It got up to 8 degrees C today, and really quite lovely, but we have some work to do to get all this ice and snow out of here. Other than today, our high temps have been -2 or so with night temperatures 10 degrees below that. Lake Muskoka is still totally ice-covered, so the … Read more
There is a way to tell that it is spring in Muskoka. It is subtle, but encouraging because, you may know that we still have lots of snow here in Muskoka and we need encouragement. But we have light, more light, and I love light! Steve and I walk the dogs late every afternoon. Until … Read more
Many times in the past, at work in Toronto, Chicago, Orlando, or Boston, I’d hear about spring equinox (night and day of approximately equal length) and begin to wonder how conditions were at our Muskoka cottage. In case you are at work planning for spring at the cottage, I have an update for you. Depending … Read more
Most are anticipating spring now, but it seems to still be about a week away before any sort of warmup. Some folks though, are having way too much fun, still enjoying beautiful winter weather. We were out yesterday, delivering Cottage Life Show tickets to some of our clients (now all friends actually) along with Catharine’s … Read more
The single most important thing you can do to protect the value of your Muskoka cottage waterfront property investment is to protect the water quality of your lake. One of the best ways to help sustain/improve water quality in your lake is to ensure you have a natural shoreline and a buffer zone; an area … Read more
Many years ago my Grandmother won a contest with Toronto radio station CKEY (now long gone). I think you had to write in, and the best story about signs of spring won. The prize was a ride in the radio station’s traffic helicopter during a weekday rush hour. Grannie’s story was something about the pussy … Read more
Up to Tasso Lake off Limberlost Rd. for a home (cottage) inspection early this morning. We had 12 degrees C yesterday, back to a more seasonal -12 degrees C tonight. But have a look at how beautiful Tasso Lake is on a winter morning before freeze-up. Tasso Lake is only about 2 kilometres from Algonquin … Read more
I’m sure the Bonnet Chest isn’t only a Canadian phenomenon. But, if you Google it, you will get lots of Canadian, and only a few US links. Even Wikipedia doesn’t know about them; searching for bonnet chest there will get you nothing. They are not mentioned in the otherwise excellent: The Heritage of Upper Canadian … Read more
Now, 10 days or so into fall, we are still completely busy with real estate, almost. I was able to get out sailing today from 3 till dusk. With the sun setting before seven now, and me still used to long summer evenings, dusk seemed to come quickly along with cold winds. Three in the … Read more
I just finished the final edit and posted a couple of videos to YouTube that I shot back in July: Muskoka Minutes Slog, Muskoka Minutes Zoe. The idea behind Muskoka Minutes is to show work being done by scientists and others in the field here in Muskoka on the Muskoka Watershed Council’s YouTube Channel. More … Read more