Make Your Aurora Borealis Dream a Reality… without leaving Ontario

Image by Pete Linfort from Pixabay

“The sight filled the northern sky; the immensity of it was scarcely conceivable. As if from Heaven itself, great curtains of delicate light hung and trembled. Pale green and rose-pink, and as transparent as the most fragile fabric, and at the bottom edge a profound fiery crimson like the fires of Hell, they swung and shimmered loosely with more grace than the most skillful dancer.” ~ Philip Pullman, The Golden Compass

Even if you don’t like travel, there is something or someplace that you want to see at least once in your lifetime. For some of us, it’s the wonders of human creation and engineering or perhaps architecture that withstood the test of time; for some, it’s natural wonders like mountains or ocean, icebergs (unless you live along the shores of iceberg alley), majestical whales, of maybe jungle, desert or rainforest, but I think there is one thing we are all fascinated with: the vastness of the dark sky.

If you’re going to tell me that you never looked up to the night sky in the hope to see a shooting star, I simply won’t believe you. For us, humans, a sense of inner curiosity and wonder are the sources of imagination and creativity and dreaming about possibilities is the mother of all invention. And often it starts with gazing into the night sky pierced with the shimmering light of millions of stars and wondering what is out there that I don’t yet know about and want to explore. Now add to it the glowing curtains of the Aurora Borealis and you can guarantee this to be a lifetime experience you will never forget!

Named one of the seven natural wonders of the world, Aurora Borealis (or Northern lights) fascinated our ancestors for a long time. Its name came from Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn, and Boreas, the Greek god of the north wind. Here in Canada Ojibway peoples call them Wawatay, for Cree they are Wawastew and I love reading the stories and teachings about creation told by the elders and passed from generation to generation. And, of course, every northern nation in the world has stories and legends about the magical lights dancing across the dark sky, glowing hues of green, purple, yellow and red, covering vast distances and fascinating people across continents. Check here for stories about the relationship of people with this phenomenon that continues to captivate our imagination. No wonder that people travel across the world ready to spend hours in the dark to catch a glimpse of these magic lights. And, if you live in Canada, you are in the right place as it’s one of the best places on Earth to see the Northern Lights!

Image by David Mark from Pixabay

But first let’s see what we know so far about how these majestic ever-changing curtains of the glowing green, purple and everything in between lights is formed to help you with your quest.

Northern Lights appear as a result of solar storms (eruptions) that launch charged particles from the sun. When they reach Earth, they collide with oxygen and nitrogen particles of our atmosphere causing a geomagnetic storm. This causes a glow effect that may widely vary in brightness, colour and size depending on the storm intensity and electromagnetic forces. As this happens somewhere between 1 and 3 days after the solar eruption, there are many apps that help forecast (though with various accuracy) when the auroral activity may appear. In addition to the solar eruptions, sunspots act like powerful wind blowers that force energy towards our home planet. As the sun revolves on its axis every 27–28 days, these periods of the constant solar wind are predictable almost a month ahead of time.

For everyone who lives anywhere north of ~47 degrees, this allows them to see northern lights a few times a year (even though one can never get tired or use to the ever-changing display of dancing in the darkness light!). If you, like me, live in Toronto (with its latitude being 43.653225) we need to go further north, away from the city’s light pollution to find the dark and clear enough sky to get closer to the auroral zone at the time following the high solar activity.

Fortunately, you don’t need to start looking at Arctic Circle trips (and prices!) or book tickets to Yukon or Northwest Territories as there is a good chance you can catch the glimpse (or more) of this natural wonder right here, in Ontario! Thanks to the number of the Dark Sky Preserves and off-the-grid wilderness lodges (not to mention vast backcountry possibilities!), you can pick one that works for you and as close (or far) from your home as you’re willing to go. As not all dark sky preserves are suited for our mission, the below list contains those that have a history of auroral activity and, therefore, more chances to see the lights. Also, I will cover the things you need to know, take with you and plan for if you want to increase your chances of both seeing the elusive Aurora Borealis and creating memories to share and cherish for years to come!

