Muskoka Anyone?
Trip Start
Feb 21, 2007
1
22
48
Trip End
Ongoing
Rosseau,
Ontario,
Canada
Saturday, August 11, 2007
My mum and dad have houseguests from Hungary. My dad's cousin and his wife. I refer to the group of them as The Hungarians b/c they are so very distinct! The group of them together represents their country exceptionally well! Actually, it's been great b/c both my brother and I have been practicing the language we learned first on this planet and we're not bad. Surprising to say he's better than me!
So the night before we strapped on the canoe, loaded in all the fishing gear, chucked in a change of clothes and a whack of music and we were ready for the road! I love a road trip though I hate being stuck in traffic. Upon approaching Barrie we got in a jam. Thousands of people that have the same idea as us. Go figure! Traffic is only good in one way and that's perspective. It makes the beauty of nature just that much better, and nature is already The Best.
Onward and forward. We were approaching Shelburne and the massive wind-styles took over the landscape.The Shelburne Wind Energy Project is really impressive. Upon first look it's like a scene from War of the Worlds! These HUGE wind-styles with their incredibley huge blades spinning away just outside of the town. They aren't allowed to sell the energy privately, but if they have leftover power they sell it back to the grid. Getting off the grid is key, so I asked Jer if we could built one of these beauties at home. He said "Sure, you got $100,000?" Um, nope. If I did I'd being going just a bit farther than the Muskokas! Might have to wait awhile for that. It'd be a great community project tho!
05 War of the Worlds!
Then we got into the frenzy that was Shelburne. Thousands of people were lining the streets for the 58th Canadian Open Old Time Fiddle Championship. Now, I love the fiddle, and so does Jer so we were a little crushed that we didn't have time to jump out and stomp our feet along with the rest of the crowd but we've noted it for next year if we're around.Getting past Barrie was great. You can go via the 401 which takes you through Toronto and then over to the 400 which leads to the beautiful northern parts of Ontario, but it's a nightmare too. Just say "401" to any native and see them cringe. Some people say "go early and miss the traffic" but there's always traffic! Traffic on the 401 is, well, think of any insanely busy highway and you'll know what I mean. Stop-and-go is not conducive to having a canoe strapped to your car, that's for sure.
06 Ontario Farm
After our trusty back way (avoiding the 401) we hit Barrie for a bit of heavy traffic but after Barrie it cleared right up, the lanes gave way to a wide, open road and we were both happy, with smiles on our faces, wind blowing through and ofcourse, car tunes. Getting closer to Rosseau we passed these huge rocks and boulders that were blasted through to make way for a new road. Upon the massive rocks were tons of Inukshuks, small and large. Very cool to feel the presence of First Nations people. Their culture is something to be admired and cherished. ~
"Inukshuk (singular), meaning "likeness of a person" in Inuktitut (the Inuit language) is a stone figure made by the Inuit. The plural is inuksuit. The Inuit make inuksuit in different forms and for different purposes: to show directions to travelers, to warn of impending danger, to mark a place of respect, or to act as helpers in the hunting of caribou."
~
Now, taking photos from the car is not the most ideal but I tried! I didn't get a good Inukshuk shot tho. :( I do however love the movement you can get in your photos. If you're not bouncing around! Looks pretty cool if you time them right. Some just end up looking like vibrant,wild paintings.
14 Rosseau!
We beat the Hungarians and got to the Osbourne's cottage where they were waiting to show us around. Mr Osbourne built the cottage on his own and once he heard that Jeremy built our house I thought we were never getting out of there! The cottage was really nice. The details he carefully designed added his own personal touch which was cool. Once you've built your own house you can't go into another and not check out the details. Impossible.
Off went the Osbourne's and off we went to crack a couple of cold ones (oh, maybe I do like priorities!) and get the canoe off the truck and down into the lake. The Hungarians showed shortly after and were thrilled. The surrounding deck and dock on the water gave way to a beautiful vista of lake and island.
We were raring to go! We had a bite, took the canoe to the dock and plopped it in. Grabbed the rods, bait and tackle and headed out immediately. The lake is stunning. Just to be out in the center of it made me feel so, well, peaceful. It takes life down a few notches, just enough to see everything that's really important and weed out the bullshit. I love being outdoors, especially on th water. There's just nothing else like it. I am a water baby. Again, the conversation of moving up north came about. Some day it might be a reality.
16 Jeremy Waiting for The Big One
We caught nothing but nice tans and it was still excellent. We ended up exploring this really cool island in the middle of the lake. The Osbourne's neighbor had bought it so no one would develop on it. We pulled the canoe onto land and hopped out. We had brought along a few beers in the cooler and sat back and soaked up the view. We hiked around the island and I was cursing myself b/c I hadn't brought the camera! I forgot to get a disposable. Hey, if you catch a monster you don't want your good camera cuz you never know how it's all going to go down (or under!). Grr! So more piccies next time.
We set up at the end of the dock with some wine. I was SO thrilled!! That night we were in the middle of the Perseid Meteor Shower!!! No way! How lucky! I have never seen anything so incredibly beautiful. (I've not seen the Northern Lights yet!) In the first half hour we saw 13 falling stars and alot of them lasted forever! I could barely contain my excitement! Lucky, lucky, lucky! It was RAINING STARS! Shame I couldn't find my tripod. She's still packed away somewhere. Jer was laughing at me the whole time. I'm like a child, the way I get so excited about the small things :) There I was, totally thrilled, gesticulating wildly, pointing at everything. I guess I can be a bit of a nut....
Jen! Momma, you would have loved it!!! :)
The next day was more of the same fun stuff. A long swim in the warm water, more fishing, back to the island and some breakfast and lunch in between. After dinner time we had to jet. We said our goodbyes to The Hungarians with the promise that we would return the next weekend. I wanted pictures on the water and of the island too so there was even more of a bonus.
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Living in the city can sometimes drive a person to a point where it can be difficult to remember all the great things about our planet b/c we just don't see the beauty as often, but more of the concrete jungle and urban scramble. This did the trick. I would have been happy with even one day. We felt completely refreshed. Sometimes when you have alot going on in your life a day or two away can make the biggest difference.We headed back for a big push week and decide to take off Friday afternoon and go back up.
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See you soon Muskokas :)
