Tag Archives: cottage

Watching the Ice Melt is a Canadian Pastime of Spring

watching the ice melt is a canadian pastime of spring
A seat in the sun as winter comes to an end.

Who is ready for spring? This was not the harshest of winters to live through however it did feel like the longest due to the pandemic. We are hardy people and have gotten through it – yay! The Oxford English Dictionary says a pastime is “a diversion or recreation which serves to pass the time agreeably; an activity done for pleasure rather than work…”. That kind of sums up the scene here. Grab a hot chocolate, sit in the sun, and watch the ice melt.

Comet NEOWISE C/2020 F3 Passing By Earth

comet neowise c-2020 f3 passing by earth
Comet NEOWISE on July 24, 2020 at around 11pm over the cottages

Comet NEOWISE was discovered only in March of this year using the Neowise space telescope.  Astronomers have determined its route brings it back to Earth in roughly 7,000 more years – really???  Here we are July 24, one day after it’s closest position to our planet, with a perfectly clear sky and no moon.  I’m outside at 10pm  scanning the sky with binoculars to find this comet and for the first half nothing…  I had read it will appear below the Big Dipper and still nothing.  More time passes and now its really dark and then BAM!! There it is and I can see it with the naked eye and with the binoculars…  holy smoke that’s cool!

Cottage Life On North Muldrew Lake, Gravenhurst

cottage life muskoka north muldrew lake sunset blue hour
Can someone call up Cottage Life magazine and tell them we have their next front cover right here? Sometimes the lighting and mother nature just works in your favor… Very thankful to our friends for hosting us this weekend at their cottage on North Muldrew Lake, south of Gravenhurst.  Sunset was at 4:56pm and this is around 5:15pm Saturday, during a period called blue hour. It works particularly well when there is fresh white snow to reflect the light.  Going to print this on canvas as a thank you gift!

Inside A Really Hot Wood Burning Stove

hot fire wood burning stove firewood
How does 500 deg F. sound? Stuffed the stove with 7 logs to heat the cottage a few weeks ago and then thought the flame would make a fascinating picture. There is nothing like a hot fire, glass of wine, and time with the family on snowy winter weekend.

Milky Way seen rising over cottage on Bay Lake, Muskoka

milky way over cottage on bay lake muskoka
The first week August at our friends cottage on Bay Lake, Muskoka, enjoying the night time view of the milky way and stars while sitting by the fire.

Spectacular Colors On Bigwin Island at Dorset, Lake Of Bays

dorset-lake-of-bays-muskoka-fall-colorsThanksgiving weekend looking out toward Bigwin Island on Lake of Bays, from the Dorset public pier.  Fall colors were at their peak, with spectacular reds, yellows, oranges, and deep purples.  Another reason to love life in Canada!

Still Winter At Bay Lake Cottages

still winter at bay lake cottages
Surprise! April 15 and we find 2 feet of snow at our friends cottage. We planned to open it up for the summer, however found ourselves tobogganing down the driveway, building snowmen and having snowball fights. Highlight was having a drink on the snow covered dock, in a Muskoka chair, surrounded by frozen Bay Lake.

Glowing Cottage in A Winter Wonderland

glowing muskoka cottage in a winter wonderland
What a difference a year makes! This is new year’s eve coming into 2015, with a fresh 2 ft of snow – so much fell that we chose to stay another day to play outside. Fast forward to this new year, and while we absolutely had lots of fun with our friends, it did not look quite like this. Happy new year to all.