It’s generally agreed upon that crispy fall and winter nights provide the best conditions due to its long nighttime, darker sky and clear air. The best time is usually between 11 PM and 3 AM when the night is at its darkest. Though there is an exception for every rule :). And it may surprise you that September and October are the recommended time to see the lights in Ontario.

Another point worth mentioning is the need to be patient both when tracking notifications about activity and out in the night waiting for the brightest moments. While watching the tracking site or app, you’re looking for solar activity strong enough to reach lower latitudes and need to be prepared to travel when you see one coming. When aurora is active, spreading a green tint across the sky (that may or may not be visible with the naked eye and often can be caught with your camera’s long exposure), what you’re looking for is the short period (sub-storm) that produces much more intense colours, lights and lasts for 5–10 min. There is no way to predict when these sub-storms will appear and, therefore, you need to be prepared to wait sometimes a few hours to see the show.

Here are a few good apps to get you started. They get data and forecasting information from NOAA Space Weather Centre and NASA satellites to keep track and notify you about anticipated activity in real-time and at a pretty low cost:

1. Aurora Borealis Forecast & Alerts (called Northern Light Aurora in AppStore and Aurora Alerts — Northern Lights forecast in Google Play)

2. My Aurora Forecast & Alerts available for both iOS and Android and have a higher rating, but feature-wise other apps are higher recommended by aurora chasers.

3. Aurora Forecast & Alerts for iOS also gives you a lot of additional information.

And here are a couple more links to help you track geomagnetic storms: space weather to see “current conditions” on the left-hand side. X class flares indicate the major activity and this is what you want. Subscribe for Space weather alerts to get alerts at $4.95/month US or get in touch with Aurora enthusiasts and join the Northern Lights parties (North Bay Astronomy Club is a good example).

Unlike the typical destination travel, you don’t exactly know when what will happen and therefore need to be ready to explore and perhaps go further than originally anticipated. I listed the suggested places in the order of their proximity to Toronto (from closest to furthest) and it’s up to you to decide how far you’re ready to go to see it. Alternatively, you can decide to play a waiting game and wait until the conditions are right. Caution: even with all the things lined up, last-minute clouds may alter your plans. But I think that is one of the reasons that make this quest so exciting!

1. Torrance Barrens Dark-Sky Preserve is about 2.5 hours from Toronto and it’s located in the middle of Muskoka “cottage country” Gravenhurst, Ontario. Here are a couple of videos taken at Torrance Barrens on Oct 8, 2013, and in May 2017 and here is a narcity.com quick read on this (though the pictures wouldn’t load). Here is the Torrance Barrens Clear Sky Chart to help you. You need to play with it a bit to familiarize yourself so that you know what you need to be prepared for.
2. Bluewater Outdoor Education Centre in Wiarton, ON, South Bruce Peninsula (~3 hours from Toronto) — unfortunately it’s currently closed to the public due to the COVID-19 pandemic with all public observing events cancelled. If you’re ready to wait longer, this is a great place to visit for other activities as well.
3. Bruce Peninsula National Park is about 3.5–4 hours northeast of Toronto and is claimed to be one of the best places to see northern lights in Southern Ontario. I was able to find a video of the northern lights near Tobermory and perhaps you get lucky to catch it! And you can explore the national park while you’re there.
4. Killarney Provincial Park is over 5 hours north of Toronto, but very much worth the trip. Killarney Mountain Lodge on the north shores of Georgian Bay allows you to see the lights from resort grounds, go to the dark sky observatory far from the light pollution or rent one of the heated yurts even during fall and winter months.
5. Gordon’s Park Eco Resort (~6 hours straight drive) on the beautiful Manitoulin Island that’s considered the darkest and therefore one of the best spots to see the lights in southern Ontario. Here is the video filmed on Sep 6, 2019.
6. Lake Superior Provincial Park is 887km north of Toronto, making it an over 9 hours drive. The best way to do it is to go to Sault Ste. Marie (700 km) by car (it will take you all day to get there) or taking a short 1 hour and 40 min flight (tickets will cost you around $500 each and you will need to wait for covid to be over to fly).
7. Pukaskwa National Park on Lake Superior, in Northern Ontario, though said 12 hours of driving will take a couple of days just to get there. If you’re open to this possibility, you may want to turn it into a week to 10 days trip if you don’t want to feel like all you do is driving and want to get more time to explore. Depending on the time of the year, there are a lot of things to see on the way there and back. Please scroll down and let us know if you want us to plan it for you.

