WHERE IS SPRING

Skiing Sun Peaks with friend Ian Logan

The day after we left for our western ski trip to BC it snowed over a foot at Foxwood. That was on March 2 and so it became obvious that March would be coming in like a lion. Here we are, just into the month of April and we are back into cold temperatures. Last night it went all the way down to -15C, and it's going to happen again tonight. By the end of this week the weather forecasters say we could have as much as 30 cm of new snow. Looks like April is in like a lion too!

Ragged Falls in flood

There are a few good things to the colder weather and one of them is to slow down the snow melt. The region has had a huge amount of rain over the last few days and there is flooding happening in many areas. The rivers and creeks have been running full tilt. We took a drive around yesterday to see what was going on. It was quite awe inspiring to see the power behind all that water rushing down.

Foxwood dock under 4" of water

Lake of Bays has risen well over foot in only the last few days. Our dock is currently about 4" underwater. Fortunately, the lake ice is still in so we don't have to worry about the wave action combining with the high water to erode the shoreline or damage our the dock. With a few more dry or cold days we should see the lake levels drop to safer levels.
It looks like relief from the colder temperatures is coming next week and then it's into spring clean up to get the grounds raked up and summer cottages opened.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE......nothing!

Winter has finally reached us. After spending about a month bumping along, teasing us with some cold and some snow, then pulling it back with rain and heat, it now looks like it's here to stay.

Snow covered trees on the Foxwood snowshoe trails

The lake had its official lake ice in day in front of Foxwood on January 14. The snowmobile trails have struggled with getting the wet spots frozen but now it looks like enough snow has accumulated to fill the low areas and smooth things out. It was only in the last day or two that we saw the first sleds going across the ice down Haystack Bay. It was about that time when I was asked about how much ice is needed to drive a snowmobile over the lake. The answer is simple. None. Most sleds these days have enough power to skim over water easily without sinking, but just don't let them get bogged down or come to a stop. The ice is getting thicker by the day, however it's best to check with local clubs to get a read on where it is OK to go.

Julia making friends with a grey jay

Yesterday we took along our camera for our daily snowshoe around the property. There was a dusting of snow blanketing every branch and it was stunning. The birds were everywhere, just flitting about looking for food. A few years ago we captured a pic of Julia feeding a grey jay. Unfortunately, we missed getting another pic like the last one.

If you are thinking about getting your winter engine going now is the time. The ski areas are open, cross country skiing tracksets are in, the ice skate trails are open and sledding has begun.
  

SAILING, SAILING.....

The Lady Bea

Earlier in November we headed down to the British Virgin Islands for an amazing sailing holiday.

The whole adventure began last winter when Julia asked what I wanted for my upcoming 60^th birthday. Last year we skied Tuckerman’s Ravine in New Hampshire for my birthday and we were most fortunate in being able to get all our kids together with us. Hiking up the super steep slopes of the Ravine and seeing them enjoy what I used to do in my younger years was a dream come true. Doing a sailing holiday was another dream that I had. Since I was on a roll, I thought why not give a try?

We threw the idea out to friends to join us. With Jim and Joan Gordon from Kamloops and Ian and Beth Haysom from Victoria we had a perfect mix of sailing experience, stories and conversation, and adventures.

The boat we selected was a 40 foot catamaran named Lady Bea based out of the capital, Road Town. From Road Town we circumnavigated the island of Tortola and then a week later were back in Road Town. Along the way we would stopped each night at one of the many beautiful islands that dotted our route.

Last dinner together at Cooper Island

The boat performed really well for us. There was a comfortable amount of room for everyone to move around, she was stable and managed even the stronger winds without problem. There was one little “blow” and with the wind at our backs and sizable surfing waves we got her up to just under 11 knots. That was quite good considering 7 or 8 knots is footing along quite well.

The British Virgin Islands is widely regarded as a perfect destination for those taking their first sailing trip. Sailing from one destination to the other is fairly easy, the mooring spots are well laid out. Our cat had two engines and screws (props) which made it easy to manoeuvre and since it was “low season” it never felt crowded.

