Ride the Fall Colours: Two Days of Twisties, Legendary Eats and Big Views North of Toronto

By Mike Jacobs
September 30, 2026

There’s a reason riders circle one weekend on the calendar every fall. When the maples turn across Muskoka, Almaguin and Algonquin, the roads north of Toronto become some of the best motorcycle touring in the country – sweeping curves, granite cuts, and colour in every direction.

That weekend is here. The colours are peaking right now, and this two-day route strings together the best of it: twisty pavement, legendary food stops, big views, and one easygoing lakeside home base. Gas up, grab a riding buddy, and go.

Here’s where to stop – and why every stop earns its place on the route.

Home Base: Blue Spruce Resort, Oxtongue Lake

Every great ride needs a great home base, and for this route it’s Blue Spruce Resort – lakeside cottages on Oxtongue Lake in the Algonquin Highlands, right off Highway 60 and a scenic eight kilometres from Algonquin Park’s West Gate.

This is cottage-country riding at its best: tuck the bike in beside your own cottage or studio among the pines, walk down to the beach, and end the night around a fire pit at the water’s edge. Unpack once, and ride two completely different loops from the same front door. One important note at peak colour: availability moves fast, so call ahead – Blue Spruce takes reservations at 705-635-2330.

Aerial view of Blue Spruce Resort’s lakeside cottages, beaches and docks on Oxtongue Lake with early fall colour.
Blue Spruce Resort on Oxtongue Lake. Photo courtesy of Blue Spruce Resort

Day One: The Parry Sound Loop

Lunch Stop: Legend Spirits Co., Parry Sound

Legend Spirits Co. in Parry Sound. Photo courtesy of Legend Spirits Co.

Head west through Huntsville for a morning of sweepers toward Georgian Bay, rolling into Parry Sound for lunch at Legend Spirits Co. – a craft distillery, restaurant and cocktail bar that’s quickly becoming one of the most talked-about culinary destinations in the region.

Housed at 7 Great North Road, Legend’s crafts its own spirits on site and pairs them with a full restaurant menu. It’s the kind of stop that proves a point we love making: you don’t have to leave cottage country for a big-city calibre meal. (Riders, don’t worry, the cocktail flight can wait until the bike is parked for the night. The food alone is worth the stop.)

The Screaming Heads of Midlothian

Giant concrete Screaming Heads sculptures rising from the fields at Midlothian Castle near Burk's Falls.
The Screaming Heads at Midlothian Castle, near Burk’s Falls

From Parry Sound, cut inland toward Burk’s Falls for one of Ontario’s strangest and most unforgettable roadside attractions: the legendary Screaming Heads at Midlothian Castle.

Scattered across artist Peter Camani’s sprawling property, dozens of giant concrete heads rise out of the fields mid-scream, some two storeys tall, surrounding a castle he built himself. Against a backdrop of full fall colours, it’s one of the most surreal photo ops anywhere in the province, so build in time to wander and shoot. Want a preview? We’ve written about the Screaming Heads before.

From there, grab a few more twisties through the Almaguin Highlands before winding back to Oxtongue Lake to clean up, light the fire, and swap stories from the day. (Dinner spots are nearby in Dwight and Huntsville – on a peak colour weekend, call ahead.)

Day Two: The Algonquin Run

Algonquin Provincial Park

Day two starts at your doorstep: from Blue Spruce it’s an eight-kilometre warm-up to Algonquin’s West Gate and the ride every Ontario motorcyclist should do at least once in their life – the Highway 60 corridor in peak fall colour. Established in 1893, Algonquin is the oldest provincial park in Canada and one of its most beloved. It is 7,600 square kilometres of maple hills, rocky ridges and lakes, with Highway 60 carving right through the heart of it. In early October, it is quite simply one of the best colour rides on Earth.

Coffee at the Portage Store, Canoe Lake

Partway through the park, pull off at Canoe Lake for a stop at the legendary Portage Store – an institution on this lake since the 1930s, and the jumping-off point for generations of Algonquin canoe trips (and forever tied to the Tom Thomson story). This one’s casual: grab a great cup of coffee, browse the souvenirs, and take in the view from the shoreline where Canada’s canoeing mythology was born. Picnic benches line the water if you want to linger.

The Finale: Dorset Scenic Lookout Tower

Finish at one of the most famous fall lookouts in Ontario: the Dorset Scenic Lookout Tower, a short hop south of the park.

The 30-metre (100-foot) tower stands on a ridge high above the village of Dorset, and for those up for the climb, the observation deck puts you 142 metres above Lake of Bays – an unbroken sea of red, orange and gold rolling out to the horizon in every direction. It’s the single best view of fall colour in the region, and the perfect exclamation mark on two days of riding. (Climbing is optional – the ground-level lookouts are spectacular too.) Note that during fall colour season the tower park requires reservations – book your time at ahtrails.ca before you ride over.

Before You Go

  • Call ahead for availability. Blue Spruce Resort takes reservations at 705-635-2330. Cottages go quickly at peak colour, and restaurants along the route book up too.
  • Reserve the Dorset tower. Fall colour season access is by reservation at ahtrails.ca.
  • Pack layers. October mornings are cold until the sun gets up – this is the weekend heated grips earn their keep.
  • Gas up in Huntsville or Dwight before heading into the park. Services are limited along the Highway 60 corridor.

Questions about the route? DM the team at What A Ride on Instagram – a real person (and rider) will answer.

For more motorbike tour tips in our region click here.