Cottages For Sale on Buckhorn Lake

Owning a cottage on Buckhorn Lake

Buckhorn Lake is the crossroads of the central Kawarthas. Pigeon Lake pours in through Gannon Narrows on the west side, Chemong Lake joins through Harrington Narrows to the south, and Sandy Lake drains in by Sandy Creek. All of it leaves through the dam and Lock 31 at the village of Buckhorn. Owning here means you can boat a long way without a lock, and that the lake is busy in July and August.

The main body is wide, up to about 7 km across, so wind can build real waves on the open stretches. Shorelines wrap around points, narrows and bays, including the land around Curve Lake First Nation, which sits between Buckhorn and Chemong. Cottage communities such as Gannon Village, Gannon Beach, Oak Orchard, Kimberley Park and Young's Cove ring the lake, so most buyers end up choosing a neighbourhood as much as a lot.

The lake is split between two townships with very different rental rules. The village of Buckhorn sits right on the Trent Lakes and Selwyn border, with most of its downtown on the Trent Lakes side. Trent Lakes now requires every short-term rental to be registered. Selwyn does not license them. That line is worth checking before you make an offer.

• Tri-lake boating
• Buckhorn village
• Fishing
• Year-round homes

History of Buckhorn Lake

The village began as Hall's Bridge, a hamlet built around a dam, a timber slide and mills at the outlet. Parks Canada says it was renamed Buckhorn after the deer antlers that decorated the local grist mill. Another local explanation is the lake's outline, which some say looks like a buck's head with Pigeon and Chemong lakes as the antlers. Lock 31 went in between 1882 and 1884, bringing a wave of construction workers and a rebuilt dam.

Logging and farming shaped the early economy, and many lumber settlements in the area faded once the timber ran out. Cottages and tourism took over, and Lock 31 is now one of the busiest locks on the waterway. Curve Lake First Nation traces its community to an Anishinaabe settlement around Curve Lake and Mud Lake in 1829, and the reserve was set aside in 1889. On the north side, the old townships of Galway-Cavendish and Harvey merged in 1998 and took the name Trent Lakes in 2013 to honour the waterway.

Lock 31 and the busiest corner of the tri-lakes

Lock 31 lifts boats about 3.5 metres between Buckhorn Lake and Lower Buckhorn Lake. The chamber is about 37.8 m long and 9.7 m wide, and the lockstation offers overnight mooring for up to two nights with shore power, washrooms and drinking water. Because Pigeon, Chemong and Buckhorn all share one water level above the lock, boaters can roam all three without lifting a line. Expect a lot of traffic near the village and at the narrows on summer weekends.

Gannon Narrows and getting around by road

A causeway and bridge at Gannon Narrows join Trent Lakes and Selwyn and mark the passage between Buckhorn and Pigeon Lake. John Earle Chase Memorial Park, near the narrows on the Pigeon side, has day-use trails. Downstream, Wolf Island Provincial Park is a water-access-only park with no facilities, a good paddle or picnic stop.

Water quality, milfoil and summer algae

Volunteer sampling in 2020 measured total phosphorus of about 12.6 µg/L at Young's Cove and 13.3 µg/L northeast of Fox Island, with water clarity near 3.6 metres. Those are moderate numbers for the Kawarthas. Just below the lock, Deer Bay on Lower Buckhorn showed phosphorus climbing through July and August before falling again in fall.

Elders at Curve Lake First Nation have reported more algae blooms and more invasive Eurasian watermilfoil in recent years, and some residents now think twice about swimming at local beaches. Buyers should look at the water in front of a property in late summer, not just in spring.

Short-term rentals: Trent Lakes registration versus Selwyn

Trent Lakes passed a registration by-law (B2025-024) in March 2025. Anyone renting a home for less than 28 consecutive days must register, pay a $350 fee and a $250 annual renewal, post the registration number in every ad, and name a responsible person who can respond to complaints within 90 minutes. Maximum guests are tied to septic capacity at two people per bedroom, and demerit points can lead to loss of the registration.

Selwyn Township does not license short-term rentals. It does say operators can be held responsible for their guests and that noise, burning and parking by-laws still apply.

Buckhorn village and services

Buckhorn has a medical health centre, a branch of the Trent Lakes Public Library, a public school and a volunteer-run community centre. Most rural homes in Trent Lakes rely on private wells. Only a few subdivisions, including Buckhorn Lakes Estates, Pirates Glen and Alpine Village, are on municipal drinking water systems. Peterborough is the nearest city for a hospital and large stores.