Mother Nature’s brutal winter forces opening delays for some Algonquin Park facilities

A lake is partly covered in snow and ice still at Algonquin Provincial Park. (Algonquin Provincial Park)

A major Ontario park is delaying some of its opening dates due to after effects of a brutal winter.

Algonquin Provincial Park has been forced to change its plans and some facilities will be open later than it was hoping.

With snow and ice still staying past their welcome, the park says the campground Brent will be opening on Friday, with the original plan for it to open on April 24.

• RELATED: Some of Algonquin Park lakes still ice-covered, says park staff

The campgrounds Achray, Kiosk and Tea Lake had delayed openings as well but were able to open this week.

The park warns all roads leading to backcountry access points could be in poor condition as they have not yet been maintained by Ontario Parks. Some of them are closed until Friday due to washouts. Those closed roads include Basin Lake, Bissett Creek Road, Brain Lake, Magnetawan Lake and Rain Lake.

The interpretive trail, Whiskey Rapids, is closed due to high water along Oxtongue River.

Finally, a couple of the trailer dump and fill sanitary stations are closed: Highway 60 at km 35.4 and Rock Lake Campground are both closed.

Ontario Parks says spring comes later at Algonquin than surrounding areas due to the park’s higher elevations. Even if snow and ice are no longer an issue to the south, winter tends to stick around at Algonquin.

The park says in a typical year, ice on Algonquin’s lakes stay until the last week of April or first week of May.

Several campgrounds are still closed with most set to open Friday.