Wheatley Provincial Park

Wheatley Beach is inside of the provincial park and available to campers and day-use visitors. With almost 2-kilometres of parkland running parallel to the beach, there is something for everyone. You'll find open lawn for groups and picnics, washrooms, shelters, and a volleyball court.

This is a great beach for people who want to spend time in the water swimming or paddling. There is canoe/kayak access to both Lake Erie and the park creeks at the furthest end of the road. Bring your own canoe from home or a nearby rental shop. The wide, deep creeks that surround the sites are full of heron and other marsh birds and make for an easy, beautiful paddle. You can end the day with a swim in Lake Erie to cool off.

The beach itself is gravelly, but it changes to sand once you get a few feet into the water. The water can be a bit deep for little kids or non-swimmers but is absolutely perfect for swimming, floating, playing catch, or other water sports activities.

It sits at the bottom of a bluff, which makes the beach feel secluded even when the park is busy. To get down to the water, look for access trails at either end of the parking area. The easiest one to find is all the way at the end of the road near the large picnic shelter and washrooms. The gravel parking lot has wheelchair accessible parking spots with board walks for those who need assistance.

While you are in the park, be sure to keep your eyes - and ears - peeled for birds. Wheatley is one of the southernmost parks in Ontario, near Point Pelee. This is one of the most important migratory bird routes in North America, so you'll find more birds here than many other parks. The air here is filled with the sound of bird-song.

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Water Quality

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Current Status
This status is based on the latest sample. Ontario Parks updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available.

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Current Weather

14°C

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Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

Ontario Parks samples beaches weekly from June to the end of August (weather permitting). However, some Parks do not begin sampling until mid-June due to factors such as water temperature. Ontario Parks beaches are monitored according to the province's Beach Management Protocol. The Protocol says that authorities must check water quality at least weekly from June 1 to Labour Day at beaches where there are formal swimming programs or lifeguards.

Beaches are typically tested early in the week, on Monday or Tuesday. Samples are processed at provincial labs, processing times vary from park to park, depending on location. Beach postings may occur anytime during the bathing season. As part of the routine monitoring program of public beaches, beach postings may be required where exceedance of recreational water quality levels and other environmental data supports the need for posting. Beaches are posted when the geometric mean of the samples collected exceeds 200 E. coli / 100 ml or if a single sample exceeds 400 E. coli / 100 ml. If the recreational water quality at a swim site meets this standard it is given a GREEN current status in Swim Guide. If the recreational water quality at a swim site exceeds this standard it is given a RED current status in Swim Guide. When water quality exceeds the recreational water quality standards, Ontario Parks posts alerts on their website. Beaches are also physically posted with a sign. Ontario Parks re-samples water that has exceeded the standard as soon as possible. Swim Drink Fish enters water quality test results into Swim Guide according to the actual date the sample was taken. Each Ontario Park typically samples its beaches on the same day every week (or month). Ontario Parks has provided us with the sample collection schedule (Mon-Sun) for Ontario Parks' beaches they monitor. The water quality data for Ontario Parks is entered according to their sample collection schedule. The Ministry of the Environment F-5-5 Procedure says that a clean beach is open at least 95% of the swimming season, even if it is near a sewage pipe or combined sewer outfall. This rule applies to every place that is public, accessible, and feels like a good place to swim. When all else fails, the Ontario Environmental Protection Act strongly states that no one can interfere with the use that you can make of a public waterway - like swimming!

Water Quality Graph