MUSKOKA DRY

It didn't stay dry for much of the Antique Car Show in Gravenhurst today, raindrops collecting on Muskoka Dry's vintage Dodge flatbed like beads of condensation on a bottle of ice cold Pale Ginger Ale on a hot day. Their famous soft drink, produced since 1873, remains a novelty with my boys and me, a treat we enjoy when they visit here.

THE CROSS

The cross, standing guard at the base of Bala Falls, bears life saving equipment donated by the Bala & District Lions Club, and is a grim reminder of the people that drown in these waters every year. The levels of every waterfall in the region are very high, exacerbated by the heavy rainfall and runoff accumulations of the past two months.

BOATHOUSE ROW

A panoramic shot was necessary to capture this row of boathouses, made up from single level tinnies, behind the Residence Inn. Due to their delapidated appearance they are considered an eyesore to the new Muskoka Wharf development, however a subsidized renovation proposal has, like my son Stirling, caused ripples, among the locals.

REFLECTIONS

The following morning dawned clear and hot, allowing me to get this glowing reflection of the Muskoka Boat & Heritage Centre, adjacent to the Residence Inn. The museum, built like a reflection of earlier boathouses, features in addition to its permanent exhibits, several antique boats that owners are proud to display on a rotational basis.

FIERY ENDS

A fiery sunset brings the evening to a close over the boats and the row of boathouses behind the Residence Inn. It is also the resting place of the Sagamo, Muskoka's largest steamship whose years of service came to a fiery end in 1969, its twisted steel hull partially exposed among the concrete debris and foliage in the foreground.