In the end, I think that we both got a bit of the boat bug.  There we were on our last day in BVI looking at 42' er's in a marina wondering what it might feel like if we actually owned one! That’s another dream for another time.

IT'S BEEN FAR TOO LONG

Don't ask, but it has been way too long since our last post. Lots of excuses as to why it hasn't happen for so long, unfortunately none of them are very good. In any event, writing later is better than never.
Our winter has been cold this year which is nice 'cause that's what winter should be like. You know, snowy, white, rosy cheeks, hot chocolate and the best stars that you'll see anywhere without using a telescope.In fact, it was only a few nights ago that we saw a sliver of a moon right next to the bright light of Venus, with two framing in the red planet of Mars....and you could really see the red!

It's been colder.....but not by much!

We have been hearing from our friends living on the west coast in British Columbia that winter just hasn't happened. My old haunt at Grouse Mountain in Vancouver is brown; no snow, no skiing, no winter, no way! While it has been warm and balmy on the west coast, just a short time ago it was -37C here. We have had lots of snow, not quite as much as the Maritimes, but plenty to keep the trails (skiing, sledding, sliding and shoe-ing) in great shape. I wish my back could agree the same way.
Lately, I have been involved in a number of discussion groups, committees and workshops that have been trying to focus on what Muskoka is all about and how we can attract more people to come and visit. There are so many ways to look at this great part of Ontario and sometimes words simply aren't enough. The amazing fall colours, the hikes and parks, the beautiful clean lakes, the history... this place is iconic. It is so rare to find spots like these, so close to "civilization", amazingly safe and untouched and all with a hint of "wild" just about everywhere you go. The brand of Muskoka, and in particular where we are at Foxwood in North Muskoka, is so much about what is real, simple and pure. It is about the surroundings - the air, the water, the fire and earth.
Families have been coming to Muskoka for generations and for many of those who call it home, it is hard to fathom the thought of anybody wanting to change it. But change has happened and it will continue. The cottages are slowly getting bigger, the lakes are slowly getting busier, the noises are slowly getting louder and the people are quickly expecting Muskoka to have all of the luxuries of the big city. I wish I could convince those living in the big cities that coming to Muskoka as a way to "escape the stress of the city" on the busiest weekends of the year, when everybody else is here, is not the way to do it. And the "make or break" decisions should not be based on how many TV's we have (or even if we have them) or how fast our internet speed is.  
For us at Foxwood we realize how important it is to have Lake of Bays, a quiet location at the end of road, simple clean cottages with screen doors that slam shut in the wind, a measly WiFi service that can't handle downloading movies or large files and no TV in 90% of our cottages. What we do have is an atmosphere that allows guest to let their guard down and still feel safe, to relax, to enjoy the sounds of children (adults too) laughing and playing with others, to sit under tree and hear the waves lapping up on shore, and being able to read a book without being interrupted for hours! Can you imagine enjoying a lake that is so clean you could drink the water out of it... but don't, because the fish and birds do their doo-doo in it.
Some who call us about staying at Foxwood think we are a long, long ways away from Toronto. Those who finally come and stay with us at Foxwood feel that they could be a million miles away! Yes, we are at the end of the road, just the way we like, just the way all of our guests like it. 

We did a fun movie about what living in North Muskoka and what running Foxwood means to us.Click here to view it. Most of the shots were taken at Foxwood, the others are from the nearby surroundings. The first minute of it moves slowly however we hope that you enjoy it

