MUSKOKA MEMORIES

We redeemed our gift certificate today for a tour aboard the aptly named Muskoka Memories, a 1960 22' Shepherd runabout. Jeremy Fowler of Butson's Boat Shop took us to Port Sandfield to enjoy ice cream, before cruising into Lake Joseph and returning by the river. We had an awesome time, another one for our Muskoka memories.
[Thank you Jeremy for a great tour and for taking our photograph.]

CARAMIA SECRET

I came across this lovely vessel during my travels today, docked at a cottage on Lake Rosseau in the bay below Port Sandfield. I tried but couldn't find any information on it, other than learning that Cara Mia means "my beloved" in Italian and is also the name of a popular song first from 1954 and again in 1965. Do you know the Caramia Secret?

SPRING EQUINOX

It's officially the start of the Spring Equinox and the end of March Break. At the bridge at Port Sandfield the channel is already open and the lake is awakening from its winter hibernation. Beyond the dock with its No Wake Zone sign, sheets of ice struggle to survive against the advancing water and each passing day of the calendar.

BOATIQUE

In addition to the usual marine services, the Port Sandfield Marina offers various merchandise and clothing apparel in their boathouse or boatique as they always share the space with two antique boats. In the foreground is an unnamed Greavette, rumoured to belong to Kurt Russell, and in the further slip is the Scud II, a Minett-Shields.

SEEING STARS

Many cottagers and visitors hope to catch a glimpse of some of the celebrity stars known in the area but for this cottager they are more interested in the celestial stars. Their boathouse, on Lake Rosseau and seen from the bridge at Port Sandfield, includes an observatory that features a 12" Meade LX200 telescope with GPS for alignment.
[Click here to view some photographs taken using this same model.]

THE MUSKOKAS

Muskoka is derived from Mesqua Ukie, the Ojibwa leader associated with the area during the 1800's. He was highly revered and his name deserves to be honoured, however sadly the area is often referred to incorrectly as the Muskokas, a name synonymous with the Hamptons and an aberration from its true meaning and First Nation's heritage.

HIBERNATION

The Port Sandfield Market during hibernation, the only ice out in the canal beside it. The market, with its ice cream cones and bakery is a favourite stop for cottagers and residents alike. Established in 1923, the store sits on the site of the old Prospect House, a popular resort over a century ago, and one of the many that met its demise by fire.

TINTANIC

I was amused by the name of this boat at first, and found it ironic when I noticed the ice off its starboard bow. Three years after the real Titanic sank, Port Sandfield was home to the invention of the Dippy, a wooden boat specially designed that its propellor retracts automatically if it should accidently run into an underwater hazard.