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North Lake Simcoe Map
Orillia Map, Lake Couchiching Map
One of our Ontario Attraction Maps: This is a regional Map of the consists the area from Kashe Lake and Sparrow Lake in the north down through Lake Couchiching to the northern half of Lake Simcoe. The towns included in the map are Kilworthy, Port Stanton, Severn Bridge, Washago, Orillia, Gamebridge, Lagoon City and Uptergrove. The history of some parts of the region dates back 4000 years to the native civilizations of the Huron and Iroquois people. Samuel d'Champlain the famous french explorer visited Orillia in the early part of the 1600's. A monument to Samuel de Champlain can also be found in Couchiching Park, in Orillia. The monument is designated as a Canadian National Historic Site. Other explorers of the area include: LaSalle, Henry and Frobisher.
Lake Simcoe called "Ouentironk" (meaning Beautiful Water) by the Wendat (native people) is thought to have also been once known as Lake Toronto. The word Toronto was an Iroquois term meaning, "place where trees stand in the water". This was named as such because of the fishing weirs that were set up in the lake by the Huron. These fishing weirs that were used to trap fish could readily be found in the place where Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching meet called the "Narrows". There are archeological sites that provide evidence of native fishing, hunting and trading camps in this area. The Trent-Severn waterway connects to Lake Simcoe through the Talbot River and exits Lake Simcoe through the Severn River. The Severn River flows into Georgian Bay of Lake Huron. The water of Lake Huron, one of the Great Lakes exits through to the Atlantic ocean via Lake Ontario and Lake Erie and out the St. Lawrence Seaway through eastern Canada. The current name of Lake Simcoe was given to this body of water by John Graves Simcoe the Lieutenant-Governor of "Upper Canada". He named the lake after his father in the late 1700's.
Lake Couchiching a 16 kilometer long and lake is only 5 kilometers wide. It is quite shallow with an average depth of only 6 metres. The word Couchiching is a native Wendat word that means "Lake of Many Winds".
The City of Orillia is located on the shores of these two connected lakes Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching. Orillia is by far the most populated city located within this Ontario Attraction Map. The Village of Orillia was incorporated in 1867 (sharing the same birthyear as Canada), became a town in 1875, and was designated a city in 1969. Orillia is thought to be named after the Spanish word "Orilla" which means shore or bank of a lake or river. Orillia most likely got its name from Lt. Gov. Sir Peregrine Maitland who served in the British military against the french in Spain. Other community names of Spanish origin include Oro which means gold and Mariposa which means butterly. Inverma, the Narrows and Newtown were other names for the town before the post office gave it the offical name of Orillia in 1836.
The Orillia of today is known as the "sunshine city" deriving this description from the Sunshine Sketches written in 1912 by Stephen Leacock. In these "Sunshine Sketches" of a Little Town, Orillia was used as the basis for the fictional town known as "Mariposa". The book was based on Leacock's experiences in the town. Orillia has since attempted to mimic the fictional location by keeping the look of the downtown area as a "small town". The Stephen Leacock Museum, located in Orillia, is a Canadian National Historic Site. An additional museum to visit in Orillia is the Orillia Museum of Art and History.
Many tourists and boaters are attracted to the city of Orillia each year because of its waterfront park and its position as a gateway to Lake Country, cottage country in Muskoka, Algonquin Provincial Park, and other natural attractions. The city's waterfront has an extensive lakeshore boardwalk, a large park with two beaches, several playgrounds, an outdoor theatre, a touring ferry, and a children's' train. Some of the local festivals and events include: the annual Perch Fishing Festival, the Leacock Festival, Blues Festival, Jazz Festival, Scottish Festival, annual "Christmas in June", (which includes a boat decorating contest and turkey buffet, every June 24th), the Mariposa Folk Festival and the Boat and Cottage Shows held in June and August.
More Information will be coming soon on the other towns located within the area that is pictured in the map above.
Provincial Parks do not have an advertisement page, but direct links to information on each particular park can be accessed by clicking the Ontario Parks logo on the map.
Provincial Parks in the North Lake Simcoe Map
Link to Southern Georgian Bay Map
Link to Blue Mountain Map
Link to Muskoka Region Map
Link to Huntsville and Lake of Bays Map
Link to North Lake Simcoe Map
Link to West Kawartha Lakes Map
Link to Parry Sound Map
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