Ward’s Island has one of the best views of the Toronto skyline.

Especially on a beautiful day like this.

Earlier in the year, I saw someone else take this trip and it inspired me to hop on a ferry over, even if it was during the quiet season. From mid April more ferries run to different parts of the Toronto Islands, but when I visited there was just one heading out to Ward’s Island (do check the schedule before heading over). However, as it sits at the western most edge of the islands, it’s the perfect starting point!

Sadly, the blue skies appeared to be slightly deceptive, as the islands were receiving a battering from some extremely cold and fierce winds. The ferry actually had trouble docking due to the strong waves around the shore of the island, but we made it eventually!

Regardless of the very chilly weather, it was still a lovely day (even if it did turn much cloudier later on), and once I headed to the opposite side of the island it was much more sheltered. There was a little beach, which was a nice spot to stop before taking a walk along the boardwalk and even offered me a chance to see some of the island’s little snakes!

The boardwalk really is the perfect place to cycle along and I almost wished the cycle hire had been open, so I could have ridden around the island instead….but perhaps it was a bit too cold for that! You wouldn’t think April would be too chilly, but it was around the 1 degree mark (C not F) and there was even some ice and snow left on the boardwalk if you can believe that!

With it being the off season almost nothing was open and there weren’t many inhabitants either (many are holiday homes only), so it was a bit of a ghost town around the residential areas. The upside to this was a very peaceful walk with no crowds at all, but it would have been nice to see a little bit more life to the place! I can imagine that in the warmer months it must be a super fun destination and bustling with everyone taking advantage of the activities and beaches. As it stood, it was pretty cold and beach days in the summer seemed quite a way off yet! Nonetheless it was a beautiful day for a stroll along the lakeside.

I definitely recommend a trip over, whatever the season, but you probably won’t need long if you come over in the colder months. The view alone is worth the ferry ride over, but if the temperature is in the single digits, make sure to layer up! You’ll be glad you did!

Ferry schedule here