Colonel Sam Smith's Rebuilt Whimbrel Point Belongs to Weekends This November

On a mild Sunday in November 2024, the leaders of an Ontario Field Ornithologists walk at Colonel Samuel Smith Park changed their plan before it began. A Purple Sandpiper had been reported that morning, so they took 24 participants straight out to Whimbrel Point. For about half the group, it was a first sighting. Three Snow Buntings then landed briefly on the breakwater rocks, and according to the trip report, some participants joked that they could go home happy.

Those rocks have since been rebuilt. The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority spent most of 2025 armoring the Whimbrel Point headland, and its project page says the work was finished in spring 2026. That makes this the first November since the rebuild. Repairs are still going on farther along the shore on weekdays, so the park's best late-fall stretch now mostly fits into Saturdays, Sundays and weekday evenings.

The Headland Was Rebuilt for the Birds That Use It

The TRCA's Colonel Samuel Smith Park Major Maintenance Project started because more than half of the shoreline protection structures the authority monitors in the park were badly damaged and ranked as high priority for repair. Whimbrel Point was in the first phase. Crews built an access road, stockpiled stone through spring 2025, and placed armor stones of up to 6 tonnes around the headland.

The plan also took the birds into account. TRCA said the stones Whimbrels already used would be reused on the rebuilt headland so the habitat stayed consistent, and it described the work as improving and expanding Whimbrel habitat. The point is named for a bird that stops there for only three to five days a year on its spring trip to the Arctic. The rest of the year, the same rock draws a different group of visitors, and November is when many of them show up.

Construction Hours Set the Week

Finishing the headland did not finish the project. In its spring 2026 update, TRCA wrote that work continues along the southern shoreline to repair badly damaged areas. It also said all or part of Whimbrel Point may open to the public on evenings and weekends once restoration is done, depending on construction access. Phase 1 is expected to finish in 2027, and Phase 2 starts after that.

Crews reach the shore along existing park trails. Those routes close from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, and reopen outside those hours and on weekends. The Waterfront Trail's closure notice describes the same pattern: a small section of the park closed on weekdays, with an on-site detour. Here is how the pieces stand going into November.

The City's park page still describes the Thirteenth and Morrison entrance as scheduled work and gives no completion date. Check the signs at the corner before planning to go in that way. TRCA says marked detours will keep people able to enter from Thirteenth Street during its shoreline work.

What a November Weekend Loop Has Turned Up

Birders have tracked this park closely for years. The eBird hotspot page for Colonel Samuel Smith Park lists 299 species across more than 30,000 checklists, and the Toronto Ornithological Club names it as the home of its spring Whimbrel Watch. Two recent Ontario Field Ornithologists trips give a clear picture of the late-fall season. Both went in the same general order, which works well on a weekend when the shoreline trail is open.

1. Whimbrel Point. The November 2024 group found the Purple Sandpiper and Snow Buntings on the breakwater rocks here. In December 2025, a group walking toward the point saw Red-breasted Mergansers and Long-tailed Ducks out in the rough water.
2. West Point and the marina entrance. On the 2024 walk, the water off West Point held Red-breasted Mergansers, Gadwall, American Black Duck, Long-tailed Duck, Bufflehead, American Wigeon and a Mute Swan. A December 2025 group starting at the Powerhouse found the west end near the marina entrance to be where waterfowl gather, and saw Red-tailed and Rough-legged Hawks and a Northern Harrier over the water.
3. North Creek Wetland. On the way back in 2024, the group saw Yellow-rumped Warblers and Blue Jays, then two American Coots, Green-winged Teal and a Great Blue Heron in the wetland, with six Common Goldeneye offshore.
4. The inland conifers. A December 2025 walk found a Long-eared Owl inland. A week later, another group searched the conifers for one without luck, but saw a Snowy Owl in the marina instead.

These are records from past trips, not a forecast for this month. They do show the pattern. By November and into December, the ducks are on the lake, and the rocky edges the TRCA has been rebuilding are where some of the season's least common birds have turned up. That fits the TRCA's own plan, which says it phases construction around migratory bird movement and schedules work around park events.

The Window Closes When the Ice Opens

Weekend birding is the main reason to visit in November because the park's busier winter draws have not opened yet. The City calls the trail beside the Power House Toronto's first ice skating trail. It says outdoor artificial rinks typically open in late November and close in March. No 2026–27 date has been announced for the Colonel Sam trail. Last season, the City published its rink and skating trail opening notice on November 28, 2025, with a gradual opening update set for Saturday, November 29. The City's Skate Lending Library vans start visits on November 20, 2026, and the full 2026/27 schedule has not been posted yet.

The Lakeshore Grounds calendar also picks up around then. Last year the New Toronto Holiday Market marked its sixth year on Saturday, November 29, at the Humber Polytechnic Student Welcome and Resource Centre, 2 Colonel Samuel Smith Park Drive. It hosted 26 local artists, vendors and small businesses and raised $1,025 for the Etobicoke Humane Society from vendor table fees. Organizers say it returns in November 2026 and will share the date on their webpage, newsletter and social channels.

So the weeks between the end of fall color and the first skate are when the park is mostly left to birders, dog walkers and anyone who comes for the lake itself. This year, those weeks start with a newly rebuilt headland.

Warming Up on Lake Shore Afterward

A November walk on the point usually means wind off the lake. The December 2025 trip leaders called the walk "rather windy" and noted that the wind made it feel colder at times. The Lake Shore Boulevard West strip by the park now has two cafés that opened this year, so warming up afterward takes only a short walk.

• Café Delicia, 3341 Lake Shore Blvd. W., is a European-style café and patisserie. A local directory lists its opening as July 31, 2026, with hours of 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.
• Eva's Daily Cafe, a few doors down at 3333 Lake Shore Blvd. W., opened January 9, 2026. Its posted hours are Tuesday to Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• DeCourses Café, 3232 Lake Shore Blvd. W., serves brunch every day from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and bakes its goods in-house. That suits an early start at the marina.
• Lale Bakery & Caffe, farther west at 3665 Lake Shore Blvd. W., posts daily hours for anyone leaving by the Kipling side and heading toward Long Branch.

Hours at small cafés change with the seasons, so check before a late-afternoon visit. If you want a full weekend afternoon without the work crews, start with the rocks at Whimbrel Point, walk the loop past West Point to North Creek Wetland, and finish with a coffee on Lake Shore.

The Larose Team keeps track of how projects like the TRCA's shoreline work change everyday life along this part of the lake, from which trails close on weekdays to which new businesses open nearby. If you're curious how that lakeside setting affects the value of a home near Colonel Sam Smith Park, request a free home valuation and we'll go through it with you.