Cottages For Sale in Manitoulin, Killarney & the North Shore

Buying a cottage in Manitoulin, Killarney & the North Shore

This region covers the top of Lake Huron. It starts at the French River and Killarney on northern Georgian Bay, takes in the lakes inside the City of Greater Sudbury, and follows Highway 17 west along the North Channel through Espanola, Blind River and St. Joseph Island to Sault Ste. Marie. Manitoulin Island sits offshore. It is the largest freshwater island in the world, with more than 100 inland lakes of its own.

Buyers here get more space and more shoreline for the effort of a longer drive. Manitoulin has limestone shores, sand beaches and big, clear inland lakes such as Manitou, Kagawong and Mindemoya. Killarney and the French River are pink granite, white quartzite and pine, with many boat-access camps. Sudbury has hundreds of lakes inside the city limits, so a lake home can be minutes from work. Locally, a cottage is often called a camp.

Access varies a lot. Many properties are on year-round roads, but others are reached only by boat or by private roads that are not plowed. Manitoulin has one bridge, at Little Current, and a seasonal ferry from Tobermory. Most rural properties use a well or lake water and a septic system. Some land lies in unorganized townships, where building rules and services differ, and First Nation lands are not part of the open market.

Getting there: About 3.5 to 8 hours from Toronto, depending on the area.

• Manitoulin Island
• North Channel boating
• Killarney and La Cloche
• French River
• Sudbury lakes
• St. Joseph Island