This is an excerpt from my new book, “Ontario Escapes: 19 Great Places to Visit Right Now.” It’s available from Apple Books (and only for Apple devices) for just $4.99 Canadian. What a deal! Here’s the link for the book: https://books.apple.com/ca/book/ontario-escapes/id1523750857 Chapter 11: Gravenhurst and Muskoka WHAT: There’s a reason some folks call Muskoka Toronto’s playground. Located just two hours (maybe less given COVID-19 traffic, or lack of same) north of the city, you’ll find amazing lakes strewn with rocky islets and towering, deep green trees. It’s as pretty as a postcard, and easy to reach. WHERE: Gravenhurst, the Read more
kayaking
This is a chapter from my new book, called Ontario Escapes: 19 Great Places to Visit Right Now. It’s available from Apple Books for just $4.99. DIVERSE AND DELIGHTFUL GREY COUNTY WHAT: Grey County features lovely BnB’s, cute, quiet towns like Meaford and an abundance of beautiful nature, including Georgian Bay shorelines, rugged Niagara Escarpment hikes and tumbling waterfalls. WHERE: Meaford is roughly from 180 kms northwest of Toronto and about 34 kms northwest of Collingwood. GOOGLE MAP COORDINATES: Millhollow B&B, Meaford: JC32+GQ Meaford, Ontario Old Baldy Conservation Area: 9FRJ+QM Kimberley, Ontario Scandinave Spa: GP25+QW The Blue Mountains, Ontario An Read more
I’m paddling gently through a shallow creek that runs off the south branch of the Muskoka River on a perfect, early summer’s day in Bracebridge. I hear the call of unfamiliar birds echoing through the trees as I skim along the surface of the creek in my brilliant orange kayak. Off to my left, an iridescent, small, blue and black dragonfly comes to rest on a brilliant yellow pond lily. A few feet away, I spot a small turtle sunning itself on a log on a 22 Celsius morning. My wife and I ease our kayaks back out into the Read more
This is a story about a glorious part of Nova Scotia that I originally had published in CAA magazine a couple years ago. Since we can’t travel right now, I’m posting some stories of mine from the past in the hopes of providing a bit of inspiration. The Eastern Shore of Nova Scotia is only a short drive from Halifax, but it’s another world. When I was there a few years ago I didn’t see a chain hotel or a franchise restaurant anywhere. What I did find were beautiful, quiet bays, goofy but inspiring folk art places and a lovely Read more
CRYSTAL RIVER, FLORIDA – It’s late afternoon and I’m nursing a cup of coffee on the patio outside my room at the Plantation on Crystal River. It’s mostly cloudy but I can see some breaks off to the west. The lazy person in me wants to stay and drink my coffee. The photographer in me says, “Hey, sunset!” The photographer wins. I walk out to my rental car and make the 15-minute drive out to Fort Island Beach, a pretty spot on the Gulf of Mexico. I’m expecting maybe a handful of folks on a Sunday night, but I find Read more
