Purists

We see LOTS of snowshoes here over the course of the winter. More and more, we're seeing the 'new fangled' ones made from metal and plastic -- light weight, with excellent traction, affordable and tough. Nothing wrong with progress...

But from time to time, the purists arrive, with the snowshoes that you simply cannot match these days for good looks, classic lines. Snowshoes that whisper about untouched woodlands and wild places and the sheer elegance of form meeting function.

Jennifer has such a pair of snowshoes. Doug admits that his finally succumbed to the years, and he had to invest in a new set. His are, well, shall we say, semi-pure? Certainly a good compromise, and easy to maintain.

One of the first settlers here on Lake of Bays was Tom Salmon. He was born in 1850, in India -- where his father was in charge of the 57th Native Bengal regiment, in Simla. In fact, this was the Regimant that began the Indian Mutiny, 1857 - 1859. Tom was whisked out of danger by one of his father's faithful Sihks. The Colonel himself avoided being killed with his brother officers because he was in the hospital, with a case of whooping cough. That saved his life, and he was invalided to England, along with his family. England was far too small to hold Tom for long - he went to sea with ports of call in Africa, China, and all in between. In his 30's he found himself in Canada -- and decided to stay. Liking far places, he started walking into virgin territory, and eventually fetched up on the Lake of Bays, on a rocky peninsula with a fox sitting out on the point. He named it (wait for it) Fox Point, and became one of the first settlers in these parts. From the local Indians, he learned to make bark canoes, paddles -- and snowshoes.

Tom Salmons' snowshoes were famous as far away as Russia, Norway and the Klondike. If you were lucky enough to get a pair, they soon became family heirlooms.
Tommy's mark was easy to recognize -- stamped into the snowshoes, the paddles, the bow of the canoe. You can still find some of his work around the Lake of Bays -- but the purists, the true purists who are fortunate enough to treasure his handiwork, usually keep the items hanging on a wall.

They, like Doug, have bowed a little toward progress and ease of maintenance. But, like Jennifer, won't sacrifice the sheer beauty of the snowshoe... We think Tommy, who was once a playmate of Rudyard Kipling, would be pleased.

Dorset Snowball -- What a Party!

February signals the best of the Winter Carnivals, with two right here in Lake of Bays. Dorset kicks off the festivals with the 19th annual SNOWBALL, February 20 and 21st.

This has to be among the very best of Canada's small town winter celebrations. The fun kicks off with a parade, complete with a Town Crier, and it just gets better and better. There's a big wildlife twist to the Dorset Snowball -- the Birds of Prey from the Wye Marsh are there for a demonstration, and there's an old-time Trappers Tent and Wildlife Caller Steve Morrin. Culture gets a big boost, too, with a Drumming and Rhythm Circle, Stone Carving Workshop and Dorset's own clay artist Tara Gilchrist demonstrating her process. There's a chainsaw carving demo as wellHistory gets a nod at the Dorset Museum - with sleigh rides along main street and the added attraction of Andrews team of Oxen reinforcing our links to our past.>


Try your hand at games -- the Snow Snake is always popular. The younger set can even ride their own snowmobiles on the Kitty Kats, and there's just no end to the fun happening on the Skating rink.

Toss in the fact that Robinson's world famous general store has a big clothing sale on that same weekend, and there are rides on ReMax' tethered balloon...

Oh heck, there's too much to list here. Check out their site to find out all the action at Snowball

Better yet, put it in your daytimer. This is one carnival you truly do not want to miss!

Of Owls and Education

Blog readers may have noted that back in July, en route to the local Regatta, Nancy came into possession of the remains of a Barred Owl that had been hit by a car. (not hers!) Since the bird was banded, a roadside decision was made to get the owl to the good folks at Algonquin Park, who would know where the information belonged. So our little owl spent the Regatta day well wrapped in plastic in the freezer at Port Cunnington Lodge, and was later whisked away to the Park. At the very least, her sad death would not go un-noted, and might contribute to a study of owls and their behaviour.

Well, this week, we received a certificate of appreciation from The Canadian Wildlife Service, USGS, Science for a Changing World. Seems our little owl was a lady, born in 2005, and banded near Swindon, Ontario by a Mrs. McKeever September 8. She was a healthy owl -- death by misadventure and automobile. Given our 'druthers', she'd still be in our hills, hooting at us, but at least there is a tiny bit more information now about owls and their migratory patterns.

