The Torrance Barrens is a Conservation Reserve consisting of 1990 hectares of crown land southeast of Bala.
Hello Everyone,
Thank you for taking the time to visit this page about the Torrance Barrens. I volunteer to help clean, maintain and run this page as I love the Torrance Barrens. As I am a photographer and usually out in the forest it makes it hard for me to answer the many questions I get on here and my many other pages. I get asked the same questions a lot so here is a post I will try to keep at the top of the page linking many of the requested material. Thank you and I hope you all enjoy the time in the barrens.
NOTE:
If it is after dark please keep your high beams off and try to keep all lights off or to a minimum. Please take out what you bring in and help keep the Torrance Barrens clean.
CAMPING is first come, first serve and is free for residents of Canada. As this is a dark sky reserve try not to have fires unless needed and if you do have a fires please keep it to a minimum.
RED LED lights are recommended for walking around during the night hours as there will be many people in the area viewing and photographing the night sky. The red light helps to keep our night vision intact.
WEATHER FORECAST (clear sky charts): http://cleardarksky.com/c/TrrcBrrnsDSPONkey.html?1
NORTHERN LIGHTS FORECAST (prediction): http://www.solarham.net/
Up to date forecast: http://www.softservenews.com/
Directions
To get to the Torrance Barrens go off District Road 13 (Southwood Road). If you are coming north on Highway 11, turn west onto District Road 13 (between Gravenhurst and Washago), then drive about 20 minutes until you see a Torrance Barrens sign on your right. It can be hard to miss if you are looking for this at night. You can also access the Torrance Barrens by taking Highway 169 from Gravenhurst or Bala to District Road 13 (Southwood Rd.)
On google maps or online maps try looking for "Barrens extension" as it is in the Torrance Barrens and just a little north of the parking lot. If you zoom in on the maps you will see a lake called "Highland Pond" and it is right in front of the parking lot.
Thank you again.
Cheers
Wesley
