flowerpot island lighthouse

The walk from the boat dock to the lighthouse is about 2 km. Nice nature walk. The view from the light house is also excellent. You can also buy some snacks here.

We travelled out to Flowerpot Island on one of the local tour operators boats, had a great ride, and walk around the island. The Flowerpots are truly amazing to see and stand near. Check the weather and pack and dress as needed.

The tour of Flower Pot Island was part of our glass bottom boat tour. We were dropped off, then hiked to the lighthouse. The paths are well-groomed and we had no problems using them. We spent time on the short, hopping from rock to rock which was a way to get around the crowds at the dock area and to get 'up close & personal' with the flower pots. The lighthouse was interesting and had good displays of furniture, clothing, etc. that would have been used by the lighthouse keeper & family when it was staffed. I think the only thing I disliked was the crowding on the paths. Little hard to enjoy the peace & quiet of the forest, with so many on the island at one time. Lots of boats seem to arrive & depart at roughly the same time, so there is a lot of congestion at the dock.

Our vacation this year took us to Tobermory, Ontario which was on our bucket list. We sure plan on going back. While there, you must, must, must go to Flower Pot Island, and take the Flowerpot Express to get there. It takes you to the Big Tub lighthouse, and the two sunken ships and then you are taken to Flower Pot Island at 70 km/h. Weeeeeeeee! A lot of fun! Go earlier in the day and plan on staying all day to get the most out of the day. A couple of hours won't do it. Buy your tickets for the Flowerpot express in advance and opt to come back later in the day...you can always standby for an earlier boat if you wish. You can go swimming in Georgian Bay in the aqua, clear waters that look like the Caribbean. Mind you...the water is ice cold. You can always sun yourself dry after. We went in September and the weather was great. Take food and water with you for the day...there is one place on the island to buy food...your choice. They have quite a few hiking trails, and bathrooms along the way. Wear sturdy hiking shoes, if you wish to go a bit off the beaten track. The camera is a must and your eyes to feast on the sights!

It was too foggy, can’t even see next five yard. Got the ticket for cruise and hit towards Five Phantom National park. My full family was so excited to see the island. The deep and sparkling waters at the mouth of Georgian Bay are home to Fathom Five - Canada's first National Marine Conservation Area. The place are made of high rises alloy colored rock, simply called ‘Place of Wonder’. Time here stand still. Blue water tells you the destination – do not need to explain you are there yet or not. The park preserves a rich cultural legacy that includes 22 shipwrecks and several historic light stations. Fathom Five's freshwater ecosystem contains some of the most pristine waters of the Great Lakes. The rugged islands of the park are a reminder of the impressive lake bed topography found beneath the waves. Fathom Five contains Flowerpot Island which is a popular destination for the tourist. It has rough camping facilities, distinct trails, and its namesake flowerpots, outlying stacks of escarpment cliff that stand a short distance from the island, most with vegetation and trees still growing on them. The island is accessible by cruises and rigid inflatable boats from Tobermory on the Bruce Peninsula. Cruses will takes you face to face meet with the cliff caves and all the natural wonder. Rates for the cruses and boat are different based on the ride. Tourist are drop off and pick up after certain time. Other cruses are just drive around the Island and take back to Tobermory.The Flowerpot Island has some great rules, tourist are not allowed to drop off any wastage, food, garbage, need to take back all the garbage's to the main land. 3 to 5 feet wooden stik are available at the deck to help to walk in the hilly road.Some special notes for the tourist plan to visit Bruce peninsula –Tobermory is a small city, make sure booked the hotel ahead of time to stay at night. There are some good restaurants and a grocery at the harbor. Do not for-gate to bring your camera.It’s four hours drives from Toronto to Tobermory by road. Roads are free and nice county sight road. Six hours from Detroit, Michigan and Buffalo, New york and Niagara falls, another great destination.

Full marks to the volunteers and everyone else involved in keeping this attraction alive. We loved it and this, along with Tobermory was one of the highlights of the trip to Canada.

Best part of this attraction is visiting the light keeper's house. The volunteers have done a terrific job in bringing the place back to life. The trail is a bit challenging so make sure you've got a good pair of walking shoes on....flip flops are not recommended.

The hike was quick after the flowerpots.. the lighthouse isn't that great, not like an old fashion lighthouse which I was looking forward to. More modern than traditional for my liking. I did enjoy the "loo with a view" composting toilet with a great view of the bay. I also enjoyed the porch with the rocking chairs to enjoy a quick snack and drink before finishing the hike.

Take the Blue Heron Boat to flowerpot island. We decided to stay for the afternoon. Took a walk to go to different places on the islandAnd loved it all. It is a National park so you have to pay for this and the boat ride too. Two seniors w/a 20 percent discount was 75.00. It was well worth the price. Left the dock at 11 and returned back at 5:00 p.m. It won't be open after the 13th of Oct.There are a few shipwrecks to look at and there are a few fellows on board to talk and answer questions. We enjoyed the day.