NEPAL

Our trip to Nepal was nothing short of amazing. Unlike a trip to the beaches of the Caribbean or a trip to Disneyland, this trip had everything in it and it had a profound effect on how we see things. At times it was emotionally wrenching, other times it was awe inspiring, but all of the time it was truly an education. 
Here is a country that for the most part has stayed still for generations, but on other levels it has seen great change. It was less than 10 years ago that Nepal was going though internal strife that resulted in the execution of its monarchy, thousands of civilian deaths and the displacement of just as many children into the hands of strangers or left abandoned to fend for themselves.
The city of Kathmandu comes alive before it gets light and goes to sleep hours after dark. Every aspect of day to day life happens on the streets and alleyways. There are two traffic lights in the entire city. Crossing the street is a balancing act that would challenge the Great Wallenda. The markets are alive with colour and activity and the congestion of people is claustrophobic. Everyone is trying to sell something and we found great fun great in negotiating a good deal but at the same time being respectful of the fact that making a living means earning enough to buy food and have shelter.
Nepal is a spiritual garden that is being constantly cared for buy its people. It seems to be one thing that holds them together and for many, makes getting from one day to the next meaningful. There is a festival  for everything and there seems to be one happening all of the time. 
We met Beverley Bronson the first day in Nepal. She is a New Yorker who came to Nepal in the mid 90's and in 2001 started Ghar Sita Mutu - House With A Heart - a children's orphanage which provides a loving atmosphere for about 20 children. The story of Nepal's orphaned children is one that tears at your emotions. Read Little Princes to get an idea of what is going on for the children in Nepal

Our trip brought us to the southern edges of Nepal, into the jungle where we rode elephants and saw rhinos, wild boars and alligators. We travelled north by plane to the edge the Mustang region, where the countryside is like a moonscape, barren, dry, covered in rocks and boulders, but oh, so full of things to see. A few hours up a river valley from Kegbeni we came to the small village of Tiri. We were invited into a farmers mud hut - no light, no heat,cramped - and we were offered coffee and masala tea. Their generosity was overwhelming. Their life is not easy, they don't dream of big plans, nothing had changed in that family for probably generations and generations. 
Who would go to Nepal and not see Mt Everest? Certainly not us! We took that trip of a lifetime and got into the sight seeing plane to see where history was made 60 or 70 years ago. The plane we were in couldn't even go up half the almost 30,000 ft that Mt Everest soars to. 
We could go on and on, however to give you a feel for what we saw and experienced we put together a short slide show. Click here to see it and enjoy.

THE SWIM IS IN

Although a bit later this year, the ice finally made its' exit on April 30. Normally we see it go somewhere around April 19, 20 or 21; last year was exceptional when it left around March 23. 
We headed off to Nepal at the end of March and thought that surely by the time we returned all of the snow would be gone. Much to our amazement there was lots left. Even as we landed in Toronto on April 16 the pilot announced that it was -7C. We learned that two days before we got back that there was a 10 -15cm snowfall at Foxwood. It was less that a week ago that the night temperatures were still dipping below freezing... our chickens didn't like that .
It now looks like we have turned the corner and spring is upon us. Julia made her annual spring dip on April 29 with ice still abound on the lake. The water temperature was very nice 44F/7C. And the next day the ice was gone so the timing was brilliant. Rumour has it that Julia raised the lake temperature and thus was the reason for the rapid disappearance of lake ice...aah, the wonders of a woman's hot body! 

WOLF, WOLF, WOLF....WOLF

Yesterday Julia and friends went out cross country skiing. Despite the fact that in the morning it was in the -20C's the day was beautiful. Clear skies, a skiff of fresh, dry snow and peaceful. The icy wind put a bit of a bite on the cheeks but other than that one could not have imagined a better day to be outdoors.
But it did get better, much, much better! Where the group were skiing was on Art's Pond, next to Goose Lake which is on the north side of Highway 35 between Dwight and Dorset and maybe 10 or 15 kilometers from Foxwood. There they were, four wolves. Apart from noticing the group of skiers the wolves were relatively relaxed.
The alpha wolf stood his ground and watched over things while the other three trotted off into the woods. 
As the group skied up to where the wolves stood earlier there were the tracks left behind. Their paw prints were massive compared to those of Annie our Border Terrier and even to paws of the Black lab that was with skiers.
Every now and then we hear the wolves howl at Foxwood. It is so neat to be able to see them. They're shy and try to stay away from humans. So being able to catch a glimpse, particularly in the middle of the day, was such a treat.
If you are interested in learning more about wolves try visiting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysa5OBhXz-Q

A BIT ON THE WILD SIDE

The last few weeks have been cold, really cold.....crazy cold! There were a few days when the thermometer on the Weather Network screen reported -38C. That is about  the same temperature in Fahrenheit degrees. When we finally got our camera to take a shot of what it was saying the temperature had warmed up to a balmy -34C, oooowee. 
Whenever it gets that cold and thermometer dips down below that -30C mark everything starts getting affected. Standing on the back porch we could hear the trees in the forest making cracking sounds, the parking brake in our little car doesn't work, the seats in the truck freeze and they don't have that same amount of "give" when you sit down. The poor wildlife too. 

