Cottages For Sale in Lake Huron Shore

Buying a cottage in Lake Huron Shore

This stretch of Lake Huron runs along the west edge of Lambton and Huron counties in southwestern Ontario. Highway 21, the Bluewater Highway, follows the shore and links Sarnia, Forest, Grand Bend, Bayfield and Goderich. Inland the land is flat farm country. At the water it turns to sand beach, dunes and clay bluff. The whole shore faces west, so nearly every lakefront property looks straight at the sunset.

Buyers find three main kinds of property here. There are older beach cottages on sandy lanes in places like Grand Bend, Port Franks and Ipperwash. There are bluff-top homes with stairs down to the beach between St. Joseph and Goderich. And there are river and harbour properties on the Ausable, Bayfield and Maitland rivers, where boats can be kept close to the lake. Lake Huron is big water, so most boating is day trips out of the harbours.

Almost everything here is reached by paved road and is usable all year, though some cottage lanes are private and not plowed. Many properties outside the towns rely on a septic system, and some on a well. Shoreline erosion is the main thing to check. Bluffs and dunes move over time, and conservation authorities regulate building, additions and shore protection near the lake. Ask about setbacks and past erosion work before making an offer.

Getting there: About 2.5 to 3 hours from Toronto.

• Grand Bend beach
• Lake Huron sunsets
• Pinery Provincial Park
• Bayfield village
• Goderich harbour
• Bluewater Highway