Gravelly Bay - Sugarloaf

Port Colborne, Ontario

Managed by Niagara Coastal Community Collaborative

Click here to access detailed monitoring results and the open data feed for this location

Gravelly Bay sits at the southern end of the Welland Canal, near downtown Port Colborne and H.H. Knoll Lakeview Park. The waters here have been important to the community for a long time. The City of Port Colborne’s former name was even Gravelly Bay.

This is a very popular destination for boating, fishing, wakeboarding and other watersports. Many local companies offer rentals, classes, and excursions here. The park offers great views of the marina and the lake for people who prefer to stay on land.

In response to the growing popularity of Gravelly Bay, Swim Drink Fish started a regular water quality monitoring program here in 2019. The Lake Erie - Niagara hub is supported by The Niagara Coastal Community Collaborative and funded by Environment and Climate Change Canada.

If you want to get involved in water quality monitoring, just email erie-niagarahub@swimdrinkfish.ca for more information.

To access detailed monitoring results and the open data feed for this location, visit https://www.recreationalwater.ca/niagara.

Get directions to this beach

COVID-19

Keep your distance from other people.

Practicing social distancing is essential right now. Follow the advice of the health experts. If your community has asked that you remain indoors and away from others, do so. Heading to the beach should only be considered an option if social distancing practices can be followed. Spending a day in any crowded place is the worst thing we can do for our most vulnerable right now and will counter the efforts to curb the virus’ spread.

For more information, please visit the World Health Organization public resource on COVID-19.

Water Quality

Passed water quality tests 60-95% of the time
Historical Status
This status is based on the latest sample, taken on September 24th, 2020. Niagara Coastal Community Collaborative updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on September 25th, 2020 at 5:05 PM.

For water quality icon legend, click:

View this beach on Great Lakes Guide

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Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

Swim Drink Fish staff and volunteers, with support from the Niagara Coastal Community Collaborative, monitor recreational water quality along the North Shore of Lake Erie during the summer months. The guidelines followed are the Operational Approaches for Recreational Water Guideline, 2018, set by the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care. Prior to 2018 beaches in Ontario were posted when the geometric mean of 5 samples collected within a 30-day period exceeded 100 E. coli / 100 mL of water, a standard derived from the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks’ Provincial Water Quality Objectives.

Water is sampled for E.coli and Total Coliform at all sites. The water is sampled once weekly on Tuesdays or Thursdays from the end of July to early September. Results are available 24 hours after samples are collected, typically on Wednesday afternoons. Beaches are posted when the geometric mean of 5 samples collected within a given swimming area and within a 30-day period exceeds 200 E. coli / 100 ml of water or when a single-sample maximum concentration exceeds 400 E. coli / 100 ml of water. Test results are expressed as Most Probable Number (MPN) of E.coli per 100 ml by using the IDEXX Quanti-Tray/2000 MPN Table.

In accordance with Ontario’s provincial recreational water quality standard, a beach is marked Green when geometric mean of 5 samples results are equal or below 200 E.coli / 100 mL water and below the single sample criteria of 400 E.coli/100ml. A beach is marked Red when the geometric mean concentration (minimum of five samples) is above 200 E.coli / 100 mL or above the 400 E.coli/100mL for a single sample. A beach is marked Grey when there are no current results or there is no available information. Results are posted as soon as lab results are available. Results will be communicated through the Swim Guide website and apps. Results are also available by email at Erie-NiagaraHub@swimdrinkfish.ca or by calling The Swim Guide +1 (416) 861-1237.

Water Quality Graph