This wide and sandy bay got its name in the era of travelling fur-traders who would camp on the sandy shore of the bay, while enroute to Montreal from Fort William. Their supplies were running short by this time, and so dinner often consisted of pancakes made from their remaining flour.

The beach -- 3.2 kilometres of fine, pure sand -- is sheltered from the open lake by the two protective promontories that form the bay. Over many years, the prevailing winds and the action of the waves have piled up the sand on the shores of the bay.

The diverse vegetation here is typical of the transitional zone between the northern boreal forest and the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence lowlands. Pines are most common along the shoreline, while farther inland, yellow birch and sugar maples predominate and stunted cedars grow in the wetlands. Wild strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and cranberries, as well as hazelnuts, are abundant. Wildlife includes chipmunks, beavers, muskrats, squirrels and several types of birds.