Many years ago, people used to kill owls, and other birds, so they could have them stuffed and displayed in the living room. My aunt was a terror for this, and I remember being afraid as a child to go into her cottage because of all the dead animals and birds that loomed from the rafters. But that was then. This is now.

Except ... several years back, we came into possession of a very old case of owls. Literally, a case, a corner case to be precise, stuffed full of stuffed owls. The provenance was that it had come from the estate of someone on the Great Lakes, a lighthouse keeper, and the date scribbled in pencil looked like 1878. Since the same estate sale included stuffed ducks that became extinct as species about that time, it seemed to fit. Nancy didn't want it to end up in a landfill, so she bought it and brought it home.

As Brian says, her entire house is a conversation piece...













Rick, one of the Conservation Wizards from Algonquin Park and our Point Man in the Barred Owl caper, rode again to the rescue. The owl collection has gone to the Park, for possible display. (Of course, they need to do some science to ensure that it is not carrying any little nasty bugs that would damage their millions of dollars worth of display animals) but initial signs are positive. We hope the owls will find a home there, where people can learn more about owls from a close-up look, and where no more owls ever need to be harmed. We're all for education, and we so hate to see wasted lives.

Did you know, for example, that the Barred Owl is the only owl with brown eyes? Here's a link where you can not only see, but hear one of these wonderful owls, with their distinctive Who Cooks for You? call.

By the way, in that case? There's a Great Horned Owl, a Long eared owl, a Screech and a Saw-Whet. Not a Barred Owl in sight.

Brian 'goes Viral' on the net

Last spring, our good friend Gord from Beauview Cottages dropped by with his video camera,and filmed Brian, Dave, and our good buddy Peter making Maple Taffy in the snow.

We are informed that this little video has gone global -- that it has been viewed all the way around the world, and now that Nancy has high-speed, we're adding it as a link to our own Blog, so even more folk can see it!

People who track this sort of information also told us that our photograph of Anchor Cottage in winter, as featured on our Resort Website, enjoyed a month in 2008 when it was the among the most fequently downloaded images on the net. Who knows why this would be...
(well, heck, we know... it's because it's one of the most beautiful places on the planet!!! but then, we may be biased)

Maple sugar season is still weeks away -- the sap doesn't run until late March, and April, but that's no reason not to turn our thoughts to the sweetest season of them all!

Enjoy!

CLIP THAT COUPON!

February has arrived, with glorious sunshine, and the kind of winter weather that just makes you want to cheer winter on.

Years ago, when snowmobiles were first making their appearance on the planet, local tourist booster Bob Palmer ran a campaign -- "Think SNOW! Help Stamp Out Summer!" We still have the promotional buttons, tucked away. This is the kind of weather Bob had in mind!

Today, with the sun streaming down, and the thermometer climbing up, was PERFECT for all outdoor activities, including those of the very youngest.

And there's lots more winter to come. So here's the deal: If you book with us in February, (a new booking!) and you QUOTE THIS BLOG POST, we'll give you a 10% discount. (we may ask you a trick question, just to be sure you read the Post!)

What are you waiting for? We've got your winter...

A Howling of Wolves

Followers of the Bondi Blog already know about our summer wolf howls, how Nancy was such a howling success with our guests (and with the local wolf pack) during August, September, October and even November.
Come December, the wolves just weren't answering. There are reasons for this, that have nothing to do with the quality of Nancy's wolf karaoke skills.

Our wolf pack is still here. We frequently see tracks along the ski trails, and from time to time we'll find the evidence of a kill site. Sometimes the resident Bald Eagle leads us to this tell-tale area. It is so rare to see a track that still has a wolf standing in it, however. That said, Sharon, from The Beacon, saw a wolf loping along the snowmobile trail near Marsh's Falls on Saturday!

And just because the wolves aren't answering our call doesn't mean you can't hear them. Through the magic of the internet, we're going to introduce you to a great website: The Science Behind Algonquin's Animals.
Informative, fun -- and if you follow the link into the wolf research section, you can hear a wolf howl right in your own living room.

It's admittedly not the same as standing on the lawn at Bondi, under a summer sky full of stars, with the pack answering from the corner of the bay. But it's the best we can do in January!

S'GHETTI!

This Thursday, February 5th, from 5 till 7 p.m., drop by the Dwight Community Centre for Spaghetti Day!
Proceeds from the feast go to support the Dwight Winter Carnival, coming up at the end of the month. For $9.95/adult, $4.95/child, or $25/family of 4, you get spaghetti & meatballs, caesar salad, garlic bread -- all sponsored by Nor'Loch Lodge (and those folks know how to cook!)

See you there!