GRAVENHURST, ONTARIO – It’s intermission, and members of the band Pretzel Logic are standing on a patio outside a Gravenhurst concert venue called Peter’s Players. There’s nothing unusual about that, perhaps, but in this case they’re mingling with members of the audience on a perfect late spring night in Muskoka. A couple band members are drinking from bottles water. One is nursing a beer. But they’re all chatting with audience members about their favourite songs or about music in general. One of the singers is trying to rustle up a fishing trip for the next day. A few feet away, Read more
Muskoka
GRAVENHURST, ONTARIO – In one corner is a mock-up of the glorious Segwun steamship, symbol of Muskoka. In the other corner is a fabulous re-creation of an old-time Muskoka resort, complete with a front porch. In the middle are wonderful old-style postcards and a gleaming wooden boat from the days when craftsmanship was more than a marketing buzzword. Mary Patterson, a delightful historian, is giving me a tour of the Muskoka Boat and Heritage Centre on the Gravenhurst waterfront. It’s a fun spot with interactive displays that not only show wonderful wares but tells great stories of both society’s elite Read more
I’m lucky enough to have called Canada home for 34 years now. And I’ve been lucky enough to have visited many of its precious and beautiful corners, from Bonavista to Vancouver Island. Here’s a look at the provinces (plus the Yukon) I’ve made it to so far. Happy Canada Day one and all.
The “gallumph” sound of water bouncing off ancient rock covered in pretty patterns of moss and lichen. The way the sun gleams on the surface of a shimmering lake. A solitary pine tree, bent with the wind and eking out a living on a rocky islet. Not to mention great food, golf, sunset boat excursions, shopping, swimming, lake tours on the Segwun or Wenonah steamships, friends, quiet hikes, diving loons and old wooden boats varnished to a glossy sheen. Come summer, there’s no place on earth I’d rather be than Muskoka. I’m lucky enough to have three good friends with Read more
This is getting harder. Now that I’m travelling a lot more (and not tied to the desk as much as when I was the Toronto Star Travel editor, a post I left in August, 2013), my year-end “Jimmy Awards” are proving a little more tricky. I did a fair bit of travelling in Canada this year, hitting all the provinces except Newfoundland and New Brunswick. Which means I have a great many more things to single out than in previous years. Which is why I’m splitting up the Jimmy’s into two categories: Canada and the rest of the world. I’ll Read more