In fact, it was so cold that it got even more wild here as John Deer and Jane Doe decided that they would check in and spend a night in Jolly Rover. They walked straight up to the front door, expecting a cozy night sitting by the fireplace, sipping a hot toddy, but alas it was already booked by somebody else.
Hopefully we'll see a break in the weather this week; settling for -15C doesn't sound that bad these days. Fortunately we're staying warm in Chinook cottage and we have been leaving the heat lamp on for the chickens so they are managing OK as well. 
Family Day weekend is coming up in just a few weeks. There will still be lots of winter left then!

 

ENOUGH ALREADY, I SAID ENOUGH

What a winter we are having in North Muskoka. The lake froze over before December, the snow started in November, the ski hills had their earliest starts ever and mid winter conditions are here in the first week of January.
Just before Christmas we were getting snowfalls of 5 - 10cm on a daily basis. The snow was piling up on the picnic table just outside of our bedroom. On December 23 we took picture of the soon-to-be disappearing table. The holidays did not disappoint this year and we had one of the whitest Christmas' in years.

Last week we took a short two day visit to New York City to visit relatives. By the way, we flew Porter Air and was it ever a nice way to fly; inexpensive, lots of flight choices and way less hassle compared to Pearson. We returned last Tuesday just as the cold, snowy weather was wreaking havoc on the airports and roads. By the time we got back to Foxwood on Wednesday afternoon there must have been 40+ cm of new snow on the ground. The following two days were spent digging out driveways and cottages and shoveling off the roof of the Main Lodge. 
The picnic table that we took a picture of two weeks earlier really tells the story. It is now almost completely gone! Buried under a meter or more of snow, we likely won't see this stately piece of furniture 'til spring. So enough snow and how about some sunshine.
In the meantime, we'll be enjoying the fluffy stuff, after all that is what winter is all about!

BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE

Bigwin Island as seen from Foxwood

This morning the thermometer read -24C! Yesiree, winter has arrived! Not a lot of snow but the ground is frozen solid and the heat lamp is on in the chicken coop to keep our hens somewhat warm. 
It was particularly beautiful this morning so we took a few pictures. Hoar frost was coating all of the trees and with the sunshine reflecting off the ice crystals it made for some neat effects. Even the rock wall that surrounds part of our waterfront was wrapped in an icy cloak. Looking down the lake we could see signs of Haystack Bay beginning to freeze over. Usually the ice doesn't start forming on the lake until just before Christmas so perhaps these are all good signs for a white Christmas and a real Muskoka winter.
By looking at our holiday reservations it appears that even our guests are confident the holidays will be snowy. We still have some space but so far bookings are looking very good. Our local ski hill, Hidden Valley Highlands, opened last week under the influence of good snow making weather. That is about as early as you can get and we believe they are the first to open in southern Ontario. 

We want to remind anyone who is thinking about visiting this winter that Foxwood guests can receive a 10% discount off the posted lift rates at Hidden Valley. As well, while at Foxwood we offer complimentary use of our snowshoes for exploring the nature trails at Foxwood. We are also happy to guide you around the trails during the day. There is lots of nature to see; deer, wild turkeys or fox. For a very special Foxwood experience, we also invite our guests to join us and share in our tradition of going out at night under the stars and moonlit sky. A cup of hot chocolate along the way, the hooting of an owl or the occasional howl of a wolf in the distance make for a very memorable experience. 

DOCKTAIL HOUR

Many of our guests this week have been gathering at the waterfront for docktail hour. Anywhere else it would be just plain cocktails. It has been amazing weather this week and what better way to spend the later afternoon hours than with great company, a cool breeze, fresh air, awesome sunsets...absolutely perfect!
For Len and Adele it was also time to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary. Congratulations! The two have also been bringing there family to Foxwood for about 15 years now.

