muskoka Water Web maintained by The District Municipality of Muskoka |
This map is courtesy of Gps Nautical Maps and you can purchase this map as an app from GpsNauticalCharts.com
All measurements of the countour map showing the depths of Sparrow Lake are in feet.
1658 Peninsula Point Road, Severn, P0E1N0 was previously listed 2024-09-05, mls# S9311145