Community Life on Manitoulin Island

Jim and Connie Dalrymple's bluff-view house is located just outside Gore Bay, Ontario, Canada on Manitoulin – the largest freshwater island in the world. Traveling to and from Manitoulin is easy. Year-round road access from the mainland is available at the northeast corner of the island, and a 364-foot, 240-car ferry called the Chi-Cheemaun also makes the 1 3/4-hour run to and from the southeast corner of the island to the mainland from May to October.

Gore Bay is a quiet, safe and friendly town of 900 people on the western half of Manitoulin Island. This place may be small, but it has everything  you need – shops, a school, a bank, medical clinic, dental office, a government office, post office, restaurants, clothing stores, and more. There's a famous marina down at the water, and a first-rate golf course and year-round airport just outside town.

Access to excellent medical care is something worth mentioning in particular. The local medical clinic in Gore Bay and the hospital in Mindemoya, 43 km away, provide excellent, friendly care. If something happens that can't be handled locally, an air lift service to major centres is always available.

Watch the video below for a tour of Gore Bay. The new owners of the Dalrymple home won't just be buying a house, they'll also be joining one of the nicest, full-featured small communities in Ontario.