With not even two weeks left to the summer, the summer holidays are quickly coming to an end. Nevertheless, the lake water is still beautiful for swimming and should stay that way for at least another two or three more weeks. Right now it's sitting at about 77F/23C. 
Fall colours will start happening by the 2nd or 3rd week of September and usually carry on 'til after Thanksgiving.
It's a good time to visit North Muskoka.

WHAT ARE THE CHANCES?

Although it seems like it was ages ago, the heavy rainfalls and quickly melting snow that created all of the flooding in April wasn't that long ago. Foxwood and most of area around really didn't get badly affected. There was the odd road washing out and the ground became very soggy. Huntsville was another story; we had sightings of people canoeing down Highway 11 just north of town and the Big East River spilled its' banks in many places.
Lake of Bays went up quite high and was about 12" above our dock. Fortunately for us, the ice didn't tear anything away and the lake stayed fairly calm throughout, otherwise the results could have been disastrous. We have friends on Peninsula Lake, one lake to the west of us, who had their large boat house taken right off its base, and tossed 25 feet away onto its side. Moving ice, even a couple of inches of it, carries so much power!
The lake water is still high but the water is warming up. It was about 60F today and Julia was in swimming. She said it was actually quite nice. Brrr ...to cold for me! By the weekend we are hoping to get the ski boat in. Meg is chomping at the bit to get on the water for some wakeboarding time.
What was really eerie was what we found a few weeks ago sitting on the dock. The high water had just receeded to a point that left the top of the dock exposed. Up until this time many things around the lake became floating objects, lifting many boats, dock chairs and boathouse items from the safety of where they usually sat untouched under normal water level conditions. While surveying the water levels one night, our daughter Meg, noticed a pile to debris sitting on our dock right next to shore. Right on the top of a small pile of scrap wood, pine needles and sticks, just waiting to be noticed, was a red pen. She picked it up and read the inscription on the side ...."FOXWOOD INN - LAKE OF BAYS, DWIGHT, ONTARIO   705-635-2333"
The resort hasn't been called "Foxwood Inn"  for years and who knows when that phone number was last used. The pen had to be at least 20 years old or more. Where did it come from? Did it float up out of our dock? Possibly, but most of it was completely re-built half a dozen years ago. Did it come from another place across the lake? Who knows, but somehow it made its' way back to Foxwood, onto the end of our dock, to sit on top a bunch of debris, to be found after so many years. Just like ET.
Maybe it is a sign that this will be the year that we see the return of many long lost Foxwood guests. Are you one of them? .


 

SPRING FLINGS

Winter is pretty well all but done although there is still snow on the ground and the lake remains iced over. This time of year is typically when there is not much to do; the ground is too soggy to work on, we can't turn the water on in cottages because the evening temps often dip well below freezing, skiing is over and hiking trails are deep with mushy spring snow. So what do we do? When possible, we take off for a spring fling.
Julia's has had the West Highland Way on her "to do" list and so in mid March she took off to hike the 100 miles of Scottish wilderness with two of her friends. Although it was earlier in the hiking season - I think that the trail was still closed for winter - the gals had a great time enjoying the scenery, the old inns and Scottish cuisine. I stayed home to take care of the chickens, the cat and the dog.
A few days after Julia got back, I was off to Lake Tahoe for a few days of skiing with Meg, Adam and Adam's girlfriend Teresa. The weather wasn't brilliant and the snow was a bit on the thin side for spring but we had a great time skiing Squaw Valley, Kirkwood and Heavenly Valley. Of the three I'm pretty sure we all agreed that Kirkwood was #1. A bit more low key, fewer people and really good skiing!
Poor John missed out on the West Highland Way and the skiing at Lake Tahoe, however he also had an exciting spring as well. He was part of a team of 3 who were fortunate to be accepted to participate in the Oxford University Intellectual Property Moot competition in March. The team was sponsored by a local Ottawa law firm and the event involved a simulated court situation where opposing teams argue for one side of the case or the other. After losing their very first round to the 2012 winning team, they went on undefeated and won the whole thing! The Ottawa Citizen and the Ottawa University Gazette covered the story
Next for us is to wait for the snow to leave and the ground to dry out so that we can get Foxwood open and ready for our May guests.