There are, of course, many more options further north as Sleeping Giant Provincial Park and places around Moosonee and Moose Factory. To give you an idea of what your Northern Lights trip may look like, check this Northern Ontario Travel magazine article by Jamie McIntyre that contains three sample itineraries. It’s published in 2017, so check the info and covid-related closures if you want to use it, but it gives you a good idea on how to plan your trip, possible accommodations and other resources. Also, here is the guide to Northern Ontario for other things to do in Ontario in the fall and winter.

Image by Jason Gillman from Pixabay

A few words on what you need to get ready for the trip and what to bring with you:

1. Dress for the weather and keep layers handy for crispy cold nights as you’re planning on spending a lot of time outdoors. Parka, winter boots, hats and super warm mittens are the must if you’re going in winter. Even in the fall, the nights may get pretty chilly, so it’s better to be over-prepared than not.
2. Always bring water and snacks as all these places are remote by definition. Also, plan ahead for places to eat as they are not as close as picking a quick meal in Toronto.
3. Keep your gas tank full as much as possible and always refill when heading to the dark sky preserve. Also, keep an eye on the nearest gas stations and plan ahead as there not that many of them around.
4. Bring a thermos with tea or another hot beverage for all travellers to warm yourself up.
5. You will need a flashlight or two to be able to get around in the dark, though remember that your eyes need 30–40 min to get used to the darkness, so be mindful of using it. Some preserves require the use of red flashlights, so check ahead. The headlights are the best to have your hands free.
6. Bring your camera and tripod to be able to experiment with exposure. Here are suggestions on how to capture the Northern Lights.
7. And the most important: get to your viewing spot early to set up, prepare to stay up late and enjoy the show!

If you’re ready to go further and open to travelling across Canada, here is the great Destination Canada guide to help you plan. This UK’s Travel & Leisure Magazine also provides a good summary of the best spots as well as the best time of the year to plan your trip (though I would still rely on apps when getting ready to go). You don’t have to do it on your own if you don’t want to, there is a fair number of tour companies and operators that offer related packages (as Fresh Tracks Canada for example).

And, of course, there are international options if you prefer more exotic travel less constrained by the budget. Check out this Forbes article for 2020/2021 destinations to see our Aurora.

And if you don’t really want to leave the house and spend a day driving and night waiting, here is a live camera that may get you excited. Just check your app for alerts and tune into explore.org to watch it in real-time from Churchill, Manitoba.

Image by GooKingSword from Pixabay

And a few last words on our common health and safety. Though it’s been a long time since we’re staying home due to a pandemic and we all understandably want (and need) to take some time to get away from our daily routine, we want to make sure you do it safely. Do your part by following public health advice. For the most up-to-date information on where and when it is safe to travel please visit covid-19.ontario.ca.

If you prefer a custom-designed trip just for you and your travel companions that won’t break the bank, we at PinTravel.ca will be happy to help! Just let us know when you want to go, what are your favourite things to do and we will be happy to plan, book and assist you in any way to have a great experience whether you’re coming from abroad or would like to have a safe weekend getaway.

At PinTravel, we want to redefine the way you travel. Whether you set out to discover a “hidden treasure” spot a short distance from your home or want to go to the other side of the planet, we want your experience with us to be as unique and special as the places and people you share it with.