On a recent visit to Tobermory with a group, a few of us chose to go out kayaking and canoeing on Lake Huron, which seemed like a good idea at the time… I was in a solo kayak, and my 2 accomplices were in a canoe, we left around 4pm. Early in the voyage, we got separated, and once the wind and waves picked up, it was all I could do to not capsize – I went where the waves took me, as I had little control over the kayak for most of the outbound trip, a very disconcerting feeling. BTW, I own my own kayak, and have a LOT of experience kayaking, but in this instance I was in someone else’s kayak, much longer and narrower than mine, which took some getting used to.After an hour, I finally made it to Flowerpot Island without taking on too much water, though I managed to capsize into the Huron on the rocky shores, and that water is COLD! There was no one in sight, so I stripped off all my clothes, wrung them out, put them on the rocks to dry in the sun, while figuring out how I was going to get back to the boat launch on the mainland, kayaking into the waves and wind all the way there. I was committed to getting back while the sun was still out, and as I had no idea what time it was, I made getting back before sundown a priority; didn't get around to the other side of the island, where the attractions were.After a brief rest, and 2 failed attempts to launch – kept taking on too much water – I was en route to the mainland. It took about an hour to get to Flower Pot Island, and about 90 minutes to get back, fighting the wind and waves all the way. I made a stop at a smaller island on the way, to dump the water out of the kayak again – the waves were easily 4-6 foot swells – then made my way back. I was VERY grateful to enter the relative calm of the harbor at last, though I discovered that those in the canoe were not yet back – this was 6:30pm.Where is the canoe duo? Are they safe?By 8:30pm, the canoe was still not back, the sun was gone, and though they had made it to Flower Pot Island and met some others of our group who had wisely taken the ferry there – that was around 5pm, and we had not seen them since. The canoe duo left Flower Pot Island around 5:30pm, and 3 hours later were still not back, though they had last been seen by a ferry captain around 6:45pm at that same small island I had stopped at between Flower Pot Island and the mainland, about 25% of the way back. Our group leader decided to call in a search and rescue around 8:30pm, as the canoe duo were not answering their phones, and had made no contact for several hours. Just after the search and rescue report happened, the canoe duo, one of whom was a novice, showed up in the harbour, around 9:45pm. They had been rowing steadily for over 4 hours, battling the same wind and waves that I did in the kayak, and were VERY glad to be back at last. One was very experienced on the water, the other was a novice, and was not interested in ever getting into a canoe again…The LessonIf you take anything away from this, please let it be that you check with the harbor master or other experts BEFORE going out on the lake, it can get ugly FAST, without warning, and once it does, you are on your own. There were no other kayakers/canoers on the open water, which should have been my first clue…Post-ScriptThe next day, Aug 31/14, I went diving, and while checking in with the dive shop, I told the owner that I had kayaked to Flower Pot Island the day before. She stopped what she was doing, looked at me in shock, then with her eyes almost bulging out of her head, said “You went YESTERDAY?!?! Had you told me you were planning on kayaking to Flowerpot Island, I would have told you absolutely not…” She was totally right, I was VERY lucky to come back with only a few cuts and bruises, and soaked from the trip.

If you make the trek up to Tobermory, a day trip to Flowerpot Island is a must do! The natural beauty of the place is amazing. Go early and stay late. You can easily spend five hours on the island hiking, swimming, and sightseeing. Bring a picnic lunch and eat it by the shoreline. There are six different hiking trails and endless scenic shoreline to choose from. The lighthouse is approximately a two kilometre hike from the boat launch. It is worth a visit, but not the main attraction. The stone ladened shoreline with its crystal clear water and unique rock arrangements is what makes this place so special. Hence the name "Flowerpot Island" for the two large flowerpot shaped shoreline rock formations. Polarized sunglasses enhance the magnificent colour contrasts of both the water and shoreline geography. Furthermore, it allows you to see deeper into the water. My companion had polarized glasses and I did not. I was jealous after she loaned me her glasses for a few minutes. If you decide to go for a swim, just remember the water is very cold (52 fahrenheit/11 Celsius). Once your body adjusts to the water temperature, a swim can be quite refreshing. This is especially true on a warm day. Recommended things to bring: drinking water, snacks, picnic lunch, sunscreen, hat, swimsuit, water shoes, beach towel, bug spray, hiking shoes, polarized sunglasses, and your camera.

Very nice trails and shorelines on this island. Lighthouse is not much of a lighthouse and the "glass bottom boat" is a bit of a false advertisement however the natural beauty of the landscape and island makes this tour priceless.

Great photo spot, great hike, take food and water with you! Plant to spend 3-4 hours if you want to go to the light house. Caves are worth climbing too!

All these years, I had thought "so what" about Flowerpot Island. The picture you always see is of the flowerpot rock formation...the island itself looks pretty ordinary. BUT, around the lighthouse area (which is quite historic) are the most wonderful rocks upon which people are romping and sunning and swimming and playing. Going by on the Blue Heron cruise, I just wanted to BE THERE on those rocks, and i will go back on the shuttle to do that. The island has 6 km of hiking trails, starting from the lighthouse area, and 6 campsites. I would imagine those sites would book up pretty fast - right on the bay by the lighthouse in the bush. Wonderful! The 2 hour cruise itself is ok, pretty laid back. It's true, not a lot to see, not a lot of wildlife like on the BC coastal cruises. But you have to want to hang out on a tour boat for a bit and just enjoy the breeze and the water. The shipwrecks are interesting but not sensational (shapes of sunken ships easily visible just below water surface in Big Tub Harbour..if you think they are the highlight of the trip, then you will be let down by the rest of the trip because the wrecks are right at the start!). For me, the highlight was Flower Pot Island those gorgeous rocks. You also cruise into some pretty coves on other islands. It's ok, but there are no whales, no dophins, no jumping fish, so pretty laidback and quiet. We were able to take our small dog, and there was lots of opportunity for the kids to move around and look at things. The glass bottomed part is quite small but provides some interesting views of the rocks below the surface.

Really.. it's just an island with rocks. Don't know what the big deal is. The boat tour to it was also kind of boring, they didn't have much to say.