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IT'S SO COLD THAT.......

Talk about cold, when we got up this morning the temperature was -37C without the wind chill factored in! By noon it had warmed up to a balmy -23C. We even heard some places were recording temperatures of -38C. Fortunately, there was little or no wind around otherwise it would have been a very different story.
Starting up our vehicles went OK however it is interesting how everything changes once you get below -30C. The doors creek, the dials on the dashboards become stiff and hard to move and the trees make a "cracking" sound as they adapt to the cold. The stars in the night sky seem to shine that much more brightly in the crisp air as well. 
So far, we haven't seen any snowmobiles on the lake as the ice has just been too unreliable up to now. We imagine that by the weekend the thickness of the ice will be sufficient ....however where ever you decide to venture make sure that the surface is safe! 
We noticed that Hidden Valley Ski area has taken advantage of the cold weather to make heaps and heaps of machine made snow. That should make for great conditions on the slopes right into spring time.
Annie, our border terrier had her winter coat on when she was out snowshoe-ing with us today. The trails now have a good covering of snow. Funny how winter looked like a loss a week ago when it was raining and the snow was melting away. 
Winter has finally reclaimed it's ownership of January. Bring it on!


  

ITALY...FINALLY

We are 2 months late posting news about our trip to Italy, but we feel it's better late than never. So, here is a Cole's notes version of our trip.
On October 11 we flew to Rome and everything went smoothly. After landing we found our way to the train station to catch a ride to Naples. After a few hours speeding along at about 225km/h we arrived. It was then another train ride, albeit much, much slower, to meet our friends who had earlier traveled from Kamloops,BC. We hung out in Sorrento few days and then took the bus to Amalfi. The roads and buildings were amazing as they clutched onto rock faces hundreds of feet above the ocean. We made a number of side trips. It would have been so easy to spend days exploring Pompeii and Vesuvius, Revello was absolutely beautiful (we took tons of pictures at Villa Rufolo), the hike along the Path of the Gods was everything we imagined and we met Pietro who sang for us at dinner and even signed his "limited edition" cd that we bought from him. The Isle of Capri and the Blue Grotto were definitely memorable adventures on several fronts.

After saying goodbye to our friends in Amalfi we hired a car from Sorrento and drove north to Assisi to meet up with some of Julia's family. We rented a spacious villa that sat in the middle of an olive grove. Our trips here involved a bit more travelling by car. There was lots to explore in Assisi and plenty of good food and drink. We sat in a small church that was built in 1166 and wondered about the people built it and what it was like living then. The caves at Orvieto were fascinating and the cathedral, like many in Italy, left us in awe; it took 30yrs to design and 3 centuries to build! We visited the Marmore waterfall. They were made by the Romans in the 3rd century BC and are the highest in Europe, dropping 165m.We couldn't resist taking a winery for a tour. Just outside the town of Todi we found Roccafiori, an organic winery and just 15 years old.
We flew back on October 26, thoroughly touristed-out and glad to be back home. There were many more adventures which we are happy share if you ask us. All in all, Italy was a hit for us!

WINTER IS COMING!

We haven't done very well with our BLOG lately. The summer seemed to fly by and before we knew it we were off to Italy on vacation.....and then we just got lazy. So, sorry if you kept checking us out, only to see that there was nothing new. We'll try to do better.
Anyhow winter is bearing down on us. Last week the temperatures dipped down to -14C. Now that was chilly, but certainly no where near the -30C that we occasionally see in the winter months. Those cold nights and quiet breezes allowed for the lake to start freezing in the bays and sheltered areas. The main parts of lake will take a bit more time. Usually sometime over the holidays we see it ice over. Lately, with global warming has made things more unpredictable; last year the ice came in later and it went out a month early.
Also, with coming of winter the sun sits lower in the sky. There are still the great sunsets to see, it's just that the sun goes down earlier and slightly more to the south.
The Foxwood nature trails are almost ready for snowshoeing. Guests at Foxwood are welcome to use them free of charge. We'll even take those who want on a evening hike when the sky is black as ever and the stars are shining brightly. It is really quite a memorable experience particularly under a full moon.
The local ski area, Hidden Valley Highlands, just opened last week and they are working hard to get a good carpet of snow down with the aid of their snowmaking system. Over the winter remember that you get 10% off lift tickets when you stay with us.
All of our shopping is done, the tree lights are up and we are getting ready to greet our holiday guests....we have a few spaces remaining over Christmas and New Years.Sometime in the next week or so we'll update you on our Italy trip.
Cheers!

THIS COURT IS APPEALING

It took more than 3 weeks of patience and a lot of hard work by Luke Bussey and his dad Barry to get the whole court rejuvenated. The weather was a big factor when doing this work and it played havoc throughout with 34C+ temperatures one week and then 1", pea size hail stones on another week.  

Luke owns Canadian Shield Surfacing and his specialty is redoing court surfaces. He knows his trade well, he works harder than anyone we've seen, he's honest and he takes tremendous pride in what he does. Does it sound like we're happy?
It took 3 coats of leveler, an amazing amount of patching and sanding to the fill holes, two coats of colour and then the lines painted on. Our guests will be tremendously happy with what they find this summer. The transformation from a rough, tired old court to what we have now is fantastic.
Luke and his dad were each given the honorary first serve to open the new surface. 

WHAT"S GOING ON?

What is going on here. Over the May Long weekend the weather was glorious - temperatures reached upwards of 30C, sunshine and guests enjoying the lake. Then a few weeks later we had a tremendous hail storm. About an inch of hail with pieces the size of a marbles came pounding down. It was very localized but it knocked the power out for hours and made quite a mess of our roads and walkways. We even had to delay our tennis court resurfacing for a few days until everything dried up. We are now back to resurfacing the court and temperatures are back up into the 30C's. What's going on?

For now it looks like the next week or so will be great. The new court surface should be down by the weekend if we are lucky. So bring your rackets and get ready for some good tennis. The new Moomba ski/wakeboard boat is looking good too! We were out for a ride tonight to test things out.

THE HONEYMOON WAS 32 YEARS AGO

It was almost 32 years to the day when the two of us set out from Canoe Lake for our honeymoon. And now, many years later, here we are setting out again for a paddle in Algonquin Park...albeit heading in the opposite direction down Smoke Lake to Ragged Lake.
Although we were gone for only two days and an overnight it felt much longer, which was a good thing. We had an easy paddle in calm-ish waters to start, then a short portage and then we reached Ragged Lake. Lots of bays and interesting points of land made up the shape of Ragged Lake, much like Lake of Bays. 
Along the way we spotted several beavers swimming, a painted turtle sunning itself on a log, and a couple of eagles soaring overhead. The temperatures were about 27C and because of the little moisture around the bugs were really not a problem. Annie, our boarder terrier, didn't take long before she felt comfortable back in her saddle, riding the packs and balancing with her forelegs on the gunnels of the canoe
There was nobody on the lake anywhere and so we checked out a few camping spots and had our pick. We settled on an idyllic point with a nice sandy landing area for the canoe and a good SE exposure for the morning sun. It didn't take long before Julia was in the lake for a swim. She thought the water seemed a bit warmer than Lake of Bays, which was about 66F or about 15C. 
Dinner was beautiful. A bit of smoked salmon with crackers, followed by one of Julia's interesting concoctions of beans, onion soup, chili and rice. We topped it off with an amazing bottle of 2007 Chateau des Laurets sipped out of a pair of plastic coffee mugs....ah, camping is still so very romantic!

MEG'S DREADS ARE GONE

On April 22 Meg decided that after 6 years of growing her dreadlocks that it was time for a change. So, she had them cut off. 

Sitting on the picnic table in front of Chinook cottage her mum snipped them one by one 'yil they were all gone. What a difference it made and what a reaction from all who know Meg. The new look was great and Meg enjoyed the new feel.